Blue Flags 2022: the best Italian beaches

Excellent news for the Italian coasts: this year the Blue flags stand out on 427 beaches, in 210 municipalities and 82 tourist landings (i.e. 9 and 1 more than in 2021 and 20 more than in 2020, respectively). It is the verdict, always highly anticipated, just communicated by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) which annually awards this eco-label that certifies the excellence of water quality and the sustainability of lakeside and coastal areas in 47 countries around the world, and in which Italy stands out again this year with 10% of the winners.

New entry and excluded

The new entry this year – which you can find in the gallery at the bottom of this article – I am 14, and sorry to note that for 2022 the unconfirmed Blue Flags (because yes, they can also be lost) concern some of the most sought-after Italian summer resorts: San Mauro Cilento and Sapri in Campania, Ventotene in Lazio, the Tremiti Islands and Otranto in Puglia. There However, the regional ranking remains unchanged, with Liguria in the lead confirming 32 locations and to follow, with 18 flags, Campania, Puglia Tuscany and with 17 Calabria and Marche.

How to get the Blue Flag

A certification that can make a local tourist fortunethe Blue Flags are the result of a work that the Fee every year it carries out with institutional bodies such as the Ministry of Ecological Transition, Tourism and Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies as well as private entities such as the seaside unions. Only the places whose waters have been excellent from the controls of the Arpa in the last 4 years earn the Blue Flag, and who respond positively to 32 criteria concerning sustainability and accessibility of coastal municipalities: they range from waste management policies to the enhancement of naturalistic areas, and then initiatives to improve liveability in the summer.

The new parameter on inclusiveness

These criteria are always updated and this year, in line with the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development, the novelty is “Social commitment and inclusiveness”: a new parameter set to further favor the growth path of the municipalities that aspire to the Blue Flag for which the FEE has involved the Dynamo Camp Foundation, which supports children and adolescents with chronic diseases and their families. A partnership that will also materialize with participation 2+ Million KM 2022 – Your energy their Happiness, a cycling challenge in which the Blue Flag Municipalities will be able to compete as team leader involving citizens to reach a total of 2+ million km and raise funds for Dynamo Camp.

The sustainable future

“This important recognition certifies the quality of our wonderful beaches. A greater number of municipalities that have been awarded the Blue Flag – according to the Minister of Tourism Massimo Garavaglia – testifies to the goodness of the work that has been done in the last year aiming at an increasingly sustainable, accessible and quality tourism, in full synergy with the work of the Ministry of Tourism. L’investment in the quality of coastal municipalities and tourist destinations will be a fundamental key for the restart of the sector and therefore for the relaunch of the Italian system “The new challenge – said Claudio Mazza, president of FEE Italy – will be on training, supporting the municipalities to train the necessary skills that, through an interdisciplinary approach, guarantee a systemic vision capable of contributing to the sustainable management of the territory”.

In this gallery the new Blue Flags 2022: