3 days ago
Hotels, travel and beaches: How the cost of a holiday in Italy is rising this summer
The price of a summer holiday in Italy is rising once again this year, with hotels costing as much as 34 percent more in August than the summer season five years ago, according to financial newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore.
The average holidaymaker was set to pay 2.3 percent more for an Italy vacation in August 2025 compared to 2024, a study by consumer research centre Altroconsumo found.
The increase was far less marked than the hike seen between 2023 and 2024, when prices rose by up to 20 percent, but still maintained the upward trend.
Consumer rights watchdog Assoutenti said that high demand was 'encouraging operators to apply continuous increases in tariffs' that 'do not seem justified.'
The hikes are upending the longstanding Italian tradition of going away for a long holiday over the August break, said Assoutenti President Gabriele Melluso.
Instead, families are 'opting for shorter and more frequent trips spread over the months of June, July and September, when rates are decidedly cheaper,' he added.
Flights
Flights within Italy and to European countries were more expensive this year than in summer 2024, according to a study by Corriere della Sera newspaper, though the hikes weren't evenly distributed between June and September.
Tickets cost significantly more in June (11 percent) and August (nine percent domestic, 10 percent to European countries) of this year compared to the same months in 2024.
There were smaller increases in July (three percent domestic, 4.6 percent within Europe) and September (three percent domestic, 2.2 percent within Europe).
Flights between Italy and the US, by contrast, were significantly cheaper (up to 24 percent) than a year ago, likely due to concerns around growing political tensions.
Hotels
For a family of four, the most expensive place to stay in Italy this summer was San Teodoro in Sardinia, where the average price of a week's three-star accommodation in August came to €3,015, a recent survey by Assoutenti found.
Cheaper options could be found in Rimini (€1,030) a beach resort in the northeastern Emilia-Romagna region, and the neighbouring town of Riccione (€1,498), according to Assoutenti.
The destinations seeing the sharpest hikes in accommodation rates this year were Alpine towns, with costs rising by an average of 16 percent and the price of a week's stay in Valdisotto in the Lombardy region costing as much as 25.1 percent more than in 2024.
By contrast, a week in Florence was projected to cost 15.3 percent less than in 2024.
Transport costs
The steepest increase in transport costs this summer was for ferry journeys, with the average family of four with a car paying €1,343 for a return journey between mainland Italy and the Sardinian port of Olbia, according to Assoutenti.
Overall, costs for these types of journeys between the Italian peninsula and major islands rose by an average of 9.7 percent between August 2025 and 2024, the group said.
However, travelling by car has become cheaper thanks to a 9.8 percent drop in the cost of petrol over the past year, Altroconsumo found.
Beach clubs
The cost of renting a spot at one of Italy's private beach clubs rose by around three and five percent over the past year, Assoutent found.
The average day rate for two sunbeds and an umbrella €32-€35 during weekends, according to consumer watchdog Codacons, though prices can vary significantly depending on location.
In Sabaudia, south of Rome, customers could expect to pay up to €45; in Gallipoli on the southern coast of Puglia, €90; and in parts of Sardinia, as much as €120.
The most expensive spot was at a club in Versilia, northern Tuscany, where an 'imperial tent' sets patrons back €1,500 a day.
