An unbiased web site referred to as Go to Italy is attempting a brand new effort to counter overtourism: From June 23 to July 1, the marketing campaign will publish movies on Instagram and TikTok from essentially the most crowded and fashionable Italian cities: Florence, Naples, Rome, the Cinque Terre, and Venice.
Known as “99% of Italy,” the concept is to show vacationers to much less fashionable components of the nation. The overwhelming majority is missed and “has not gone viral however holds extraordinary tales,” stated Ruben Santopietro, CEO of Go to Italy, which isn’t affiliated with ENIT, Italy’s nationwide tourism board.
Santopietro warns that with out a rebalanced strategy, “Venice may flip into a dull backdrop, Rome right into a parking zone for tour buses and Florence right into a stage set for selfies.”
The marketing campaign “doesn’t reject tourism,” Santopietro instructed Skift, however “challenges how we give it some thought. True sustainability means balancing each,” he stated. “When residents lose high quality of life, vacationers lose that means too.”
The movies function locals and vacationers holding handwritten indicators. One instance: “This isn’t all of Italy. It’s simply what made it to Instagram.”
Referencing a TEDx speak he gave final month, Santopietro stated: “We live in what we’d name the Guidelines Period of journey, the place individuals rush from place to put amassing pictures, not experiences. Italy is feeling the results.”
The launch comes as tensions round overtourism rise throughout Europe. In current weeks, residents in cities corresponding to Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, and Venice have taken to the streets in protest, calling for tighter restrictions on short-term leases, limits on cruise ship arrivals, and motion to guard native communities from the financial and social pressure of mass tourism.
Among the many locations being supported by means of broader technique efforts at Go to Italy are Arezzo, Tropea, Genoa, Northern Sardinia, Courmayeur, Livigno and different small cities.
“One in three Italian municipalities is liable to depopulation,” Santopietro stated. “In lots of of those locations, tourism is not simply a possibility. It’s the final remaining instrument to construct a neighborhood, human economic system.”
Go to Italy relaunched its web site in April and, as a part of its different efforts to fight overtourism, made distinguished on the house web page “hidden gems” as a approach to encourage vacationers to unfold out across the nation.
“These usually are not backups or options,” Santopietro stated. “They’re the opposite aspect of Italy’s identification they usually should be seen, understood and valued.”
Editor’s Be aware: This story has been up to date to make clear that Go to Italy is just not affiliated with ENIT, Italy’s nationwide tourism board.
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