Sojern's analysis to intercept demand for our destinations is positive, but after two difficult years it's time to control investments
ITALY – May 5 2022 – Positive tourist trends, different in terms of flow, with a greater tendency towards domestic and European holidays: this is what emerges from the analysis of travel intentions by Sojern, world leader among digital marketing platforms for tourism. More than ever, tourism businesses need to know demand with precision in order to focus their investments in the best possible way.
Italy is in an excellent position in the European context: with 17% of preferences it is the second destination chosen by travellers, after Spain, taking into account bookings until March 2022. Rome ranks at 2% of preferences and is the eighth most popular destination in Europe, followed immediately by Sardinia.
Italy is the second favourite destination in Europe also for American tourists, a really important long-range market for our incoming tourism. For American travellers Rome represents the real ideal: with 10% of preferences it is the second most popular destination in Europe, followed by Milan (3%) and Venice (2%), which are positioned in 10th and 14th place.
It is different for the Middle Eastern markets which, for the first time after the pandemic, show an important interest in Italy in the European context. For them Italy is in fourth place among the favourite destinations in Europe with 7% of preferences In first place for this market is Milan with 3% of the preference, which is at number 10 in the ranking of the most popular European destinations for summer 2022, followed by Rome at number 14 in the ranking with 2% of the preference.
This summer will certainly be different from those of the previous two years, for the first time comparable to 2019, now considered in tourism the year zero economically speaking.
Travel intentions are 35% domestic, 32% European and 34% long-haul non-European.
"Searches to book a holiday in Italy from the USA started this year with a significant drop of -45% on 2019 but immediately reached parity around the first days of February and +20% stable throughout February until the outbreak of the war which marks, for Italy, only a small temporary decrease, but still a steady recovery compared to 2019. At the moment, people in the US who are searching the web for a trip to Italy are increasing" says Luca Romozzi, sales director Europe.
What doesn't change, however, is people's constant search for destinations and airline flights in every month of the year, a trend that was gaining momentum in 2019 and will become increasingly important in 2022. Deseasonalization is now a fact.
This means that you have to constantly and continuously try to attract travelers regardless of events outside of tourism. "The paradox is that you always have to invest a bit to save on marketing investments in order to win over the traveler, who is the same as in 2019, but has only changed his buying behaviors," declares Luca Romozzi.
For Sojern, the key is the study of algorithms from social media to the internet to smart TV, everything tells us about a consumer who is increasingly defined in real time.
About Sojern
Sojern is a leading digital marketing platform built for travel marketers. Powered by artificial intelligence and traveller intent data, Sojern provides multichannel marketing solutions to drive direct demand. Thousands of hotels, attractions, tourism boards and travel marketers rely on Sojern annually to engage and convert travellers around the world.
