Assocamping of Cavallino-Treporti and FAITA against the increase in Italian state property fees

The Italian Ministry of Infrastructure’s decision to increase the fees for state-owned maritime concessions by 25.15 per cent in the year 2023 has caused great concern among trade associations in the tourist accommodation sector, which fear for repercussions on the economic management of facilities. The reaction stems from the fact that this measure will directly affect not only bathing areas, but also businesses dedicated to open-air tourism, since these in most cases have the sandy shore immediately in front of them under concession, and in some cases the facilities themselves are located in areas covered by maritime state property concessions for areas other than those dedicated to bathing.

Francesco Berton, president of Assocamping, which gathers together all the campsites in Cavallino-Treporti, half of which are totally or partially located in state-owned areas, spoke out as follows: “The recent announcement of a 25% increase in the state fee has left all operators in the sector perplexed. This perplexity is due to the size of the increase, which was not discussed with any trade association and which is not justified considering the recent times. Moreover, we consider that we are not only talking about beaches, but also about open-air accommodation facilities that also insist on state property“.

The same fear for the sector’s fate is shared by another important representative voice, the national association FAITA-FederCamping, which through its president Alberto Granzotto communicated in a note that “the tourist accommodation sector expresses strong concerns about the little attention paid so far to the peculiarities that characterise it, which are often very different from those typical of beach concessions“.

In short, the statements by Assocamping and FAITA draw the attention of the institutions to the negative consequences that these increases could have on the offer of accommodation facilities, which would be forced to raise prices to the detriment of the services provided. Thus putting tourism in Italy in crisis and favouring other, more competitive or qualitatively more balanced foreign destinations. The request from both realities is to soon have a discussion with the Ministry in charge to address all the issues of the directive in a clear and productive way.