Showing off optimism and continuing to tell each other that motorhoming is the holiday of the year is not enough to erase the heavy impact of the pandemic. Italian FAITA Federcamping has made a precise analysis of the seasonal trend, highlighting a difficult situation for outdoor tourism companies, albeit with significant differences between the region and the region.
“In general, the flows of the months of May and June were contracted because they were heavily characterized by the lockdown and the continuing uncertainty on the dates and methods of reopening, with losses of 70% on average”, states a press release. “In July the situation changed, and the attendance level reached -50-60% compared to 2019, which had been an excellent year. If the situation stabilizes, the month of August should record 30% lower performances than the previous year. Furthermore, a further recovery can be assumed in September and, weather permitting, an extension of the season until mid-October”.
In short, well but not very well. Among other things, the sword of Damocles hangs over a possible worsening of the health situation. FAITA Federcamping’s forecasts then focus on the season’s closing forecasts.
“With these scenarios,” continues the note, “total arrivals should be around 7 million guests, of which at least 6 million Italians, while presences should reach 47.5 million units. The contraction in the offer would be 30% for arrivals and 32-33% for presences. The turnover would decrease, in proportion, more conspicuous, in the order of 45%. As far as the origin of the guests is concerned, a loss of foreign customers has so far been recorded, which is close to 70%. In much smaller proportion, the drop in the attendance of Italians, which in some contexts equaled the attendance of the same period last year. In general, however, there is a minus 20% of arrivals and a minus 30% of presences”.
According to FAITA Federcamping, the use of the “holiday bonus” vouchers has proved to be modest, recognizing however that the situation could change for the better as the structures participating in the initiative increase. The analysis of the association ends by talking about the types of accommodation and the promotion methods chosen by the accommodation facilities.
“The demand for pitches for recreational vehicles, motorhomes and caravans seems to be growing,” says the release, “while the use of mobilhomes remains stable, evidently due to the greater sense of security transmitted by autonomous services and exclusive reserved spaces. The requests for pitches for tents and the presence of seasonal campers are decreasing more conspicuously. All 2,600 companies in the sector have reopened trying to contain the damage and engaging as many employees as possible, currently more than 80% compared to 2019. The marketing strategies have been oriented towards the internal market with direct and targeted campaigns carried out on social media, and in some cases on traditional media that have aimed to enhance the mix of space, freedom, and security guaranteed by outdoor holidays in a complicated and difficult season such as the one in progress”.
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