the holiday rental market | Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

The term 'Bed and Breakfast', or B&B, refers to a type of informal tourist accommodation. Generally, this choice is cheaper than classic hotels and offers the possibility of renting entire flats or individual rooms. These private accommodations are upgraded houses that are often made available to tourists as a form of income for the renter. This type of solution does not offer lunch and dinner services but only breakfast, making it a convenient solution when the stay is only a few days.

At a global level, given the globalization and the speed and ease with which it is possible to travel, the market has good growth expectations despite the period of arrest due to the pandemic.

In Italy, due to the great number of tourists, the Bed and Breakfast market has had very positive results since its birth. Today the number of B&Bs is about 30,000 equally divided between Northern Italy and Central-Southern Italy. Almost half of the accommodations are open all year round, while the remainder, especially in tourist resorts, works seasonally. On average, a single B&B in Italy offers 350 overnight stays per year at an average cost of 35 euro per person. The number of workers in the sector in Italy is about 45,000. 

In the last two years the market in terms of numbers has been severely affected by the pandemic, which, due to various closures, has sharply decreased, if not cancelled, the presence of tourism in the country. Despite this recent trend, the sector is expected to continue to grow as it is one of the most flexible and convenient ways of stay as a tourist. Recently, the 'long term rental' formula, has been very successful. This formula allows to book a flat for longer periods of time (months) than just a few days or weeks.