Bike: the Sicily chases a business tourism which is worth, at a national level, over 5.5 billion euros and which expresses large margins of growth. Cycling tourists in Italy numbered 56 million in 2023, according to data from Isnart – Chambers of Commerce and Legambiente, recently presented in the 2024 edition of reports “Travelling by bike”. The sector accounts for 6.7% of the total tourismhas recovered well to pre-pandemic levels and even grew by 4% compared to the 54 million attendances in 2019. What stands out above all is thequality‘ of this type of tourism. The cycle tourist in fact spends on average 95 euros per day to purchase goods and services. For cycle tourists foreigners, the cost is close to 105 euros. A tourist generichowever, does not reach 60 euros per day.
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Cycle tourists: millennials and those with medium-high incomes
Isnart and Legambiente conducted 30 thousand interviews to Italian and foreign tourists in 2023. Nell‘identikit of the cycle tourist there are to a large extent i millennials. Those born between 1980 and 1994 represent 47% of cycling tourists in Italy, and have grown by 10% compared to 2022. Almost nine out of ten have a level of instruction medium-high and work in a profession with an equally medium-high income. “A target economically very attractive for the territories”, underline the authors of the report. The cycle tourist travels in company (partner, family, friends), is attracted to heritage artistic-monumental and naturalistic. Only one in four seeks experiences food and wine. Half choose the mountain bikea quarter racing bikes, just over one in ten cycling electric.
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Bikes: what Sicily offers to cycle tourists
In Sicily, the site Cycle paths list 124 routes distributed throughout the island, mainly in Palermo (45 itineraries), Trapani (24) e Syracuse (16). About 60 are only paths and cycle paths without asphalt, the longest route is 81 kilometers. Four the routes that the site highlights. Capo d’Orlando, Castel di Tusa, San Leone in Agrigento and the Cycle path Of sun in the Gela section. The longest routes (over 100 kilometres) are found between Caltagirone and Testa dell’Acqua (in the Syracuse area), on the Nebrodi and between Catania (Aci Castello) and the Messina coast Tyrrhenian (Piraino gliaca). In addition to these, there are “the Via dei” worth mentioning Sunsets” which starts from Trapani and arrives in Selinunte, between the sea, villages and monumental-archaeological sites. There Parks Cycle Path crosses i Etna parksof the Nebrodi and of Madonie. A tour that touches half of Sicily. Among the stops also Giardini Naxos, Randazzo, Cerami, Castelbuono and Cefalù.
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Sicily Divide touches the villages that risk disappearing
Among the case histories cited by Isnart and Legambiente, there is Sicily Divides. The project was born in 2020 on the initiative of “Cycle paths Sicilian“, an association from Palermo that collaborates with a local tour operator specializing in travel organized by bike. There are two routes proposed so far, between Trapani, Palermo and Catania, which are long overall 470 kilometres, with low traffic impact. Expected pass And checkpointa network of bike hotel affiliated and cycle workshops. i. are involved villages and the most beautiful Sicilian villages. These are places that are often at risk of depopulation: the idea is in fact to support the economy of community local also through cycle tourism. The model convinces and is chosen every year by 3,000 cycle tourists. This is why they are born seven new itineraries ring-shaped, based on environmental sustainability.
