AGI – There are “very timid “signs of recovery in hotel reservations for the summer by tourists, but these are numbers “light years away” from those pre Covid. To make the picture of the situation, Agi, in one of the most attractive regions of the country, is Marco Michielli, president of Confturismo Veneto, which represents 17 thousand companies in the sector.
Curfew at 10pm and outdoor dining only are critical points
Michielli points the finger at two measures decided by the Italian government, which are causing quite a bit of controversy, the curfew at 10pm and dinners only outdoors, which “benefit neighboring countries where these limitations do not exist“.” Just put yourself in the shoes of an Austrian – he says – who wants to take a week’s vacation in May. He has two nearby alternatives, either he comes to the Upper Adriatic, with restaurants that close at 10pm, plus the obligation to eat outdoors, which is difficult in case of rain, or he goes to Croatia, where the bars are open all the way. the night. What do you think you choose? The same reasoning is made by a Piedmontese who, instead of going to Liguria, goes to the French Riviera. So they put us in the position of not being able to work “.
Hope to work at least 3 months
Having said that, Michielli admits that “there are reservations that are timidly arriving for the months of July, August and September. This certainly bodes well because this year too, people will book at the last minute. We trust, therefore, that at least in these 3 months we can work “.
In May and June there is no foreign clientele, there are no reservations
Totally different speech for May and June. “For those with German and Austrian customers, the month of May is fundamental – he explains – with the week of holidays for Pentecost. Seven days in which we used to fill up, both in Veneto and Emilia Romagna”. This year the forecasts are dark gray. Michielli gives his personal example: “I have a summer hotel with 70 rooms, I will open on May 22nd and I only have 3 reservations. I should have been at least 50, which then became many more over the course of the month, until it was sold out. Now I have 3 reservations and others are not arriving, there are no requests. Everyone is waiting to see what governments come up with “.
Give vaccines to those who work in tourism
The hope is that the vaccination campaign will proceed quickly, only in this way the Italian tourist destinations will have some chance to compete with foreign ones. Vaccinations for tourism staff and the Covid Free islands are an excellent ‘gimmick’ according to the president of Confturismo Veneto. “I think they do very well to vaccinate the staff on the islands. Even if it’s more of a marketing operation than anything else: the Greece, has ‘vaccinated’ only a small part of its many islands, not even twenty, and only the very small ones, with 30 inhabitants. Of course Rhodes and Crete cannot vaccinate them because there are hundreds of thousands of people but with that exit, with the claim ‘Covid free islands’ have conquered the world. Hats off to the Greek colleagues and the talented colleagues from the Italian islands if they manage to follow suit “.
“I had asked my Region to vaccinate all the staff who come into contact with the customer. And I do not give up on this idea, hoping that avalanches of vaccines will arrive this month and, after the indicated ranges, elderly and frail, to be able to vaccinate everyone. I hoped it could happen earlier, already today, so that we can say ‘come’ abroad. Instead, if we can do it, it will be the end of May and therefore everything will be more difficult “. As for the islands “I have no form of jealousy, hoping it is the first step to get the whole tourist Italy vaccinated” conclude.
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