BIT 2025: A Benchmark  for Anticipating Travel Trends

By Massimo Terracina

Holiday season peak is just around the corner, and as per tradition the International Tourism Exchange, organised by Fiera Milano - next edition at Fieramilano in Rho from 9 to 11 February 2025 -  takes  stock of the most interesting trends for operators, while the team continues to work on consolidating the parterre of exhibitors, which grew by 7% last year.

“We have been forced to move, due to lack of space for the great success of BIT 2024 – says Simona Greco, Owned Exhibitions Director Fiera Milano SpA – to our Milano Rho pavilions and this is a very good start for 2025 editions. It means more offers and interest.”

The BIT 25 presentation went through a veritable analysis by Magda Antonioli, Senior Professor presso la SDA Bocconi School of Management, and Dante COlitta Welcome Travel Group director of network.

A veritable observatory on tourism, which confirms the event as an unmissable moment of knowledge sharing both in the exhibition area and in the programme of meetings and in-depth discussions: from regenerative tourism to the key role played by events and the impact of digitalisation, the anticipations of the last edition have become this year's trends.

Towards BIT 2025: A Scenario of Recovery

Globally, 2023 ended with 1.29 billion international arrivals, a strong growth compared to 2022, when they had been 960 million. And Europe confirmed itself as the top destination with around 700 million arrivals, more than half (54%) of the total. The tourist expenditure figure is also remarkable: 1.7 trillion dollars in line with pre-pandemic values (source: UN Tourism). Regarding Italy, 2023 closed with 133.6 million arrivals (+12.8% compared to 2022) and 447.1 million presences (+8.5%) (source: ISTAT).

What, on the other hand, is in store for this year? Although the sector will face challenges such as overtourism and rising costs, the overall picture is positive. UN Tourism also estimates further growth in international arrivals in the first three months of the year at 285 million (+19% over 2023) while, according to the May 2024 survey of the European Travel Commission, 75% of Europeans intend to make at least one trip this summer, +3% compared to last year. Italy confirms itself as the most appealing destination (8.4% of travel intentions) followed by Spain (8.1%), France (7.1%) e Greece (6.3%), and about half of the travellers will be repeaters. 

Again, according to ETC, the target group most likely to travel are the over-55s (81%), while solo travellers (61%) and those travelling with friends (58%) are the most interested in multiple holidays. And while the importance of the sun & beach segment is confirmed, more and more tourists are also looking for natural beauty (19%), local cuisine (17%), culture and monuments (15%).

Another confirmation comes from the air traffic data from Italian airports: in May alone there were 20.1 million passengers (+13.2% over 2023) and over 159,000 movements (+10.3%) (source: Assaeroporti). Analyst Forward Keys predicts a further +12% for international arrivals: the long-haul portion, led by the United States (+14% over 2023), is set to grow, as are the proximity markets, notably including Spain (+44%), Denmark (+43%) and Austria (+30%).

Looking abroad, the Welcome Travel Group, (a network of 2565 travel agencies, 1/3 approximately the entire stock of Italy)  observatory reports particular interest in Egypt, Greece and the Balearic Islands in the short to medium haul range, while in the long haul range, the queen of the summer is North America, followed by Japan, the Caribbean, Thailand, Madagascar, Kenya and Zanzibar. Also worth mentioning are cruises, which again in 2024 see Italy as the leading European destination, with an estimated 14 million passengers (it was 13.8 in 2023) and over 5,200 berths in no less than 60 ports.

A Formula That Always Works for Addressing New Challenges

BIT 2025 responds to tourism themes and challenges with the constant evolution of the exhibition formula, which sees a new location at Fieramilano in Rho: the areas dedicated to Leisure, Italy and World will benefit from a more linear layout and smoother access, especially on the day open to the public of travellers on Sunday 9 February. There will also be a new hospitality area and events with high social potential to engage younger travellers and Gen Z in particular.

As usual, the conference programme of Bringing Innovation into Travel is also very rich. Just to give a few examples, the role of continuing education in the industry will be discussed, with a focus on the digital sphere and the customer experience, also in response to the increasing demand for qualified personnel. 

The spotlight will also shine on next-generation technologies such as AI, with its impact on personalising the journey, optimizing operations and improving customer interaction. 

Sustainability and emotion-driven tourism will also be in the foreground, the former meeting the need to spread good practices and the latter stemming from the growing awareness of travellers.

Macro-themes such as aviation, luxury, travel risk management, up to the scouting of new destinations to prepare the tourism product of the future will also be on the agenda.