Wine Tourism Drives Growth in Italy as Global Wine Consumption Hits Historic Low

Despite a global decline in wine consumption, wine tourism in Italy is growing and is seen as a key strategy to support the country’s wine sector. This is the main finding of the report “Quando il vino incontra il turismo. Numeri e modelli delle cantine italiane,” prepared by Roberta Garibaldi, president of the Italian Association for Food and Wine Tourism (AITE), together with SRM Centro Studi e Ricerche, part of the Intesa Sanpaolo Group. The report was presented at Hospitality – Il Salone dell’Accoglienza, held in Riva del Garda.

The study analyzes the organization, investments, performance, and future prospects of Italian wineries involved in tourism. It compares Italy’s position with international benchmarks and identifies several factors that limit the sector’s full potential: low internationalization, strong seasonality, and fragmented territorial governance.

Globally, wine tourism is valued at $46.5 billion and is expanding as part of experiential travel. Europe holds 51% of this market, with France, Italy, and Spain as leading countries. Forecasts suggest an average annual growth rate of 12.9%, reflecting increasing demand for authentic experiences connected to local culture and sustainability. In contrast, global wine consumption has dropped to its lowest level since 1961. This makes wine tourism an “anti-cyclical” tool for wineries, helping them diversify income streams, boost direct sales, and build stronger relationships with visitors.

The report shows that most visitors to Italian wineries are domestic tourists or locals. Italians make up 55% of visitors, rising to 62% when including residents and nearby travelers. Foreign tourists account for only 32%. This pattern is consistent across both small and large wineries, indicating that limited internationalization is a structural issue rather than one related to business size.

Seasonality remains a challenge: spring and summer account for 68% of all visits. Unlike France, where autumn is often the busiest period due to harvest activities, Italian wineries see less traffic during this season. Many wineries also close during national holidays because of staffing or organizational constraints; only larger operations tend to remain open more consistently.

Territorial governance in Italian wine tourism is described as fragmented. Coordination currently involves multiple actors—consortia, regional authorities, food districts, wine routes associations, and the Wine Tourism Movement—often without integrated roles or strategies. However, there is willingness among businesses to collaborate: 62% would be ready to contribute financially to a public-private consortium focused on territorial marketing if effective governance were established.

Investment levels in the sector are high. Between 2022 and 2024, 77% of wine tourism businesses invested in their operations—a higher rate than seen in the hotel industry. On average, these investments exceed 14% of annual revenue and are even higher among smaller companies. While most funds go toward core winemaking activities, there is growing attention to innovation, sustainability, digital tools, accessibility, and improving visitor experiences. More than half of businesses plan further investments between 2025 and 2027.

The report links investment with better financial performance. In 2024, companies that invested had a median return on equity (ROE) of about 1.7%, compared to near zero for those that did not invest. Productivity per employee reached around €70,000 for investing firms versus just over €50,000 for others. The sector remains diverse: some clusters show revenue and asset growth above 25% from 2019 to 2024; others are more local and conservative but have room for improvement in organization and strategy.

Wine tourism also brings significant value to local areas. Each tourist visit generates over €150 in added value across agriculture, restaurants, services, retail, culture, and crafts. Building networks between businesses and destinations can help reduce seasonality, promote rural areas, and spread economic benefits more widely.

SRM estimates that increasing international tourist visits by at least 5% could generate an additional €1 billion for food and wine tourism through synergies with other themes such as culture or nature travel. In recent years at least half of all foreign tourist stays in Italy have been directly or indirectly linked to food and wine experiences—an estimated total of 132 million days.

Alessandra Albarelli, general director of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi, emphasized that wine tourism offers development opportunities “beyond the glass.” She warned that fragmentation could limit progress on internationalization and reducing seasonality but said trade fairs like Hospitality and FINE Italy provide important forums for building a more integrated and competitive ecosystem for Italian wine tourism.