According to a study published bythe Osservatorio Nazionale Spese Pubblica e Turismo Sostenibile (National Watchdog on public expenditure and sustainable tourism), Milan is the leading Italian city respecting these criteria. The study listed Florence as second, followed by Turin, Naples, Rimini, Avellino, Bergamo, Pescara, Verbania and Como as the top ten Italian cities in this field.

Bologna was classed as no. 14, Palermo as no. 16, while the capital, Rome, lagged far behind at  27 th place. Along with Rome, other art cities such as Cagliari, Genoa, Verona and Trieste were considered inadequate regarding their potential economic tourism development.  The study also warned of the possible negative impact of tourism on local community facilities in highly popular destinations such as Venice, Mantova, Sena and Rimini.