In July, the Hospitality Forum 2024, dedicated to the hotel and tourism sector in Italy, took place in Milan at Palazzo Lombardia. Organized by Scenari Immobiliari and Castello Sgr, this event was held for the sixth time this year. The forum’s program was extensive, with experts and operators from the hotel sector speaking throughout the day. The discussions were focused on investments in hotel real estate in Italy and Europe. Scenari Immobiliari presented the report on the hotel real estate market for 2023. Despite the challenging global context, including geopolitical tensions, rising bank loans interest rates, and other negative factors that have generally led to a decrease in real estate investments, the hotel sector has demonstrated remarkable resilience.
Key Messages of the Report of Castello Sgr
- In 2023, 1,400 transactions were recorded in the global hotel real estate market, with a total volume exceeding €47 billion. It is a positive result compared to other asset sectors
- In Italy, investment in the hotel sector reached €1.4 billion in 2023
- Although this figure is lower than in 2022 (€1.7 billion), it still reflects strong momentum and sustained investor interest
- The volume of hotel real estate transactions by national investors exceeded that of international investors in 2023
- Transactions predominantly involved family office funds, private equity, and hotel operators. Additionally, investor interest in hotel real estate is no longer focused on the classic “big four” cities: Rome, Milan, Venice, and Florence, but on the entire country, from north to south
- Tourist traffic in 2023 was 11% lower than in 2019 but 33% higher than in 2022
- International traffic and the number of international tourists increased significantly
Italy’s hotel real estate sector generated €3 billion in revenue in 2023, with even more positive results anticipated in 2024
2024 Forecast
Investors show strong interest in Italy’s hotel market, and it will continue to grow, driven by increasing tourist traffic and significant modernization of the hotel sector, especially in the luxury segment
.
