Tourism has gone mad: now representatives of the local tourism industry are being sought out, competing with each other in ingenuity, and trying to extort additional fees from tourists for everything. As a result, there is a good chance that the summer of 2023 will go down in history as one of the most expensive and scandalous, and subsequently, a considerable part of tourists, including local ones, will leave this popular destination. This is how the authors of the article in CNN assessed the situation in Italy this summer.
The material collected the most egregious examples of exactly how money is taken from tourists for nothing. For example, in popular tourist destinations such as Lake Como or Portofino, tourists had to pay two euros each to have a sandwich cut in half, an empty plate brought, or a bottle of baby food heated in the microwave. “We thought it was a joke, but it turned out not,” tourists comment on the situation in one voice.
However, others had to part with more serious sums — in Sardinia, tourists were extorted 60 euros for two cups of coffee and two small bottles of water. Moreover, the owner stated that the prices were clearly indicated, and the fee is charged mostly for a view of the expensive yachts in the port located nearby – from which the main clients come to the hotel.
Another victim was a couple from America who chose not to reveal how much they paid for two Aperol Spritzes at a cafe in Piazza Navona in central Rome. However, the price tag made them wonder.
But the publication calls beach establishments that rent sunbeds and umbrellas the record holders for incredible prices. In Puglia, the daily rental of two sunbeds and one umbrella costs 50 euros on average during the week, and almost twice as much on weekends. And sometimes the price for a seat in the first row on a crowded beach can be three times higher, about 150 euros.
According to representatives of the consumer protection group Consumerism No Profit, prices in tourist areas of Italy showed a 130% increase this summer. First of all, this drives away the Italians themselves from the resort places — already not the cheapest country, the prices turned out to be 240% higher than in other Mediterranean destinations. As a result, the number of domestic tourists in Italy fell 30% below pre-Covid figures. Italians go everywhere – from Albania and Montenegro to Egypt, where it is much cheaper. There are no complaints about the decline of foreign tourists in the country yet – there are 68 million of them, i.e. 3 million more than before covid, but if the arbitrariness with prices continues…