Blue Flag 2026: 257 coastal resorts will be able to display the award, 11 more than last year: 14 new entries, 3 municipalities not confirmed.

Blue Flag 2026, who earns and who loses the award

The new Blue Flags awarded by FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education), an international non-governmental and non-profit organisation, go to: in Lombardia, Limone sul Garda (Brescia); in Liguria, Andora (Savona) and Taggia (Imperia); in Emilia Romagna, Rimini; in Toscana, Monte Argentario (Grosseto); in Puglia, Morciano di Leuca and Tricase (Lecce); in Calabria, Amendolara and Montegiordano (Cosenza), Falerna (Catanzaro), Locri (Reggio Calabria); in Sicilia, Ispica (Ragusa), Lipari (Messina); in Sardegna, Teulada (Sulcis Iglesiente). The Blue Flag is instead lost by: San Felice Circeo in Lazio, Patù in Puglia and Castrignano del Capo in Puglia.

Which region has the most Blue Flags in Italy

Liguria is the region with the most Blue Flags (35), followed by Puglia and Calabria with 27. Campania, Marche and Toscana each count 20 Blue Flags. Sardegna has 17 Blue Flag locations, Sicilia and Abruzzo 16. In Trentino Alto Adige there are 12 Blue Flags, in Emilia Romagna 11, in Lazio 10, in Veneto 9, in Basilicata 5, in Piemonte and Lombardia 4, in Friuli Venezia Giulia and Molise 2.

What it means to hold the Blue Flag

The criteria for awarding the Blue Flag, which recognises the best coastal and lakeside resorts and marinas (87 awarded in 2026) in terms of water quality, environment and services, are:

• absolute compliance of bathing waters, rated excellent over a four-year assessment period based on ARPA analysis results and meeting Blue Flag indicators that are 50% stricter than the excellent classification;
• regular water sampling carried out throughout the summer season;
• efficient wastewater treatment and a sewage network connected to at least 80% of the entire municipal area;
• separate waste collection and proper management of hazardous waste;
• extensive pedestrian areas, cycle paths, well-maintained street furniture and green spaces;
• beaches equipped with all services and lifesaving personnel, accessibility for all (removal of architectural barriers);
• ample space devoted to environmental education courses, aimed in particular at schools and young people, tourists and residents;
• dissemination of information about the Blue Flag, publication of bathing water data;
• hotel facilities, public health utility services, tourist information, up-to-date signage;
• environmental certification and/or procedural certification of institutional activities and tourist facilities present within the municipal area;
• presence of fishing activity well integrated into the context of the coastal resort.

Working to tackle climate change and make tourism more sustainable

"The Blue Flag represents a strategic development vision for Italy's coastlines, which have the opportunity to become an advanced laboratory of sustainability and innovation – said Claudio Mazza, president of the FEE Italia foundation – Through this process, territories are guided towards more balanced and competitive growth models, capable of integrating environmental protection, economic development and community wellbeing."

For the second year running, all municipalities that have embarked on the Blue Flag journey submitted a Sustainability Action Plan to be implemented and monitored over the three-year period (2025–2027). The municipalities were able to present all the measures that will be adopted or have already been adopted by 2025, necessary for adapting to and combating climate change, as indicated by the European Union and Agenda 2030. FEE Italia has indeed chosen to address, for the first time in an explicit and unified manner, the issue of adapting cities to climate change, and to this end, municipal planning had to integrate in a cross-cutting way all the actions already planned by the various sectors that have a direct bearing on achieving the ultimate goal.

Five macro-objectives have been identified for the three-year period: Sustainable Mobility; Sustainable Cities and Communities; Life on Land; Life Below Water; Climate Action. Analysis of the data shows that the Blue Flag municipalities that worked on all five macro-objectives in 2025 amounted to 81 per cent. In 2026 the figure rose to 94 per cent, a very significant increase. The figures for 2025 and 2026 reveal a clear upward trend: more commitments, more projects, higher quality, greater structure and more rigorous methodology.

FEE has launched a synergy between the Blue Flag programme and the Green Key programme, with the aim of strengthening sustainability policies in the tourism sector. These foundation programmes represent two important international tools that promote sustainability in tourism through rigorous environmental quality criteria. The collaboration integrates the enhancement of coastal destinations with the certification of environmentally conscious accommodation facilities. Their synergy reinforces the commitment of destinations and accommodation providers towards responsible management of natural resources and promotes greater awareness of sustainability among tourists, operators and local communities.