The Covid-19 pandemic had a deeply negative impact on international tourism. By using mobile telephony data and information taken from the Bank of Italy's Survey on International Tourism, this paper estimates the effects on foreign tourism in Italy produced by local epidemiological conditions and by the containment measures that were adopted both in Italy and in the countries of departure, in relation to the characteristics of the journey and the tourist destination visited.
The number of foreign travellers has decreased less in provinces with a lower number of cases and for those travel typologies that ensure more effective social distancing (e.g. travelling by one's own means of transportation, choosing nature or seaside holidays, staying at a rental house or own home). Containing infections is therefore vital for the recovery of the tourism sector.
