Assisi drives Umbrian tourism, +35% over the Christmas weekend

Assisi drives Umbrian tourism, +35% over the Christmas weekend

Assisi also drives Umbrian tourism during the Christmas holidays, recording record numbers compared to 2019, the year before the pandemic, during the two main weekends in December, with a 35 percent increase in presences on the Christmas weekend, with over 29 thousand visitors, while there were almost 22,000 in three days over the Immaculate Conception. The data, released by the tourism and territorial marketing office of the Municipality of Assisi, derives from the detection of smartphone presences, carried out by specialized companies and leaders in the telephony sector, suitably reworked by specific platforms. An innovative system, which makes it possible to provide certain and reliable numbers almost in real time, which will be presented to the city on 20 January.

Meanwhile, also for these last two days of the year, today and tomorrow 31 December, the municipal administration has provided a free shuttle bus available to tourists and visitors, which leaves from the parking lot of the Santa Maria degli Angeli railway station and, touching all the city car parks (Mojano, John Paul II, Porta Nuova and Piazza Matteotti), reaches the historic centre; the passage of the shuttle is contemplated every half hour, from 11 to 19.

In the period from 22 to 27 December, there were 29,346 tourists who have chosen the city of San Francesco to spend Christmas, with a progressive increase in attendance, up to the peak of 6,550 on the 27th. Numbers that compared to 2019, a significant tourist year as it has not yet been marked by the effects of the pandemic, speak of a 35 percent increase, with a large prevalence of Italian tourism, which represents 87 percent of the total. The data relating to the bridge of the Immaculate Conception, with as many as 21,505 tourists in three days, from 8 to 10 December, with a peak of 7,701 on 9, again with a strong prevalence of Italian tourists (93 percent) over foreigners. These are exceptional numbers, destined to grow between New Year’s and the Epiphany, given the trend of these days and the bookings in the city’s accommodation facilities, which are registering a full house.

“Assisi – underlines the mayor, Stefania Proietti – confirms itself as a great protagonist in Umbria, driving the entire regional tourist flow, which is not only found in our city beauty, culture, art and spirituality, but also a large program of quality events capable of attracting a considerable audience during the holiday season. All the main attractions and initiatives promoted during the Christmas event in Assisi are, in fact, registering record numbers, as are museums, concerts, shows and guided tours and the tourist information office itself which welcomes hundreds of tourists every day”.

“All of this – highlights Fabrizio Leggio, Councilor for Tourism – is also due to a broad and new strategy to promote the city’s image, which envisaged a national and regional communication campaign, with various types of tools, starting with social networks, which produced important results. Christmas in Assisi is starting to be a recognizable and recognized tourist product and, compared to a few years ago, it has considerably lengthened the tourist season of the city. I would like to thank all those who have collaborated in the success of the event for their efforts and, in particular, the tourism office which has worked hard for months for these results, in favor of the development of the city and the entire territory”.