Rome closed 2025 with 22.90 million arrivals and 52.92 million overnight stays. This is the highest level recorded in the 2020–2025 tourism series and represents a crucial figure for anyone assessing a hotel investment in the Italian capital.

But these figures should not be read as a simple celebratory snapshot of Rome’s tourism recovery. For a hotel investor, a family-owned hotel company, a fund, a bank or an operator looking to enter the Roman market, this historical series is far more than that: it is the quantitative foundation for valuations, business plans, acquisition strategies, disposal scenarios, repositioning projects and hotel management plans.

Tourism demand in Rome has returned above crisis levels, but not all demand has the same value. The real question is not simply “how many tourists arrive”, but what type of demand arrives, how long it stays, how much it spends, which segments it supports and which hotel assets are actually capable of capturing it.

In this article, we analyse the 2020–2025 trend of Rome’s main tourism indicators, with particular focus on three variables that are decisive for the hotel investment market:

  • growth in arrivals and overnight stays;

  • the weight of international demand;

  • the development of the 5-star segment and the economic value per arrival.

Annual tourism data table for Rome 2020–2025

Year Total arrivals Total overnight stays Foreign share of arrivals Average length of stay 5-star arrivals 5-star overnight stays Proxy economic impact per arrival
2020 4.10 million 9.89 million 37.9% 2.4 0.20 million 0.39 million not available
2021 5.50 million 11.97 million 25.3% 2.2 not available not available not available
2022 14.76 million 33.51 million 48.9% 2.3 0.84 million 1.73 million approx. €576
2023 21.02 million 49.19 million 52.2% 2.3 1.23 million 2.67 million not available
2024 22.21 million 51.45 million 52.5% 2.3 1.31 million 2.82 million approx. €599
2025 22.90 million 52.92 million not available approx. 2.3 not available not available not available

Source: analysis prepared by HotelManagementGroup.it based on available tourism data for the Rome destination.

The investor’s reading: four structural takeaways

1. The post-2021 recovery was not just a rebound

Between 2021 and 2023, tourist arrivals in Rome rose from 5.50 million to 21.02 million. Overnight stays increased from 11.97 million to 49.19 million. The pace of growth was exceptional, but the key issue is not only the speed of the recovery.

The most important point is what happened after 2023.

In 2024, Rome continued to grow, reaching 22.21 million arrivals and 51.45 million overnight stays. In 2025, growth continued again, reaching 22.90 million arrivals and 52.92 million overnight stays.

This means the market has not simply recovered the ground lost during the pandemic crisis. Rome has moved onto a new demand threshold.

For a hotel investor, this distinction is fundamental.

If 2022 could be interpreted as a recovery year and 2023 as the year of demand acceleration, the 2024–2025 period shows stabilisation at very high levels. This is no longer a technical rebound. It is a new market baseline.

This changes the way recent hotel revenues should be interpreted. The 2023–2025 results should not automatically be dismissed as “exceptional” or “non-recurring”. They need to be assessed carefully, property by property, distinguishing between market growth, management capability, rate positioning and the quality of the demand mix.

2. International demand is the real pricing lever

In 2020 and 2021, Rome was heavily dependent on domestic demand. The foreign share of arrivals stood at 37.9% in 2020 and 25.3% in 2021.

In 2022, the foreign share recovered to 48.9%. From 2023 onwards, it exceeded 50%, reaching 52.2% in 2023 and 52.5% in 2024.

This shift is critical.

Growth in arrivals alone does not explain the strength of Rome’s hotel market. The real value driver is the composition of demand. The return of international travellers, particularly high-spending travellers, has enabled the best-positioned hotels to sustain higher average rates, improve their distribution mix and capture premium segments.

For anyone assessing a hotel acquisition in Rome, aggregate arrival data is only the first level of analysis. The second, and far more important, level concerns the customer portfolio of the individual property:

  • share of international guests;

  • weight of high-spending source markets;

  • incidence of direct bookings;

  • dependence on OTAs;

  • presence of leisure, corporate, group or luxury demand;

  • ability of the hotel to convert destination demand into operating margin.

A hotel may be located in a growing city and still fail to benefit fully from that growth. Conversely, a well-managed property can outperform the market even without being in the most obvious location.

This is where tourism analysis must become hotel investment analysis.

3. The 5-star segment is growing faster than the overall market

The most relevant figure for investors is probably the performance of the 5-star segment.

