Spending a day of rest by the sea is becoming an increasingly difficult luxury to endure. What was previously seen as an affordable summer program, with sun loungers and sun hats available to any family, is now turning into an expense that many can no longer justify.
According to the British newspaper Express, throughout this summer, the reports of tourists who, before the accounts presented in the bathing establishments, have chosen to give up on the beach. The price climbing not only surprised occasional visitors, but also pushed up families used to vacation in some of Europe’s most sought after Area.
On Italian beaches, the values for renting sun loungers and Sol hats have reached historical levels, marking one of the most expensive summers that there is memory and causing an authentic escape from tourists from various emblematic zones in the country.
According to data released by the Altroconsumo consumer group, the average cost of two sun loungers and a sun hat now around 180 euros per day, more 17% of four years. This climb has caused a direct impact on tourism, with regions such as Calabria and Emilia-Romanha to register 15% to 25% breaks in the number of visitors during June and July, compared to 2024.
Private resorts dominate the coast
Most of the most prestigious coastal zones in Italy are concessioned to private clubs, which means that to access the best beach areas, tourists and places have practically paying for the leakage rental. In luxury destinations, such as Alassio, in Liguria, the daily value already exceeds 290 euros, while in Gallipoli reaches 253 and Alghero at 206.
These prices, considered unmatched to many families, have generated protests and led to a growing demand for alternatives, including less known but also less equipped public beaches.
Costs remove Italian families
Antonio Capacchione, president of the Italian Balnear Establishments Union (SIB), acknowledges that the situation increasingly affects the Italians themselves. “Even with two salaries, many families have difficulty reaching the end of the month. Under these circumstances, it is natural that the first expenses to cut are leisure, entertainment and vacation,” he said.
With the increase in cost of living and inflationary pressure, the traditional habit of spending a vacation on Italian beaches is being rethought. For many, the umbrella account has simply become unsustainable.
Trend can mark the next summers
According to, experts believe that if the price climbing continues, Italy will be able to watch a redistribution of bathing tourism, with private beaches to lose influential and public beaches to be overcrowded.
This reality is already reflected in places such as the amalfitan coast, where some establishments report empty lines of sun loungers, something unthinkable for just a few years.
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