Milan, Lake Maggiore, Cortina – February 12, 2026
As the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics enter their second week, real estate agencies across Northern Italy are reporting a significant uptick in inquiries from international buyers, many of whom are experiencing the region for the first time through Olympic broadcasts and media coverage.
The phenomenon mirrors patterns observed during previous Olympic host cycles, but with a distinctly modern twist. Buyers contacting agencies during the Games are coming from markets as diverse as the UAE, United States, Singapore, and Israel—regions with limited historical engagement in Northern Italian real estate outside of the traditional Lake Como corridor.
“We’re fielding calls from principals who are watching the Games and suddenly realizing that Milan is 90 minutes from world-class skiing, or that the Italian Lakes offer a lifestyle they hadn’t previously considered,” reports one Milan-based advisory. “The Olympics are functioning as a two-week marketing campaign for the entire Northern Italy region.”
Infrastructure Legacy Driving Long-Term Interest
Beyond the immediate Olympic excitement, buyers are focusing on the permanent infrastructure improvements that will outlast the Games. These developments are fundamentally reshaping Northern Italy’s accessibility and investment appeal:
Key Infrastructure Improvements:
- Milan Metro Expansion – Neighborhoods previously requiring 25-minute commutes to the city center are now 12 minutes away, yet property pricing hasn’t fully adjusted to reflect this enhanced connectivity
- Enhanced Rail Connections – Direct high-speed links between Milan, the Italian Lakes, and the Dolomites have reduced travel times by up to 40%
Upgraded Road Networks – New Alpine highways make Cortina accessible from Milan in under three hours, comparable to travel times for many Swiss resorts - For the first time, international buyers based in London, New York, or Dubai can realistically consider the region for weekend use, not just extended seasonal stays. This accessibility factor is changing the fundamental investment calculus for vacation properties in the area.
Lake Maggiore is emerging as a particular beneficiary of this Olympic attention. Long overshadowed by Lake Como’s celebrity cache, Maggiore offers comparable natural beauty and lifestyle amenities at price points 30 to 40 percent lower. During the Olympic period, lakefront villas with private boat access and Alpine views are attracting buyers who might have defaulted to Como in previous years but are now comparing options more carefully.
“The Como premium made sense when it was the only lake on international buyers’ radar,” one property advisor notes. “But once buyers start comparing lakes side by side—which Olympic coverage is encouraging them to do—Maggiore’s value proposition becomes compelling.”
Cortina’s Hospitality Sector Attracting Investor Attention
The Dolomites region, and Cortina d’Ampezzo specifically, is seeing renewed interest in its hospitality assets. International investors examining the ski resort sector are discovering valuations that seem disconnected from comparable properties in Switzerland or Austria. Well-positioned hotel properties in established Dolomites resort towns are trading at significant discounts to Alpine properties across the border, despite comparable or superior natural settings and increasingly similar accessibility.
The Olympic spotlight is also highlighting a feature of the Dolomites that many international buyers hadn’t fully appreciated: the region’s UNESCO World Heritage status and environmental protections create meaningful supply constraints on new development. Unlike ski regions where resort towns can expand horizontally, the Dolomites present a fixed supply dynamic that becomes more significant as global attention increases.
Timing Considerations for Buyers
Real estate professionals working with international clients note an interesting dynamic around Olympic-period acquisitions. Contrary to conventional wisdom that suggests waiting until after major events to avoid inflated pricing, premier properties in Olympic host regions often present their best opportunities during the Games themselves.
The explanation is straightforward: sellers of distinguished assets are rarely under pressure to transact. They list during the Olympics because global attention brings serious buyers to the table. After the closing ceremony, many simply withdraw if pricing doesn’t meet expectations. The inventory available during the Games is often qualitatively different from what remains available six months later.
For Northern Italy specifically, the February timing creates an additional consideration. The traditional Italian spring market begins in March and accelerates through May and June. Buyers who wait until after the February 22nd closing ceremony may find themselves competing in a more crowded spring market, whereas Olympic-period transactions are occurring in what is typically a slower season.
Market Outlook
Whether the current surge in interest translates to sustained transaction volume remains to be seen, but early indicators suggest this Olympic cycle may have a more lasting impact on Northern Italy’s international real estate profile than previous major events in the country. The combination of infrastructure improvements, global media exposure, and an increasingly sophisticated international buyer base appears to be creating conditions for Northern Italy to capture a larger share of European luxury real estate investment in the coming years. For now, agencies are simply trying to keep pace with inquiry volume as the world watches the Games and discovers the region hosting them.