On July 23, 2026, inside the conference hall of the Regional Department of Tourism in Cagliari, official figures confirmed a historic milestone for Sardinia’s economy and society. Presenting the final audited tourism figures for the year 2025, compiled jointly by Italy's National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) and the Regional Tourism Observatory (SIRED), regional tourism minister Franco Cuccureddu revealed the year's totals: Sardinia recorded 21,922,765 total overnight stays (presenze) and over 5.16 million arrivals, with an average length of stay of 4.24 days per visitor.
The defining shift lies in where these travelers came from: for the first time since modern statistical tracking began, foreign visitors outnumbered domestic Italian tourists. Throughout 2025, the share of international overnight stays reached 56% of the total, representing over 12 million overnight stays, while the domestic Italian market accounted for 44%, or 9.75 million stays. Just two years earlier, in 2023, the two demographics stood at an exact 50-50 split.
The day of the shift: official data presented in Cagliari
The figures released to the press in July 2026 represent the culmination of a decades-long push toward internationalization. To understand the magnitude of this shift, one needs only to look at historical data published by ISTAT in its retrospective report From the Grand Tour to Mass Tourism: in 1990, foreign tourists accounted for just 33.6% of overall tourist stays in Italy, with Southern Italy receiving only marginal shares. Going back to 1962, the entire Italian South gathered a mere 11.7% of all tourist movements across the country.
The 2025 milestone marks a structural transformation. Sardinia is no longer primarily the summer holiday destination for families arriving from mainland Italy; it has established itself as an all-round Mediterranean destination competing on a global scale.
Source: ISTAT / SIRED Autonomous Region of Sardinia 2025
The growth in volume was far from uniform across different markets. While domestic Italian tourist stays grew by +10.0% compared to 2024 (and +19.0% compared to 2023), international tourist stays jumped by +21.5% in a single year, achieving a cumulative increase of nearly +50% over the two-year period 2023–2025.
The census reform: why ISTAT's +39.14% surge reflects two distinct realities
In ISTAT's official national reporting for 2025, Sardinia ranked as Italy's fastest-growing region for tourism volume, recording a headline increase of +39.14% over the previous year, ahead of Sicily (+34.61%) and Apulia (+26.73%). However, interpreting this number correctly requires separating statistical tracking upgrades from the actual physical increase of travelers on the ground.
On January 1, 2025, ISTAT updated its national measurement system by integrating the National Database of Accommodation Facilities (BDSR) and the National Identification Code (CIN) introduced by the Italian Ministry of Tourism. This regulatory change made thousands of short-term private vacation rentals—which previously went uncounted—fully trackable and visible in official statistics.
When isolating this methodological shift and looking at Sardinia's regional tracking system (SIRED)—which had already been capturing short-term rentals on a consistent basis in previous years—the actual physical growth in overnight stays across Sardinia in 2025 was +15.9% compared to 2024 and +34.2% compared to 2023.
Breaking down the growth by accommodation type reveals where visitor volume concentrated:
- Hotels and resorts: over 11 million total stays (+8.0% vs 2024; +18.5% vs 2023).
- Traditional non-hotel lodging (B&Bs, guesthouses, campsites): 6,446,974 stays (+18.0% vs 2024; +35.9% vs 2023).
- Short-term vacation rentals: 4,460,195 stays (+37.3% vs 2024; +93.3% vs 2023).
Private short-term vacation rentals nearly doubled their volume in twenty-four months, serving as the primary capacity expansion absorbing international demand, particularly in urban areas and non-resort coastal stretches.
Sardinia's tourist map: Gallura leads, Cagliari and Sassari expand
Tourism movement across the island remains heavily concentrated in key coastal corridors, though secondary regions are gaining ground. Gallura in the northeast reaffirmed its status as the island's primary tourism stronghold, recording approximately 7.7 million total overnight stays in 2025 (+11.5% vs 2024 and +34.6% vs 2023).
The Metropolitan City of Cagliari ranked second, logging 5,170,269 overnight stays (+16.4% vs 2024 and +34.0% vs 2023). Cagliari drove urban, cultural, and conference tourism, sustaining visitor numbers well into autumn and winter. The Metropolitan City of Sassari followed in third place with 3,297,115 stays (+16.3% vs 2024 and +34.7% vs 2023).
Percentage-wise, the fastest growth rates were registered along the eastern and southern coasts:
- Ogliastra: 1,767,109 stays (+28.0% vs 2024; +42.9% vs 2023).
- Sulcis: 686,823 stays (+18.5% vs 2024; +50.3% vs 2023).
Among individual municipalities, Alghero captured the top spot in 2025, surpassing 1.8 million overnight stays with a +21.3% increase over 2023, buoyed by expanded international flight networks at Fertilia Airport. Arzachena placed second with nearly 1.4 million stays and an international visitor ratio exceeding 62%. Olbia ranked third, accumulating roughly 1.2 million stays.
The modern expansion of these coastal centers relies on infrastructure built over the twentieth century, whose origins trace back to strategic landmarks like the historic air strip at Venafiorita in Olbia—the cradle of commercial tourist aviation in the northeast—and major coastal archaeological sites like Tharros.
