Tourists in the small town complain about a 15 percent drop in visitors compared to summer 2013. The decline was particularly noticeable among holidaymakers from Austria and Germany.
“The current picture does not bode well. We are seeing a sharp decline in tourists from Austria and Germany, while we are seeing a slight increase in guests from Eastern Europe,” Matteo Battiston, spokesman for the Confesercenti trade association of Lignano, told the Italian news agency ANSA.
High prices and bad weather
High prices and bad weather at the start of the season have kept many holidaymakers away from Lignano, local media analyzed the situation. Efforts in recent years to extend the bathing season from four to six months have not produced the hoped-for results. “As long as Lignano remains attractive only for the sea and the beach, we are completely at the mercy of the weather,” criticized Battiston. The municipality has severely restricted evening and nighttime entertainment for young people with increasingly restrictive regulations, complained the association spokesman.
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Thousands of sunbeds and umbrellas line the miles of beaches on the northern Adriatic, divided into different areas by color. The rise in inflation continues to weigh on Italians and foreigners, who are faced with price increases during these summer months, especially for beach resorts, accommodation and restaurant services.
The Italian consumer association Codacons analyzed the data on prices in July published by the statistics office Istat and complained that rail fares increased by 8.3 percent and buses by 3.1 percent compared to the same month in 2023. For meals in a restaurant or bar, you have to spend 3.4 percent more, while prices for holiday villages and campsites have grown by 8 percent, for hotels by 4.2 percent and for other accommodation establishments (B&B, holiday homes, etc.) by 7.2 percent.
