ENIT at the ITB China trade fair in Shanghai

• Jelinic, ENIT’s CEO: “Incoming Chinese tourism in Italy is booming. Significant growth for the summer and the second half of the year”
• A 27% growth in arrivals from China is expected for the second half of 2025, together with an increase in package tour sales for the summer with peaks of +50%.
• Chinese travellers choose Italy for tourism and holidays, with a preference for art cities. In 2024, these visitors spent over 226 million euros on stays in Italy

Rome/Shanghai, 27 May 2025. Chinese outbound tourism has taken off again, recording extremely positive trends in 2024, up +44.6% on the previous year. Italy is one of the chosen and most popular destinations, which is why ENIT is participating in the ITB China trade fair in Shanghai, the top exhibition for the Chinese tourism market, bringing together more than 700 exhibitors from over 80 nations.

This is an important market for Italy’s tourist industry: in 2024 Chinese visitors to Italy reached around 176,000, up +24.7% compared to 2023, with a total of 2.4 million overnight stays (+14.1%) and overall expenditure of 226.6 million euros (+10.2%). The main reason for travelling is personal, with over 53% of tourists coming for holidays, followed by visits to relatives (16.2%) and study/training (12%). Chinese holidaymakers prefer cultural activities, with 70% choosing art cities as their destinations, generating around 81% of the total expenditure in Italy and 78.4% of all overnight stays. Almost 21% of visitors from China, on the other hand, came for professional reasons (Source: ENIT Research Department based on Banca d’Italia data).

The current year also looks encouraging, with a total of 67,680 airport arrivals in Italy from China between January and April 2025, an increase of 2.2% compared to the same period of 2024. Almost all passengers (96.3%) travel for tourism reasons, and the main departure cities are Shanghai and Beijing, jointly generating more than half the arrivals in Italy, with higher concentrations for stays of four to seven nights (37.9%) and two weeks (35.3%). Chinese tourists are arriving in large groups, 36.8% of which comprise 10 people. For the next six months of 2025, airport arrivals are estimated to grow by +27% compared to May-October 2024, with more than 96% of arrivals linked to tourism (Source: ENIT Research Department based on Forwardkeys data). According to the latest ENIT estimates, Chinese tour operators have also recorded an increase in sales to Italy for the summer period, with average increases of 22% compared to summer 2024 (with peaks of up to 50%). 

Among the packages sold, the circuit including art, leisure and family was particularly popular, with an increase of +30% for stays of 5 to 15 days, followed by sports and wellness-themed products (+20%). The most popular destinations for next summer include Milan, Turin, the Cinque Terre, Cortina, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Apulia, Sicily and the Dolomites.

“Italy is an attractive destination for the Chinese market, which chooses us for tourism in particular. Our country offers cultural, sporting and food & wine experiences, as well as shopping, luxury and wellness. 2025 is also recording booming numbers, and forecasts suggest that the trend will continue to improve. In the summer and second half of the year, we expect to welcome numerous tourists from China, spending on our facilities and local areas and generating added value for the entire community,” said Ivana Jelinic, CEO of ENIT, who opened the Italian stand at the fair alongside the Italian Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China, Massimo Ambrosetti.

ENIT is featuring at ITB China together with the Veneto Region (presenting an exhibition space within the Italian stand together with the Destination Verona & Garda Foundation, Cortina Marketing, the Belluno Dolomites DMO Foundation, OGD Terre Vicentine, the Verona Arena Foundation and Venice Marco Polo Airport), Trenitalia and 12 private operators.

What is more, in order to engage new generations of travellers who are young and hyper-connected, ENIT is organising two parallel events, the first in Shenzhen (China’s tech capital, one of the leading centres for economic expansion and cultural influence) and the second in Shanghai, to showcase travel content, tourist experiences and notes on international destinations via the most influential web and social platforms in the country.