Between 2022 and 2024, 5-star arrivals increased from 0.84 million to 1.31 million, a rise of approximately 56%. Overnight stays in the same segment grew from 1.73 million to 2.82 million, an increase of approximately 63%.

Over the same period, total market arrivals rose from 14.76 million to 22.21 million, an increase of approximately 50%.

The upper-end segment is therefore not merely following the market: it is outperforming it.

This figure explains many of the dynamics observed in Rome’s hotel market in recent years:

  • the entry of international luxury brands;

  • the conversion of historic buildings into upper-upscale and luxury hotels;

  • the repositioning of existing assets;

  • greater focus on trophy assets;

  • compression of expected yields on prime real estate;

  • a widening gap between ordinary hotels and hotels capable of capturing high-spending demand.

The message for investors is clear: value in Rome is no longer created simply by buying rooms. It is created by acquiring, transforming or properly managing assets that can capture the right segment of demand.

A 3-star or 4-star property in an interesting location, but under-managed or poorly positioned, may be more attractive than an asset that has already been fully priced. At the same time, a hotel that appears profitable may be overvalued if the acquisition price already incorporates all future growth.

This is why the hotel transactions analysed on InvestimentiAlberghieri.it are never assessed solely on the basis of current revenue. One must look at repositioning potential, cost structure, rent sustainability, management risk, required capex and the asset’s real ability to attract profitable demand.

4. Economic value per arrival is increasing, but not because stays are getting longer

The proxy economic impact per arrival increased from approximately €576 in 2022 to approximately €599 in 2024.

The increase may appear limited, but it must be read together with the growth in volumes. Applied to more than 22 million arrivals, even a seemingly marginal unit increase produces a significant effect on the overall destination economy.

The figure becomes even more interesting when compared with the average length of stay.

The average stay remains stable at around 2.3 nights. This means that the growth in value per arrival does not derive from materially longer stays, but from the destination’s greater ability to generate spending per visitor.

In hotel terms, the data suggests an increase in the unit value of demand, consistent with a market in which the best-positioned properties can sustain higher rates, improve their customer mix and increase profitability per available room.

But caution is necessary: this does not apply automatically to every property.

A wealthy market does not automatically make every hotel wealthy. A growing market does not protect weak management. A market with strong international demand does not guarantee profitability if the property is poorly distributed, poorly sold, poorly renovated or burdened by an incoherent cost structure.

The real question every hotel owner should ask is therefore this:

is my hotel capturing the value of Rome’s tourism demand, or is it merely benefiting passively from the market?

What these figures mean for those selling a hotel in Rome

For hotel owners in Rome considering a sale, the 2020–2025 series is extremely relevant.

The market currently benefits from three favourable elements:

  1. tourism demand at record levels;

  2. international demand above 50% in the latest available data;

  3. strong interest in assets that can be positioned in the upper-upscale and luxury segments.

These factors support higher valuations, greater liquidity for the best assets and interest from institutional investors, hotel groups, family offices and international operators.

However, selling in a strong market does not automatically mean selling well.

The difference lies in:

  • the quality of the investment memorandum;

  • the clarity of the numbers;

  • the separation between the real estate component and the operating business;

  • the sustainability of EBITDA;

  • the ability to identify hidden upside;

  • proper management of confidentiality;

  • selection of truly qualified counterparties.

A hotel asset should not be brought to market like an ordinary real estate property. It must be prepared, analysed and presented correctly. Incomplete information or a superficial valuation can reduce the price, lengthen the process or attract unsuitable counterparties.

The advisory ecosystem connected to HotelManagementGroup.it, Investhotel.it and RobertoNecci.it operates precisely at this level: asset analysis, economic and operational review, preparation of the investment dossier, evaluation of alternatives and support in value enhancement transactions.

What these figures mean for those looking to buy

For those looking to acquire a hotel in Rome, the 2020–2025 data confirms that the market is strong, but also far more competitive.

The prices of the best assets already incorporate a significant portion of positive market expectations. This means that real opportunities are not necessarily the most visible ones.

Today, opportunities are mainly found in four areas:

  1. assets to be repositioned;

  2. under-managed properties;

  3. companies with financial tension but operational potential;

  4. off-market transactions.

An investor who buys by looking only at general tourism data risks paying for the market, not for the opportunity.

The right question is not: “Is Rome growing?”

The right question is:

can this specific hotel grow more than the price I am paying for it?

