Italian villa rentals: new trends from tourism world

Are you planning to spend your next winter holiday in Italy? This is the right choice, because in this period Italy offers wonderful landscapes and magical atmosphere, especially in the snowy areas of the country, where the local scenery looks like a nativity scene. If you want to spend a holiday with your family or your friends in Italy (or both as well), the best solution is choosing Italian villa rentals. In fact, in the last years, more and more foreign tourists prefer to take a villa for rent and spend a relaxing holiday abroad as they were at home. This particular phenomenon is what tourism experts and real estate agents call “villa tourism”, that is one of the very last trends in Italy.

The boom of villa tourism phenomenon is strictly linked to tour operators’ activities of the last years. They have started to propose villas for rent to foreign tourists going to Italy since 80’s and this trend has increased a lot in the last years. Most of foreign tourists today come from Unites States, Russia and Northern Italy, but in the last months many Ukrainian have discovered Italy and its wonderful landscapes as well. For this reason, Italy is becoming one of their most appreciated destinations for summer and winter holiday. But this is not everything: according to experts, the number of “villa tourists” (who choose to take a villa for rent and spend their holidays) coming from Brazil, South Corea and Chile will increase next year.

Among all the destinations of Italy, Tuscany is the top goal. It represents 50% of “villas tourism” market. At the second place, we find Umbria (14.4% of the villa tourism phenomenon). After that, we find Amalfi Coast (10.1%), where tourists normally choose the most enchanting and luxury areas. The fourth destination is Le Marche region (4.1%). Among the most appreciated destinations, we find Northern Italy Lakes (3.6%) and Liguria (2.9%). After the top destinations, we find other important Italian areas that are emerging in the holiday homes in Italy, such as Apulia, where tourists prefer choosing farmhouses and ancient manor farms for rent. Salento is the new entry of the last months and one of the most appreciated destinations. Tourists normally go to Italy in summer, especially in July and August, but in the last years many of them have chosen Italy for Christmas holidays as well and the trend is increasing.

Italian villa rentals trend is recording a great success in Italy (but also in other Mediterranean countries), because this kind of accommodation is the best way to enjoy the place and have relax. Tourists taking a villa for rent have the opportunity to feel free: they can manage their time as they prefer, they are not obliged to respect hotels’ timetable and rules, they can choose to live the house as they prefer, planning everything day by day. In other words, taking a villa for rent in Italy allows tourists to have all the comforts of a hotel and the familiar atmosphere of own home.

Ilaria Sabrini - teacher and blogger. I was born in the United States, but I've spend in Italy most of my life. I'm a language teacher and a travel blogger.