Where visitors come from: Germany stays on top, US market surges
Germany remains Sardinia's single largest foreign origin market by a wide margin, accounting for 3,262,084 overnight stays in 2025 (+19.8% vs 2024) with an average stay of 4.8 days. German visitors alone generated more overnight stays than travelers from Lombardy (2.3 million), which remains the top domestic source region.
France held second place among foreign nations with 1.6 million stays (+21.6% vs 2024), followed by Switzerland with 1,042,919 stays, the United Kingdom (over 800,000 stays), and Poland, which registered a +36.0% surge to reach 608,903 stays. Significant volumes were also logged by Spain (over 500,000 stays, +17.2%) and the Czech Republic (286,967 stays, +19.2%).
Source: ISTAT / SIRED Autonomous Region of Sardinia 2025
The most notable shift among non-European long-haul markets came from the United States. In 2025, American overnight stays in Sardinia reached nearly 400,000 (+33.3% vs 2024 and +80% compared to 2023). This upward trend prompted Delta Air Lines to launch the first direct transatlantic flight connecting New York to Olbia.
Other expanding non-EU markets included Canada (116,325 stays, +31.2%), Australia (106,925 stays, +25.0%), Argentina (86,387 stays, +33.5%), and Brazil (84,644 stays). Asian markets also trended upward, led by China with 21,447 stays, India exceeding 10,000, and Japan reaching 9,956 stays.
Regarding the domestic Italian market (44% of the total), the top origin regions by overnight stays were:
- Lombardy: 2,300,000 stays (+6.7% vs 2024; average stay of 5.8 days).
- Sardinia (internal domestic travel by residents): 1,621,000 stays (+17.8% vs 2024).
- Lazio: 977,000 stays (+8.2% vs 2024).
- Piedmont: 832,000 stays (+6.8% vs 2024).
- Emilia-Romagna: 716,000 stays.
- Veneto: 655,000 stays.
- Campania: 532,000 stays (+13.8% vs 2024).
- Tuscany: 515,000 stays.
Spending patterns: card transaction insights from Mastercard
The financial impact of tourism across the island has been tracked in detail since January 1, 2025, under an agreement between the Regional Department of Tourism and Mastercard. The partnership allows for anonymized financial analysis of point-of-sale (POS) card transactions across restaurants, accommodation, transport, and retail services.
The spending figures released so far cover the first half of 2026, not the whole of 2025: they show how visitors spend today, not during the year of the crossover. They still highlight contrasting habits between domestic Italian tourists and international travelers. While German tourists accounted for the highest overall transaction volume (generating roughly one-quarter of all foreign card spending on the island), visitors from the United States recorded the highest average transaction value at POS checkouts, averaging €80.05 per payment.
Source: Sardinia Regional Department of Tourism / Mastercard, first half of 2026
Travelers from Switzerland ranked second in average transaction value, spending an average of €67.40 per charge. Among Italian regions, visitors from Veneto spent the most per swipe at €43.45, followed by Liguria at €41.08. By contrast, markets such as Spain registered more modest transaction averages at €32.92.
When broken down by sector, the highest average POS values were recorded in car rentals (€178.43), followed by lodging (€142.37) and dining and restaurants (€41.25).
Seasonality: extending the shoulder months
The growing share of international visitors is changing how tourist arrivals are distributed across the calendar year, as domestic and international travelers follow distinct vacation patterns.
Italian tourists remain focused on summer peak months: 71% of domestic stays concentrate within June, July, and August, peaking in August with 3.16 million overnight stays. During shoulder months (April, May, September, and October), Italian travelers account for only 22% of their annual total.
Conversely, international visitors serve as the primary driver behind lengthening Sardinia's tourism calendar. 42% of all foreign overnight stays occur during the shoulder months. While foreign visits peak in July (2.6 million stays), substantial numbers arrive throughout spring and autumn.
Overall, the 2025 shoulder season generated 7,227,815 overnight stays, marking a +39.2% increase compared to 2023. The winter off-season (November to March) remains small—representing 4% of annual totals—yet recorded 877,925 stays, up +32.1% over 2023.
This calendar diversification is becoming crucial for the island's long-term economic resilience, particularly against the backdrop of severe demographic contraction seen in Sardinia's status as having the lowest fertility rate in Italy. Stretching the operational season to eight months provides more stable employment in hospitality and supports year-round local businesses beyond the traditional August peak.
Outlook for 2026: a structural shift
Preliminary data for the first half of 2026, tracked through the Ministry of the Interior's Alloggiati Web system (which records guest police notifications), points to a continuation of these international trends. Over the first six months of 2026, total arrivals and stays across the island grew by an additional +8.24% compared to the same period in 2025.
This momentum remains driven by international markets (+11.44%), outstripping domestic growth (+4.04%). Passenger traffic across Sardinia's three main commercial airports rose by +7.7% in the first half of 2026, with international passenger traffic climbing +18.9%—highlighted by a +55% surge in foreign passengers passing through Alghero Airport.
The 2025 tourism census underlines a clear shift. Historically viewed as a domestic summer getaway for mainland Italians, Sardinia has re-anchored its place within Mediterranean travel networks, transforming the foreign majority from a temporary spike into a structural reality.
Cover photo: Photo2023, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
