The village of Grottole, in the province of Matera, is the protagonist of the experiential tourism project called Italian Sabbatical. This is an initiative Sponsored by Airbnb and promoted by the social enterprise Wonder Grottole. The project is based on a partnership with the Matera-Basilicata 2019 Foundation, which offered the international community the opportunity to apply to relocate to the small village for three months. The goal is to revitalize the historic center of the village, which is beautiful but has only a few hundred inhabitants.
The village of Grottole and the Italian Sabbatical effect
The search for five volunteers willing to move to the village of Grottole for three months quickly spread around the world. 280.000 applications arrived in a month, with approximately 1500 articles in the international press and hundreds of thousands of views on social media. social networks.
Italian Sabbatical This launches a series of initiatives to support Southern Italy, presented by the company's top management and focused on experiential tourism. The importance of experiential tourism is confirmed by Airbnb data which shows Italy as the leading market in Europe by number of bookings. A market second in the world only to United States.
The village of Grottole and its new inhabitants
There are five aspiring residents of the village who come from four continents. Grottole's new residents include Pablo Colangelo, a 36-year-old computer engineer of Italian origins, born and raised in Buenos Aires. Then there's Anne Tachado, a Filipino photographer with a degree in agriculture.
The other new resident is Helena Werren, 45, a Canadian cultural guide born and raised in a yurt. And Remo Sciubba, 62, a former project manager with Abruzzo roots who discovered a passion for teaching foreign languages. The fifth new resident is Darrell Pistone, 61, a former firefighter from New York, who recently discovered that her grandparents were originally from Grottole.
The project: tourism becomes an authentic experience and not a mass phenomenon
Chris Lehane, global head of public policy Airbnb, said “The success of this project demonstrates how rural areas of the Southern Italy represent a dream destination for international travellers.
People who are looking for authentic travel experiences, far from mass tourism." Lehane added: "For Airbnb, focusing on Southern Italy means helping to unleash untapped potential.A tourism policy that focuses on training, local development, and collaboration with local institutions and organizations.
Matera 2019 Experience Academy
Airbnb's commitment to training is an integral part of the partnership established with Matera-Basilicata Foundation 2019A full synergy that includes the inauguration, on May 30th, of the first Academy on Experiential Tourism.
Born in collaboration with Destination Makers, the Matera 2019 Experience Academy has already received over 200 applications from professionals and others. Men and women who, thanks to experiential tourism, want to discover how to transform their business. The special academy He will teach his unique students how to structure an experience to offer travelers. "Modern wayfarers" will be transformed from simple tourists into temporary citizens of the area.
Matera launches temporary citizenship
“Together with Airbnb – underlined Paolo Verri, Director of the Matera-Basilicata 2019 Foundation We will implement our temporary citizenship project. A concept that has now been accepted and incorporated into the national tourism strategic plan. A project that has become central to European tourism planning.
Verri reiterated: “We intend to make Matera not only a place to visit but also a place of meeting and dialogue, a dialogue between the citizens who live there permanently and those who choose it as a temporary space. The guests of the European Capital of Culture will not only live in homes that could be their own, but for a few days or even longer they will be real residents of the city. They will have unusual experiences linked to the true stories of the Matera residents, champions of hospitality.
(Photo Facebook Wonder Grottole)
