Lighting-up 99% of Italy: shining a light where Italy doesn’t make noise

Telling about Italy today means much more than describing a place. It means directing the gaze. And the gaze, over time, becomes movement.

In recent years, something evident has happened. Storytelling has focused on the same points over and over, with an almost automatic precision. The same squares, the same views, the same five names repeated everywhere. Not because the rest isn’t worthwhile. On the contrary. Because the rest simply doesn’t make it into the frame.

Yet Italy is not a collage of icons. It is a miniature continent. It is an entire country living away from the spotlight, with an intensity that doesn’t always trend but often lingers.

This is where the idea of the 99% comes from. From a fact that, more than any slogan, explains what is happening. About 70% of international travelers visit only 1% of the national territory. A tiny fragment—over-narrated, over-desired, always lit. The rest remains off-screen.

Not because it is less interesting. Because it is less seen.

We made a conscious decision: not to reduce Italy to a handful of iconic images while the rest remains out of view. Not because those iconic places are not extraordinary, but because a narrow, repetitive narrative diminishes the richness of the whole country.

Guided by this awareness, we launched Hidden Gems, a series that uses the very channels that amplify attention to do the opposite: redistribute it. Small villages, landscapes, and lesser-known regions entered the story—not as “alternatives,” but as essential pieces of Italy’s mosaic.

This was not only an editorial choice. It was a vision.

By 2025, the paradox of modern tourism had become undeniable.

Overtourism had moved beyond industry debates and entered the global conversation. The data was stark: most travelers focus on a tiny fraction of the country, leaving the rest invisible.

And yet, that tiny, hyper-promoted fraction accounts for roughly 1% of Italy’s territory.

This insight inspired the 99% of Italy campaign—an independent Visit Italy project aimed at challenging the dominant narrative and bringing attention where it matters most.

With clear, direct language and striking visuals, the campaign reminded people of a truth we often forget: Italy is far more than what appears on Instagram.

The response was immediate. It resonated with a widespread feeling: that travel, and the stories we tell about it, were no longer working.

At TEDxPadova 2025, Ruben Santopietro, Visit Italy CEO and founder, named this era: the Check List Era. Not as a critique of travelers or iconic sites, but as a reflection on a cultural model in which travel risks becoming a series of boxes to tick—losing depth, time, and connection along the way.

From this perspective, Luminous Destinations is born in 2026. Ten destinations, carefully selected by an independent jury, serve as examples of a new way to experience Italy: travel that respects the environment, engages with local communities, and creates meaningful, authentic experiences.

Luminous Destinations is more than an award—is a cultural instrument, designed to shine a light on territories that have already achieved a balance between hospitality, identity, and sustainability, places where the quality of life for residents and the quality of the travel experience grow hand in hand.

With Luminous Destinations, we aim to bring attention to what often remains in the shadows: destinations that do not chase high numbers, but relationships; that do not compete for attention, but deserve it.

99% of Italy and Luminous Destinations are not isolated projects. They are two sides of the same commitment: to use attention wisely, redistribute it, expand the imagination, and restore complexity to Italy’s story.

If the Check List Era revealed the limits of conventional tourism storytelling, 99% of Italy widened the lens—and Luminous Destinations points toward a path forward. The future of travel is measured not in numbers, but in depth: in the ability to connect people and places, culture and nature, communities and travelers.

This is where Visit Italy stands: telling the story of an Italy that continues to live, to shine, and to be discovered, thoughtfully, deeply, and with respect.