In the year before the pandemic, wine tourism in Italy was at its peak: according to estimates by the "Turismo del Vino" observatory of the national association of wine towns "Città del Vino", around 15 million people took part in a tasting, cellar or vineyard tour as well as other events or stayed overnight in wineries in 2019. In the process, they generated a turnover of 2.65 billion euros - an increase of six and seven per cent, respectively, compared to the tendency of stable levels in previous years.