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TOURISM

The parts of Italy that are offering incentives to tempt tourists back

From discounted air fares to bonus nights in hotels, regions all over Italy are offering travellers even more reasons to visit.

Published: 23 June 2020 14:21 CEST
The parts of Italy that are offering incentives to tempt tourists back
Sicily is one of Italy's popular tourist destinations hoping to lure visitors back this summer. Photo: Iudovic Marin/AFP

Italy's massive tourism industry has taken a hit from two months of total shutdown and an ongoing ban on visitors from outside Europe.

In a bid to revive the sector, which makes up 13 percent of GDP and 15 percent of jobs, some parts of the country are offering incentives to holiday in Italy this summer – and both domestic and overseas visitors can benefit.

READ ALSO: Why the Italian government might give you up to €500 to go on holiday in Italy

On top of a 'holiday bonus' worth up to €500 for lower-income households in Italy that's funded by the national government, some regions will subsidize your accommodation, waive museum entry fees or hand out discounts on guided tours.  

Here's a guide to what's on offer if you're planning to travel in Italy this summer.

Sicily

The island's government wants to give discounts on plane tickets, subsidise hotel stays and cover the cost of guided tours for visitors arriving in the coming months.

The regional administration has set aside €75 million to buy services from Sicilian tourism businesses, which it will then offer to tourists in the form of pre-paid vouchers. Some of the funds will also go towards covering part of visitors' air fares, by paying airlines to offer discounts to people booking flights to Sicily.

As well as using the vouchers to pay for your accommodation or an excursion with a licensed guide, the first 600,000 visitors will also be able to show them at one of the region's museums or monuments to get free entry.

READ ALSO:


The Valley of the Temples in Agrigento, Sicily. Photo: Iudovic Marin/AFP

The scheme is still at the planning stage, but when the vouchers become available the region has indicated that they'll be distributed by tour operators and travel agents.

Some cities have already begun offering discounts, though – for instance Palermo, where people flying into the city's airport can book four nights for the price of three in participating hotels (more details here).

Piedmont

The northern region is offering tourists three nights for the price of one for the next year as part of its plans to restart tourism.

The regional government will spend at least €5 million on 'holiday vouchers' to subsidise hotel stays. For every three nights that visitors book in Piedmont, the region will effectively pay for one and the accommodation owner another, the government says.

Each traveller can purchase up to ten vouchers, which will be valid until the end of 2021, the regional tourist board told La Stampa. They could go on sale as soon as July 1st, one industry representative told the newspaper, and operators hope to expand the services they can be spent on to include guided tours, excursions and nature lodges. 

READ ALSO: 


Visitors admire the tulips at Pralormo Castle near Turin, Piedmonte. Photo: Marco Bertorello/AFP

Alto Adige

The autonomous province of Alto Adige (South Tyrol) plans to offer antibody tests in hotels, both for staff and guests.

The blood tests are voluntary and free for guests, with the cost subsidised by the province. The province is aiming to carry out some 20,000 tests, starting in the towns of Tirol, Merano and Schenna. 

Calabria

In addition to the national government's travel bonus for lower-income families, Calabria is launching its own scheme to help residents afford a holiday this year.

People who live in the region can apply for vouchers worth between €80 for an individual, €160 for two people, €240 for three people and €320 for a family of four or more, to be spent on at least three nights in accommodation within Calabria.

The bonus is only for people who live in Calabria permanently, and who have an annual household income of €20,000 or less.

READ ALSO: 


The coast of Tropea in Calabria. Photo: sea_and_sunset/Unsplash

Young residents aged 18-24 can also benefit from a separate €200 voucher that they can put towards a trip or other leisure activities in the region.

Marche

Central Marche also has a bonus for residents holidaying within their own region: residents can apply for a one-off payment of €50 per person to spend at least two nights within Marche but outside their own province.

The scheme is open to all adults who live in Le Marche, regardless of income, on a first-come-first-serve basis.

With other regions promising to help out local tourist businesses, there may well be further bonuses to come. We'll update this list with the latest details.

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TRAVEL NEWS

Reader question: What will EES mean for foreigners living in Europe?

