Some five million Italians will be taking vacations in July, many beginning this weekend, sector observers said.
Rome was the city with the greatest number of people heading off at the weekend, 350,000, due to the fact that this coincided with the holiday for the city's patron saints, Peter and Paul.
Milan was expected to see 180,000 departures followed by Turin with 70,000 and then Genoa and Bologna with 40,000.
"We are seeing an overall increase of 6% in departures, as high as 8% in Milan, which would appear to indicate a general upturn in the economy," said Massimo Todisco, head of a tourism observatory in Milan.
Almost two-thirds of those taking holidays of up to two weeks chose to travel by car, 25% opted for trains while 10% flew.
In regards to holiday destinations, observers said 60% went to their second homes or to those of friends or family, while 40% chose hotels and camping grounds.
In Italy, the Adriatic coast was the most popular holiday spot for those heading to the sea, while Trentino Alto Adige and Val d'Aosta were the most popular for mountain vacations.
Paris remained the most popular holiday destination abroad, followed respectively by London, Barcelona and Prague.
The Caribbean and Red Sea were the top choices for Italians vacationing abroad.
