Wine and tourism: An analysis of synergies in Italy

Wine is gaining increasing importance in the modern tourism industry. The aim of this paper is to unpack the relations between engaging agritourism practices and wine farming specialisation in Italy, with special emphasis on socio-economic sustainability performances. The analysis is conducted at the farm level using Italian Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) data over the 2017–2021 period and exploiting a Propensity Score Matching approach. Results show that wine farms are more likely to pursue agritourism activities than other farms, with high-quality wine producers offering a more diverse tourism option. Wine tourism affects socio-economic sustainability, but with differences noted between high-quality and conventional producers. Implications arise for policy makers and practitioners building local development strategies and finding inroads to fostering sustainable tourism.