Complete New Year's Eve for the 25,000 Italian holiday farms which, for weeks already, have been sold out for New Year's Eve too, especially in the mountain resorts, among the favorite destinations of the 17 million Italians traveling during the holidays.
More than 400,000 compatriots will arrive in farms with accommodation facilities to celebrate the end of the year.
This is the estimate of Cia-Agricoltori Italiani together with Turismo Verde, its association for the promotion of agritourism.
At the gates, therefore, a more relaxed toast.
"There are over 70 million caps ready to blow, sheltered from last minute cancellations due to Covid in 2021. Yet - specify CIA and Turismo Verde - the good performance of the sector in these Christmas holidays is the partial story of an Italy in any case in full swing crisis, weakened by high bills and the generalized increase in prices".
With the New Year's Eve dinner which will cost an average of 120 euros per person and a total cost of up to 600 euros to stay away from home all weekend, the New Year's holiday, according to Cia, "is already destined to be for the few".
Moreover, today, underlines the agricultural organization, "the average income in Italy is below 22,000 euros and only 4% of taxpayers declare over 70,000 euros".
Having said that, "one out of ten families chose the farmhouse both for Christmas lunch and for the New Year's Eve party on 31 December".
The agritourism sector, underline CIA and Turismo Verde, "is certainly experiencing important days of work, especially the mountains which, for the holidays, alone made 80% of bookings. A season of recharge, therefore,
which was needed at the end of yet another difficult year, marked by the recovery of tourism but also by unexpected and outsized costs for the sector". "We are very satisfied with the great turmoil we are experiencing - comments the national president of Turismo Verde-Cia, Mario Cricket-.
After the Epiphany, however, it will be difficult to keep up the enthusiasm.
15 days of earnings will certainly not be enough to arrive in spring, given the arrival of the low season and, above all, according to the exorbitant bills".
Therefore, "many structures will choose to close until Easter to protect the company and also the relationship with customers, on whom we absolutely do not want to burden the increase in management costs".