Based on the analysis of data from the Interior Ministry’s web hosted platform, in the first half of 2026 there was a notable increase in tourism in Italy, with an overall growth in arrivals of 4.43% compared to the same period of 2025 across the entire national territory. The regions that showed the most significant results are: Calabria: +10.54%, Umbria: +9.70%, Piedmont: +9.22%, Other regions such as Sardinia (+8.24%), Puglia (+7.43%) and Liguria (+6.56%) also contributed to this positive trend. As regards specifically the domestic component, an increase in arrivals of 1.97% was recorded, with peaks in Umbria (+13.64%) and Liguria (+8.89%).
Boom in foreigners, Calabria at the top with +23.19%
Instead, for arrivals from abroad the increase was 6.45% compared to 2025. The regions that benefited most from this boost from international tourism include: Calabria +23.19%, Puglia: +14.63%, Abruzzo: +14.04%, Molise: +13.14%, Basilicata: +11.55%, Sardinia: +11.44%, Piedmont: +10.38%. Finally, it should be noted that non-hotel tourism recorded an increase of 7.46%, while hotel structures saw a growth of 2.27%.
The «Lodging web» database of the Ministry of the Interior is managed by the State Police and allows managers of accommodation, hotel and non-hotel facilities to fulfill the obligation established by article 109, paragraph 3 of the Consolidated Law on Public Security Laws, a rule which prescribes transmitting the details of the people staying at their facility to the competent police headquarters within 24 hours of their arrival.
Occhiuto: “The challenge now is to consolidate these numbers”
“In recent years, tourism in Calabria continues to grow with increasingly significant numbers and the data released today by the Interior Ministry give us – underlined the President of the Region, Roberto Occhiuto – yet another important confirmation. In the first half of 2026, Calabria is the Italian region that records the greatest increase in overall tourist arrivals, with a +10.54%, and is also the first for growth in foreign visitors, who increase by 23.19%. These are numbers that they certify a now structural growth trend and which reward the work carried out in recent years to make Calabria more connected, accessible, attractive and competitive. Today our region is an increasingly recognized and appreciated destination, in Italy and abroad. With these results, Calabria contributes significantly to the growth of national tourism and confirms itself as one of the most dynamic territories in the entire Italian tourism sector.
Meloni: “Great work by the entire tourism sector”
«Italy confirms itself at the top of European tourism also for summer 2026. A result that rewards the beauty of our nation, the quality of our offer and the great work of the entire tourism sector». Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated this on social media. «Thanks to the entrepreneurs, workers and operators in the sector who every day contribute to making Italy an increasingly attractive and competitive destination. The Government – he adds – will continue to do its part to support a strategic sector for our economy and for the growth of the Nation”.
Calabrese: “A winning strategy that opened Calabria to the world”
“The data released by the Ministry of Tourism, processed on the basis of the Alloggiati web platform of the Ministry of the Interior, which certify for Calabria a growth in tourist arrivals of 10.54% in the first half of 2026, the highest in Italy, and an exceptional +23.19% of foreign tourists, represent objective confirmation that the path taken by the Region in recent years is the right one.” This was declared by the regional councilor for Tourism, Giovanni Calabrese.
“This result is not the result of chance, but of a strategic vision strongly desired by President Roberto Occhiuto, who has returned the centrality to tourism as a fundamental lever of the economic development of Calabria. In recent years we have worked with determination to change the narrative of our region, replacing a narrative too often conditioned by stereotypes with positive, credible and modern communication, capable of enhancing the immense natural, historical, cultural, archaeological, identity and food and wine heritage of Calabria.
“A decisive role – underlines Calabrese – was played by the intense promotional activity carried out on the main tourist markets through a qualified presence in the most important national and international trade fairs. We have brought Calabria back as a protagonist in the major events of world tourism, building relationships with tour operators, buyers, airlines, journalists and operators in the sector. We have presented an authentic, welcoming and competitive Calabria, capable of offering unique experiences at any time of the year: from the sea to the national parks, from the cycle routes to the paths, from the mountains to the villages, from archeology to major events, to extraordinary agri-food excellences. Alongside promotion, President Occhiuto’s choice to courageously invest in the Calabrian airport system was decisive. The important agreements signed with airlines, in particular with low-cost carriers, together with the strengthening of regional airports, have finally made Calabria accessible as it had never been before permanently on international tourist circuits. Making a destination easily accessible means making it competitive, and the data tells us that this choice has been a winning one. The exceptional increase of 23.19% in arrivals from abroad is the clearest demonstration of the effectiveness of this strategy, supported by the policies of the Ministry of Tourism and the careful and decisive work of ENIT. More and more visitors choose Calabria because they know it, reach it easily and discover a land that offers authenticity, quality of hospitality and a unique heritage in the Italian panorama. Today, being the Italian region with the greatest growth in tourist arrivals represents a source of pride, but above all the confirmation that investments in promotion, infrastructure, accessibility and quality of offer produce development, employment and new opportunities”.
“We will continue – concludes Councilor Calabrese – to work with the same determination to consolidate these results, deseasonalize the flows and further strengthen Calabria’s positioning on the national and international markets. These results belong to the whole of Calabria: to the tourism entrepreneurs, the hospitality operators, the mayors, the associations, the local communities and to all those who work every day with professionalism and passion to make this sector grow. Our sincere thanks go to them. This is the Calabria that is growing, making itself known in the world and demonstrating, with numbers, that it has undertaken a path of concrete and irreversible change”.