Northern Italy is preparing for a significant tourism influx in February, coinciding with the launch of the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina.

The 2026 Winter Olympics are less than 100 days away, with approximately 850,000 tickets already sold and projections estimating attendance reaching up to two million visitors.

Interest is widespread locally, where seven out of 10 Italians express enthusiasm; however, the Games, scheduled from 6 to 22 February 2026, are particularly favored by Americans, according to research conducted by Ipsos for VISA.

The 2026 Winter Games will mark the first edition after the pandemic. In contrast, the 2022 event held in China attracted fewer than 100,000 spectators.

Early ticket sales data indicates that American tourists contribute about 35% of all foreign spending.

Among European countries, Germans lead with just over 10%, followed closely by substantial numbers of British, Swiss, and French winter sports enthusiasts at 5% each, as revealed by the VISA survey. Canadians represent nearly 10%.

Analyzing individual expenditures, Australians top the spending list with an average of €2,600 per cardholder, ahead of Canadians (€2,200), Americans (€2,100), and Dutch visitors (€1,300).

Olympic rings near a slope of the Stelvio Ski Center, venue for the alpine ski and ski mountaineering disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio AP/Luca Bruno

A large influx of Dutch visitors is expected, with air travel to northern Italy set to increase eighteen times in February 2026 compared to the same month in 2025.

Canadians are projected to contribute the second-highest growth (12 times), followed by Germans (nearly 5 times), Americans (over 4 times), Finns (more than 3 times), French tourists (doubled), and British travelers (increasing by over a third).

Overall, foreign arrivals by air are anticipated to surge by 160% relative to the period in 2025.

Among Italian airports, Milan Linate is forecasted to manage the highest number of passengers, with arrivals growing over 450%, followed by Milan Malpensa (+190%), Verona (+120%), and Bergamo (+80%).

Airports near Cortina, such as Venice (+75%) and Treviso (+40%), will also experience significant increases.

United States’ Kelly Wolf competes during the women’s mixed relay race at the Ski Mountaineering World Cup event in Bormio, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025 AP/Antonio Calanni

Milan and Cortina will serve as primary venues, with additional competitions in the Valtellina region and Val di Fiemme, while Verona is designated for the closing ceremony.

The overall area involved will be extensive — nearly 22,000 square kilometres — making these the most geographically spread Winter Olympics to date.

The VISA survey by IPSOS reports that «90% anticipate positive regional effects, including long-term enhancements to public spaces, transport, infrastructure, and tourism — while 65% consider Milano Cortina 2026 a driver for technological innovation».

¿Qué es Skimo, la nueva exigente disciplina olímpica de invierno?

Entre las 116 pruebas y 16 disciplinas previstas, destaca la incorporación de esquí de montaña, conocido también como Skimo, que hará su debut olímpico.

Este deporte, rápido, exigente y estratégico, combina ascensos a pie intensos, subidas técnicas y descensos esquiando, generalmente sobre terreno natural.

En el evento de Milán-Cortina se disputarán tres modalidades de Skimo: el relevo mixto y las pruebas de sprint masculino y femenino.

«Italia es una de las naciones pioneras en esta disciplina, con varios triunfos internacionales en competiciones importantes durante los últimos 10 años», afirman los organizadores.

Además, los moguls duales, caracterizados por ser emocionantes y llenos de adrenalina, se integrarán en el esquí acrobático tanto en categoría masculina como femenina.

Consiste en dos atletas compitiendo simultáneamente en una pista llena de baches con dos saltos, donde ejecutan maniobras aéreas.

Australia’s Charlotte Wilson competes in the women’s freestyle skiing dual moguls competition at the World Cup Finals and Olympics Milano-Cortina 2026 test event on 12/03/2025 AP/Antonio Calanni

Estas Olimpiadas contarán con la mayor participación femenina en la historia de los Juegos de Invierno: el 47% de los casi 3,000 atletas serán mujeres.

Los atletas rusos y bielorrusos competirán nuevamente bajo la condición de «atletas neutrales individuales».

Los Juegos Olímpicos de Invierno serán seguidos por los Juegos Paralímpicos de Invierno, programados del 6 al 15 de marzo, que serán los primeros en celebrarse en varias ciudades desde la edición de 1992 en Tignes-Albertville, Francia.