The Bank of Italy has been conducting a sample survey on Italy's international tourism since 1996. The survey, which contributes to the compilation of the "services" item of the balance of payments, collects data on tourism expenditure, inbound and outbound visitors and the main characteristics of the trip. The annual report is available in the Statistics series, starting in 2017.
The results of the survey, based on interviews and counts of resident and non-resident travelers transiting through Italy's borders, point to an increase in both tourism receipts and expenditure in 2021 relative to the previous year; however both flows were about half of their levels in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. In 2021 the recovery in Italy's international tourism receipts was stronger than that worldwide, leading to an increase in its market share.
