An up-to-date snapshot of the luxury market in Italy, curated by Thrends: 710 five-star and luxury five-star hotels, 47,300 rooms, and 24 new openings scheduled for 2024 alone in Rome, Milan, Venice, Forte dei Marmi (five, no less), and Olympic Cortina. 6.6 billion euros in revenue in 2023, representing 26% of the total revenue, coming from the five-star segment, which, however, accounts for a modest 4.8% of Italy’s hotel supply.
And finally, the figure that justifies the mountain of money that international chains, funds, and banks are pouring into our high-end hotel industry: in a five-star hotel, each room generates annual revenue of 144,000 euros with an EBITDA of 24.4%; 144,000 euros on average, because a quarter of luxury hotels generate 200,000 euros in revenue (per room!) and at the very top – the Aman on Venice’s Grand Canal – each room generates 800,000 euros. Do you know the average revenue per room for one of Italy’s 15,000 three-star hotels? 25,000 euros, if they’re lucky.
It’s crystal clear, then, why this extremely rich and exclusive segment has garnered such interest in recent years. TTG Luxury, not coincidentally, is the latest publication from the publisher hosting these reflections. Reflections supported by the Milan-based Luxury Hospitality Conference organized by Teamwork, through which I’ve become convinced that Italy is the true, unique kingdom of ultra-high-end tourism. In the world. Here are five simple reasons, expressed not by a hospitality expert, but by a tourism market expert.
1. Luxury is beauty – What makes a stay in Rome or Florence, Capri or Venice, unique is the beauty that surrounds, attracts, and captivates the guest. Brunelleschi and Michelangelo, the Faraglioni rocks, the Rialto Bridge, the Uffizi Gallery, and St. Peter’s Basilica have no equal in the world and cannot be replicated elsewhere. Those who spend 1,000, 3,000, or more euros per night aren’t just paying for a suite with a magnificent view and magazine-worthy furnishings, but for the opportunity to be immersed in this great beauty. It’s not the same in Bali or Monte Carlo.
2. Luxury is architecture and design – Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel have designed all Bulgari Hotels, including the recent Bulgari Rome. The Sereno Hotel on Lake Como and the Six Senses in Rome are the work of Patricia Urquiola, an Iberian star architect but Italian by adoption. Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran have just designed the livery and interior furnishings of the legendary Orient Express train, now renamed La Dolce Vita, the result of collaboration between France’s Accor and Italy’s Arsenale SpA. Pure design objects produced by Alessi and Kartell, designed by Gio Ponti and Ettore Sottsass, can be found in luxury hotels (and contemporary art museums) around the world. But the Arco by Flos and the Tolomeo by Artemide only make sense in Milan or Venice, not in New York or Singapore.
3. Luxury is human-scaled, and therefore small – Bulgari Hotel Milano: 58 rooms. Mandarin Oriental on Lake Como, 75 rooms. Also on Lake Como, the world’s best hotel according to the 2024 list of The World’s 50 Best Hotels, the Passalacqua Hotel: 24 rooms. San Pietro in Positano: 55 rooms. Also in Positano, Le Sirenuse: 58 rooms. Borgo Sant’Andrea, Amalfi: 52 rooms. Recently opened hotels (Mandarin and Passalacqua) and historic ones, like those in Milan or along the Amalfi Coast, accommodate only a few dozen guests. Because luxury is also swimming alone in an infinity pool or dining with the sound of the sea as your backdrop, rather than the chatter of neighboring tables. It’s not always the rule, of course (the Verdura Resort in Sciacca has 203 rooms, and the new Bulgari in Rome has 114), but the trend here is this: few rooms, few guests, highly personalized, top-level service.
4. Luxury is passion and engagement – The staff plays a crucial role in a hotel’s success: at any level, from the housekeeper to the general manager. But in the luxury segment, this is even more true, as nothing can be left to chance, and the guest expects absolutely unique care and treatment. It’s no coincidence that the legendary San Pietro in Positano has 198 employees for 55 rooms. Therefore, kindness, savoir-faire, and empathy are not additional qualities but essential ones. Who better than us Italians know how to express these traits at their best, worldwide? And don’t tell me about the well-known Eastern courtesy because we all know what’s often behind those constant smiles…
5. Luxury is experience – “We don’t sell rooms, we sell experiences: Italian language courses, gardening classes, calligraphy lessons. When we harvest olives to make oil directly from the trees on our estate, guests are invited and involved.” Who said that? The owner of a B&B or farmhouse in Tuscany? No, the GM of a Belmond Hotel at 1,550 euros a night… Because the time of isolated luxury enclaves, where guests spend their time between presidential suites, Michelin-starred restaurants, and equally starred spas, is over. Connection, understanding, and immersion in the local reality are now integral parts of the exclusive vacation experience. Making pesto with fragrant basil or kneading scialatielli makes sense in Camogli or Amalfi. Not elsewhere.
P.S. To the prophets of Artificial Intelligence, who are taking over even in the luxury sector: I challenge you to have ChatGPT write a piece like this.
This article was originally written by Roberto Gentile and published on TTG Italia, read the original at the following link.
