Blenio Valley vacation rentals boom, but the law limits owners' income

For the second year running, bookings and occupancy of vacation homes in the Blenio Valley have grown by about 20%. Most of the 70 properties managed by Interhome are booked through the end of August. The result is attributed to several factors: international uncertainty, which pushes some tourists toward destinations seen as safe, the renovation of the valley's rustici, and tourism promotion for the region.

"Si osserva una tendenza crescente delle prenotazioni last minute" ("There is a growing trend toward last-minute bookings"), says Dirk Vosswinkel, Interhome's manager for the Locarno area and valleys. The trend complicates planning for the season, but for Vosswinkel it remains a positive sign.

The 90-day cap

The revival of the rustici, welcomed by people from the valley, runs up against a legal limit: since 2023, vacation home rentals cannot exceed 90 days a year. That is a narrow margin, given that the warm season now runs from Easter to mid-October and that Olivone, Acquarossa and Malvaglia draw visitors year-round.

The rule pushes owners toward year-long rental contracts, but that choice halves their income. Walter Gianora, who owns a rented rustico, describes the effect this way: beds are occupied on weekends, in August and for a few weeks in September, "poi il letto è freddo" ("then the bed goes cold").

A motion in Parliament now asks to raise the limit to 180 days, partly because the valley's growth extends beyond its traditional markets. Guests still come mostly from German-speaking Switzerland, Germany and the Benelux countries, but Vosswinkel notes growing numbers of visitors from French-speaking Switzerland, France and Italy. He sees this as a sign of the effectiveness of regional tourism boards in promoting Ticino as a vacation destination.

The question remains whether a cantonal legal cap should adjust to tourist demand that, in the valley, now lasts six months a year, and how much such a constraint weighs on owners whose potential rental income it effectively cuts in half.