Italian tourism expands in 2026 with higher arrivals at home and more overnight stays in Slovenia

In the first quarter of 2026, Italian visitors to Slovenia recorded 218,010 overnight stays, a 3.3% rise over the same period in 2025. The most popular destinations were Ljubljana, Piran and Nova Gorica, and the growth reflects a broader, more evenly spread travel pattern that includes city breaks, coastal stays and wellness trips. The Slovenian Incoming Workshop (SIW) in Portorož hosted over 160 foreign partners, with Italian operators forming the largest foreign group.

Meanwhile, Italy’s own tourism sector showed strong performance. In May 2026 the country led European OTA saturation rates at 55.1%, up 8.2% from the previous year. March figures revealed 8.9 million arrivals (+15.5% YoY) and 26.9 million overnight stays (+20.6% YoY), outpacing Spain, Germany and France in growth. The average length of stay was 3.02 nights, just behind Spain, and airport traffic rose 4.9% to over 17 million passengers. Tourist satisfaction indexes also edged higher, reaching 87.5 out of 100.