Answering this requires detailed analysis:

  • normalised profit and loss statement;

  • room revenue;

  • actual occupancy;

  • ADR;

  • RevPAR;

  • GOP;

  • labour cost;

  • commission incidence;

  • required capex;

  • urban planning and authorisation risk;

  • sustainability of rent or debt;

  • commercial positioning;

  • competitive benchmarking.

Only after this analysis does a hotel investment become a rational decision. Before that, it is merely a bet on Rome’s tourism market.

What these figures mean for hotel operators

For those operating a hotel in Rome, this table contains an even more direct message.

When a city generates almost 53 million overnight stays and exceeds 22 million arrivals, the market can no longer be used as an excuse.

If a Roman hotel is not growing, not improving its average rate, not increasing its share of international demand or not enhancing its margins, the problem is unlikely to be purely external.

The problem may lie in management.

It may concern:

  • pricing;

  • distribution;

  • reputation;

  • rooms that are not aligned with the target market;

  • incorrect staffing levels;

  • uncontrolled costs;

  • weak commercial strategy;

  • lack of management control;

  • excessive dependence on OTAs;

  • inability to capture high-spending segments.

In a weak market, many inefficiencies remain hidden. In a strong market, they become visible. The gap between well-managed and poorly managed hotels widens.

This is why tourism data must be connected to the actual management of the hotel business. It is not enough to know that Rome is growing. One must understand whether the individual property is growing in line with, above or below the market.

This is the field in which HotelManagementGroup.it operates, through analysis, management control, business valuation, commercial repositioning, strategic advisory and support for hotel owners.

The main risk: reading tourism data as if it were automatically hotel performance data

The greatest mistake an investor can make is to confuse the strength of the destination with the strength of the individual asset.

Rome is a global destination. But not every Roman hotel is a global asset.

Rome attracts international demand. But not every hotel knows how to capture it.

Rome is growing in the upper segment. But not every building can become a luxury hotel.

Rome generates value. But not every management model is able to retain it.

The 2020–2025 table is therefore a starting point, not a conclusion. It helps define the context, but it must then be integrated with complete hotel due diligence.

The valuation of a hotel cannot be based solely on macro data. It must combine:

  • market;

  • real estate;

  • operating company;

  • management;

  • staff;

  • debt;

  • contracts;

  • positioning;

  • capex;

  • tax considerations;

  • exit scenarios.

Only this integrated reading makes it possible to avoid three typical mistakes:

  1. buying too expensively;

  2. selling poorly;

  3. managing below potential.

Why this data matters for hotel investment

Rome’s hotel market enters 2026 with a very strong tourism base. The 2020–2025 numbers describe a destination that has moved beyond the recovery phase and returned to record levels.

But market strength does not eliminate risk. It makes the market more selective.

The best assets will become increasingly contested. Under-managed hotels will become increasingly visible. Transactions without proper technical analysis will become increasingly dangerous. Valuations based only on market enthusiasm risk producing costly mistakes.

This is why a hotel investor must read Rome through two different lenses.

The first looks at the destination: arrivals, overnight stays, foreign demand, average length of stay and spending.

The second looks at the asset: financials, management, margins, contracts, debt, capex and value creation potential.

Only when these two readings converge does a genuine opportunity emerge.

Do you own a hotel in Rome? These numbers matter to you now

If you own a hotel in Rome, if you are considering a sale, if you want to acquire a hotel property, if you need to restructure a debt position or if you want to understand how much unexpressed value exists in your business, this data is not theory.

It is the market in which you are operating.

And today, the market is clear: Rome is strong, but precisely for that reason it does not forgive superficial analysis.

A hotel sold without a proper dossier may be worth less than it should be.

A hotel acquired without due diligence may cost more than it appears.

A hotel managed without control may lose value even in a growing city.

HotelManagementGroup.it supports hotel owners, investors and operators through advisory, asset analysis, business valuation, management control, repositioning and support in extraordinary hotel transactions.

The editorial and advisory ecosystem also includes:

If you want to understand what these numbers mean for your hotel, for a potential acquisition or for a sale, the right time to analyse it is not when the market has already changed.

It is now.

📩 Contact info@investimentialberghieri.it

Confidential preliminary analysis. Asset review. Evaluation of alternatives. Advisory support in hotel transactions.

Not in six months. Not when the market becomes clearer. The market is clear now: the real question is whether your hotel is turning it into value.

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