Tourism: Limone ranks first in Italy for per capita income

20 August 2025

On 8 August, Sociometrica published a study entitled ‘The wealth of tourist municipalities 2025 - Ranking of added value creation’ by Antonio Preiti.
The survey measures the ‘tourist added value’ of Italian municipalities, immediately highlighting a record for our province and, in particular, Lake Garda.

Limone ranks first in Italy for per capita income
Limone del Garda (1,170 inhabitants) tops the ranking of Italian municipalities for hypothetical average per capita income. According to the survey, each resident of Limone benefits from €241,000 derived from tourism.
The next four positions are occupied by four small mountain municipalities in Trentino. The top five positions all have certain distinctive characteristics: small municipalities, few residents and a successful tourist and commercial offering, resulting in a very high per capita income.
Tourism is therefore confirmed as a growing driver of the national economy, but even more so for small municipalities.

 
Six municipalities in Brescia among the top 209 nationally
Overall, the Province of Brescia has six municipalities among the top 209 nationally: Sirmione in 57th place, Desenzano in 65th, Brescia (the provincial capital) in 95th, San Felice del Benaco in 116th, Manerba in 118th and Moniga in 157th.
A surprising fact is that among the top 100 Italian municipalities, 10 are located on Lake Garda. The municipality of Brescia ranks 14th nationally for growth in visitor numbers, with an increase of 48.3% in the decade 2014-2024.

Quaresmini (Confesercenti): ‘Brescia, a national and European tourist destination’
‘A great result that demonstrates the extraordinary work carried out by the municipal administrations, Visit Brescia, trade associations and all tourism and commercial operators,’ comments Barbara Quaresmini, president of Confesercenti of Eastern Lombardy. "An increase that exceeds all expectations, making Brescia emerge as a new national and European tourist destination ahead of, for example, Salerno (135th) and Matera (143rd).
These results, which are also the fruit of the “Capital of Culture” year, must be consolidated with targeted policies on staff housing, tourist mobility and support for businesses. Confesercenti invites regional and local institutions to continue investing in Brescia's tourism system, guaranteeing services, infrastructure and sustainable conditions for businesses and seasonal workers."

Maggioni (Confesercenti): ‘Tourism creates wealth and well-being’
Andrea Maggioni, Confesercenti Coordinator for Lake Garda, observes that "According to the study, tourism can represent between 60-80% of the local economic impact in specialised destinations such as those on Lake Garda. These figures show us how tourism in our province creates wealth, employment and social well-being. In this dynamic, tourism and commerce are not a sector, but an integrated economic ecosystem capable of transforming territories into engines of growth."
Reading the report as a whole, it emerges that the lake's tourism economy has experienced solid growth, successfully promoting its offerings in terms of nature, relaxation and outdoor activities.
Lake Garda, in particular, confirms its status as one of the strategic tourist and commercial resources for our country. “The performance of Lake Garda shows how the virtuous integration of environmental sustainability, history, art, culture, landscape, food and wine, wellness tourism and personalised services can generate significant results,” adds Maggioni. Adding up the value produced by the seven Brescia municipalities on Lake Garda in the ranking alone generates a value of €1.45 billion, which is slightly less than that of major tourist cities such as Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence, Rimini and Naples. To this figure should be added the value produced by the other municipalities in the Garda area, which would allow for a further improvement in the ranking.
 
New challenges
It is surprising to analyse the municipalities around Lake Garda in the top 200 national rankings: adding up the “added value” of the 14 municipalities in the three regions gives a total of €4.79 billion, placing Lake Garda as a destination in second place nationally after Rome and ahead of Milan.
However, this growth brings with it new challenges. As Confesercenti Garda, we reiterate the urgent need to invest in staff housing and accommodation solutions for seasonal workers; to encourage the extension of the season in order to support stable employment; to support historic businesses and local SMEs with targeted calls for proposals; and to encourage professional training in the tourism and catering sectors.



Read the full article at: https://www.gardapost.it/2025/08/18/turismo-limone-primo-in-italia-per-guadagno-pro-capite/?fbclid=IwY2xjawMSXutleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHt6tQEo4n_stT-izeBQSVLKQZlHzbRJ59cLZ0VEYN7A_0b-MUQahqUxX_59h_aem_9FjR2VekqzofMW7AS8hzSQ