In a few months, perhaps even before the end of the year, Rome will have its Destination Management Organization (DMO). This was announced by the mayor of the capital of Italy, Roberto Gualtieri, speaking during the special edition of the day of the hotelier promoted by Federalberghi Rome.
The event took place after 2 years of absence due to the pandemic. For the Mayor, this is the first tangible sign of “even closer collaboration between the Roman administration and the categories of the sector most affected by the pandemic, which today more than ever represents a necessary step to seize the 3 exceptional opportunities to revive tourism”. . Not only local but also national, in reference to the Ryder Cup 2023, the Jubilee 2025 and the bid for Expo 2030.
“Unique opportunities to once again become the protagonists of the global tourism market.”
To meet these challenges, the municipal administration also intends to take decisive action to combat illegality – illegalism, as highlighted by the Councilor for Tourism of the Municipality of Rome, Alessandro Onorato. He anticipated the intention to intervene on 2 fronts: at Fiumicino airport against NCC (rental service with driver) and abusive taxi drivers with thousands of fines and fines, and on actors like Airbnb which had signed an agreement with Giunta Raggi (former mayor of Rome) for the payment of the tourist tax by unilaterally fixing the share and accumulating unpaid bills for millions of euros. From now on, they will have to submit to the same parameters as hoteliers, and it is a first strong sign of legality to bring back the same rules for everyone on the tourist accommodation market.
But beyond the good intentions, the bright prospects and some good news, the current situation worries hoteliers, as clarified by the president of Federalberghi Rome, Giuseppe Roscioli, who said:
“Unfortunately, the Rome destination continues to suffer with a sharp drop in attendance compared to 2019. To make the situation difficult, the government has abandoned the aid system, but our sector has not yet come out of the emergency, so much so that we do not expect a return to normal until 2024. And this year, despite timid signs of recovery during the Easter period, almost half of foreign arrivals and presences have disappeared.
“Let’s not forget that in Rome, in 2019, 72% of the hotel clientele was international. Today we have to suffer from the lack of significant flows from Russia, Asia and parts of the Americas,
“Hence our demands to the government regarding moratoriums on loans and financing, since hoteliers had to start paying deposits again at the end of March, with hotels still closed or partially operational. We paid the IMU in December.
“An absurd situation. I hope the government understands this suffering.
“In this regard, we have set up a special table for Rome, with an extraordinary assembly in the Capitol to raise awareness, for example, of the urgency of employment in the sector after more than 4,000 layoffs in the last period. Specific actions must be taken with regional measures that can alleviate the situation.
In hotels and free accommodation establishments in Rome and the metropolitan city, there is a recovery compared to 2021, when employment was almost zero, which, however, remains very far from the “pre-pandemic” levels of 2019.
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