The EU's new Entry & Exit System (EES) of enhanced passport controls is due to come into force later this year, but among many questions that remain is the situation for non-EU nationals who live in the EU or Schengen zone.

Published: 27 April 2024 07:59 CEST
Reader question: What will EES mean for foreigners living in Europe?

Currently scheduled to start in autumn 2024 (unless it’s delayed again, which is not unlikely) the EU’s new Entry & Exit System is basically an enhanced passport check at external EU borders, including a facial scan and fingerprinting.

You can find a full explanation of the new system HERE.

Travellers crossing an external EU or Schengen border for the first time will be required to complete EES ‘pre-registration’ formalities including that facial scan and fingerprinting.

There are, however, several groups exempt from EES and one of them is non-EU nationals who have a residency permit or long-stay visa for an EU country.

So if you’re a foreigner living in the EU or Schengen zone, here’s what you need to know.

Exempt

One of the stated aims of EES is to tighten up enforcement of over-staying – IE, people who stay longer than 90 days in every 180 without a visa, or those who overstay the limits of their visa.

Obviously these limits do not apply to non-EU nationals who are resident in the EU or Schengen zone, which is why this group is exempt from EES checks. They will instead be required to show their passport and residency permit/visa when crossing a border, just as they do now.

In its explanations of how EES will work, the European Commission is clear – exempt groups include non-EU residents of the Bloc.

A Commission spokesman told The Local: “Non-EU citizens residing in the EU are not in the scope of the EES and will not be subject to pre-enrollment of data in the EES via self-service systems. The use of automation remains under the responsibility of the Member States and its availability in border crossing points is not mandatory.

“When crossing the borders, holders of EU residence permits should be able to present to the border authorities their valid travel documents and residence permits.”

How this will work

How this will work on the ground, however, is a lot less clear.

Most ports/airports/terminals have two passport queues – EU and non-EU. It remains unclear whether the non-EU queue will have a separate section for those who are exempt from EES.

It does seem clear that exempt groups will not be able to use the automated passport scanners – since those cannot scan additional documents like residency permits – but should instead use manned passport booths. However it is not clear whether these will be available at all airports/ports/terminals or how non-EU residents of the EU will be directed to those services.

There’s also the issue that individual border guards are not always clear on the processes and rules for non-EU residents of the EU – even under the current system it’s relatively commonly for EU residents to have their passports incorrectly stamped or be given incorrect information about passport stamping by border guards.

Brits in particular will remember the immediate post-Brexit period when the processes as described by the EU and national authorities frequently did not match what was happening on the ground.

The Local will continue to try and get answers on these questions. 

READ ALSO What will EES mean for dual nationals

What if I live in the EU but I don’t have a visa/residency permit?

For most non-EU citizens, having either a visa or a residency permit is obligatory in order to be legally resident.

However, there is one exception: UK citizens who were legally resident in the EU prior to the end of the Brexit transition period and who live in one of the “declaratory” countries where getting a post-Brexit residency card was optional, rather than compulsory. Declaratory countries include Germany and Italy.

Although it is legal for people in this situation to live in those countries without a residency permit, authorities already advise people to get one in order to avoid confusion/hassle/delays at the border. Although EES does not change any rules relating to residency or travel, it seems likely that it will be more hassle to travel without a residency card than it is now.

Our advice? Things are going to be chaotic enough, getting a residency permit seems likely to save you a considerable amount of hassle.

Delays 

Although residents of the EU do not need to complete EES formalities, they will be affected if the new system causes long queues or delays at the border.

Several countries have expressed worries about this, with the UK-France border a particular cause for concern.

READ ALSO Travellers could face ’14 hours queues’ at UK-France border

Where does it apply?

EES is about external EU/Schengen borders, so does not apply if you are travelling within the Schengen zone – eg taking the train from France to Germany or flying from Spain to Sweden.

Ireland and Cyprus, despite being in the EU, are not in the Schengen zone so will not be using EES, they will continue to stamp passports manually.

Norway, Switzerland and Iceland – countries that are in the Schengen zone but not in the EU – will be using EES.

The full list of countries using EES is: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Therefore a journey between any of the countries listed above will not be covered by EES.

However a journey in or out of any of those countries from a country not listed above will be covered by EES.

You can find our full Q&A on EES HERE.

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