Genoa International Boat Show presents the first ever analysis of Italian boat owners & their boats

Genoa International Boat Show © Genoa International Boat Show

On Day 1 of the event, the Forum Hall in the Blue Pavilion of the Genoa International Boat Show hosted the presentation of the data collected and processed from a survey carried out by the Italian Marine Industry Association's National Nautical Observatory, providing a detailed profile of today's Italian boaters. The report was presented by Roberto Neglia, Head of Institutional Relations at the Italian Marine Industry Association.

The presentation provided an analysis and portrait of owners of recreational boating units, a fascinating tool for understanding the structural, economic and social dynamics affecting the boating industry and tourism sectors in Italy. This is fundamental for guiding public and private policy and planning choices. The study was conducted by cross-referencing variables such as gender, geographical origin, size and type of boat, engine and year of construction, with in-depth analysis of territorial specificities. Two further focuses concerned the definition of typical profiles for each macro-area and boaters under 40, who represent a minority segment, but a relevant one for renewal strategies and generational inclusion within the sector.

The study shows that 80% of Italian owners are over 50 years old, with a particularly marked concentration in the 60-75 age bracket; women represent a minority share (13%), but they are growing and younger on average. They are mainly resident in large urban centres, first Rome and Milan, while by geographical macro-area there is a slight prevalence of the North-East. On average, they own a 10-12 metre unit, inboard powered, built between 2000 and 2009.

The type of owner is predominantly male (87%) and 45% are between 60-75 years old. Owners in the 50-59 age bracket account for 26%, 40-49 year olds are the 10%, while the 30-39 age bracket includes no more than 4%. Women make up a growing share and their age distribution appears more balanced towards the 50-59 year-old component, with the 40-49 year-old bracket standing at around 15%, well above the national average.

An interesting comparison was also made with the age of the Genoa International Boat Show's visitors, who are decidedly younger, with an average age of 50 in 2024. The 55-64 age bracket is the largest, accounting for 34%, while 25-44 year-olds make up 22% (GRS Research & strategy for the company I Saloni Nautici, 2024).

Southern Italy stands out as the macro-area with the highest share of young boaters aged under 40, particularly in the 30-39 age bracket, and alone accounts for over 25% of the national total, followed by the North-East (18%). Rome, Naples and Trieste show significantly higher values than the average. On the other hand, the 20-29 and under-20 age bracket is marginal in all geographical macro-areas, with values always below 5%, and the best performance marked by Naples, Trieste and Milan.

With regards to the relationship between age and unit size, the difference is marked at the far sides of the spectrum, with owners of units over 24 metres having an average age of over 68 and those who own registered boats under 10 metres being around 58. The statistic becomes uniform for the intermediate age groups.

Although the concept of boating is associated with economic stability and a certain spending power, the study shows that buying a boat is not only linked to income. The correlation between the age of boat owners and the average salary of the ISTAT surveyed executive category suggests a non-proportional trend of growth in boating activities as income increases in the 40-50 age bracket. A clear divide in the propensity to boating between the over and under 50s is evident.

The geographical distribution is fairly balanced, with the North-East accounting for 25% of boat owners, followed by the Centre (24%), the North-West (21%) and the South (20%), while the islands of Italy stand at 10%. An analysis of the 10 municipalities with the highest incidence confirms the role of large urban centres, with, in order, Rome, Milan and Naples at the top, which alone account for about one third of the sub-sample, demonstrating that boating is a strongly metropolitan phenomenon. They are followed by Trieste, Genoa, Turin, Venice, Padua, Palermo and Florence.

35% of all pleasure boats were built before 2000, less than 10% after 2020. Inboard is the prevailing choice, adopted on 73% of units. As for generational preferences, motor propulsion shows the strongest concentration among 60-75-year-olds. Sailboats, on the other hand, show a greater cross-sectional distribution among age groups, attracting a more diversified interest.

Compared to the national average, motorboats are chosen more in the south of Italy, 73%, and on the two largest islands, 61%; in the North-east, North-west and Centre, the percentage settles at 52-55%, with sailing gaining more market space. With regards to installed power, the most represented category is the 251-999 HP category, comprising over 35% of units, followed by the 40-115 HP bracket with 22%.

An analysis of home port moorings shows that there is pressure throughout the Centre-north of the Peninsula and the province of Naples, while the situation is reversed with respect to transit moorings, where the South is in deficit.

As for the attractiveness of the Italian flag register, it should be noted that only 2% of registered boatowners are of foreign residence, EU or non-EU, and since 2015 there has been a sharp reduction in registrations that has broken the correlation with the growth in turnover recorded between 2000 and 2007. In that period, the sector showed an expansionary phase, both in terms of production and turnover, and annual registrations peaked in 2006, with over 800 new units registered each year.

Starting in 2009, turnover followed a downward trajectory until 2014, attributable to the global economic and financial crisis, domestic tax policies (in particular the so-called Monti tax) and, at the same time, there was a significant drop in the number of registered boats, with values plummeting below 200 units per year between 2012 and 2014. Since 2015, turnover has gradually returned to growth, reaching an all-time high of €8.6 billion in 2024, while registrations have increased only marginally, remaining at extremely low levels compared to the past.