Zoomarine will be the first amusement park in Italy, near Rome, entirely accessible to the deaf and hearing-impaired, with all activities translated and communicated in sign language (LIS) thanks to the Park’s commitment to social inclusion practices. The first steps include all animal demonstrations being translated into the LIS language while all videos broadcast on social media will be subtitled.

Training in the sign language for Zoomarine’s personnel

Following training in sign language the Zoomarine staff will be able to communicate and assist deaf and hearing-impaired visitors, making their visit a complete and satisfying experience.

The training course is due to start on 29 November and will continue until spring 2022. At the end of the course each department involved with the public will have a contact person who can welcome deaf visitors. This is an unprecedented innovation in the world of Italian parks.

Every weekend from until 28 November young and old visitors to Gardaland can enjoy live shows, special decorations and meet-&-greets with the most loved characters, and there are also many fun animations. This is Gardaland’s first edition of Prezzemolo & Friends with new special openings in November dedicated in particular to the little ones.

Open until 28 November

For the first time ever Gardaland Resort is extending the opening beyond Halloween, relaunching a season that started with a considerable delay and is now going to run through November, a month that tempts families to get out of doors on weekends, as the temperatures on the lake are often milder than in the city.

Combined tickets for two parks and the aquarium

For Prezzemolo & Friends the combined €25 euro ticket for adults and €22 euro reduced, will include Gardaland Park, Miniland and also Gardaland Sea Lige Aquarium, the themed aquarium with over 5,000 marine creatures, including cute sea lions. The park will be open on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am to 5pm, and Gardaland Sea Life Aquarium will open on Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 5pm.

When the Boscareto Resort & Spa reopens in spring 2022, chef Michelangelo Mammoliti will take over at the helm of its gourmet restaurant.  Following recent extensive renovations to the property, the Dogliani family has announced the arrival of the Piedmont chef at its new restaurant, La Rei Natura by Michelangelo Mammoliti.

New menus and a new kitchen brigade

“We are thrilled to collaborate with one of the most talented chefs in Italy. There are also new things happening in the other restaurants in our 5-star resort, and we will be announcing these soon,” said Valentina Dogliani, managing director Il Boscareto Resort & Spa Michelangelo Mammoliti will take over at the Boscareto Resort & Spa from the beginning of February 2022, and there will be changes not only to the menus but also to the kitchen brigade.  

Locally-grown and raised products on the menu 

“So many changes! But what does not change is my concept of ​​cooking and my approach to raw materials. While the neurogastronomic derivation of the dishes will not change, what will change is how we exalt the natural element,” commented Mammoliti.  This union of two worlds - Il Boscareto Resort & Spa and chef Mammoliti - is set to develop into a multi-year project focusing on nature and on the region to which it belongs.

There is an alternative way to discover the fabulous landscapes of Sardinia. Just tak the Trenino Verde (Little Green Train) that connects the coast to the hinterland. Traveling along the historic Trenino Verde railway line, that for 130 years has connected the interior of Sardinia to the coast, you will discover villages suspended in time, breathtaking landscapes and spectacular views along this journey to a very authentic and lesser-known side of the island.

Narrow-gauge tracks and unhurried journeys

The Trenino Verde is the longest tourist railway network in Europe, measures 438 kilometres and has five different branches. This line that will lead you to the heart of the region originates from the old narrow-gauge tracks built between the 19th and 20th centuries, days in which rail travel was unhurried and along winding routes towards marvellous landscaped areas.

There are five routes from the coast into the interior

During the 1980s these old complementary routes got a new lease of life with the Trenino Verde, so called because of the many stretches rich in vegetation encountered along the way.  There are five lines and the train operates all year round carrying passengers from the coastal areas towards the interior of Sardinia.

Palau

Palau - Tempio

This part of the route crosses the whole of the Gallura region along the Sassari-Palau railway line. The journey is 59 kilometres long and lasts about three and a half hours. The train leaves from Palau and arrives in Tempio, the highest point on the line at over 500 meters asl.

Bosa

Macomer - Bosa

This route is 46 kilometres long and takes an hour and fifty minutes. On the first part of the journey it passes through the Campeda Plateau, at over 500 meters asl, before descending towards Tresnuraghes and the sea at ​​Bosa.

Mandas - Laconi

The itinerary from Mandas to Laconi is 37 kilometres long and passes through the beautiful Sarcidano and Barbagia di Belvì areas, taking two hours and forty-five minutes.  

Mandas - Seui

This route is 72 kilometres long and takes three hours and forty minutes, passing through the Gennargentu mountain range, past the Flumendosa river and into the wild mountains of the Barbagia region.

Arbatax

Arbatax - Gairo

This 62-kilometre route takes three hours and a half with the Trenino Verde passing through the mountain villages of Elini and Lanusei, past the Lago Alto del Flumendosa lake and arriving in Gairo Taquisara, where you can experience the unusual and fascinating circumstance of visiting the ghost villages of Osini Vecchio and Gairo Vecchio. 

The border between the Veneto and Trentino regions cuts through the Adige Valley where the Vallagarina begins – the main city is Rovereto - before continuing up to Calliano and Besenello. Along this route the visitor will discover different types of vineyards, in fact in the Avio area they grow Cabernet and Merlot and Chardonnay grapes especially in the valley, while in the hills we find the Müller Thurgau. And in Rovereto the Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and the famous Marzemino, which is the symbol of the valley, predominate.

Marzemino

The Castel Veneto castle is the symbol of the city

Homeland of the Marzemino variety of grape Rovereto is a city rich in culture with an intact historic center and elegant patrician palaces. The Castel Veneto fortress, which is worth a visit, was built in the 1300s by the Castelbarco family, the lords of Vallagarina, and was transformed by the Venetians at the end of the 15th century. The sturdy walls and the towers reveal the prevailing military function of the old fortress, and in 1509 the castle was ceded to the Habsburgs, who kept it until 1918. 

The MART Museum of Modern Art and Venetian landmarks

During the Great War the fortress was heavily bombed, and since 1921 it has been the Italian War History Museum. Rovereto is also known the world over for the great Peace Bell on the Miravalle Hill that rings out a hundred chimes every evening to commemorate the fallen of all wars. The famous MART Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, designed by architect Mario Botta, is home to important temporary and permanent exhibitions, and the historic center still has many landmarks dating back to Venetian days.

Mozart gave his first Italian concert in Rovereto

The Corso Bettini main thoroughfare that starts from Piazza Rosmini square, the heart of modern Rovereto, has many beautiful eighteenth-century buildings including the Zandonai Theater which was built more than 200 years ago. Rovereto is also renowned for two major international festivals: East-West, a theater and dance celebration, and the W.A. Mozart International Festival in Rovereto, dedicated to the music of the great Austrian composer who gave his first Italian concert here.

Golden beaches and green hills full of history, scents, nature and freedom: the Etruscan Coast is one of the most fascinating places in Tuscany. Many poets and writers have visited this coast in search of inspiration, passion, comfort or relaxation: Pirandello, Dante, and Goldoni are just some of the literary greats who chose this wonderful coast, and Park Hotel Marinetta is the ideal starting point to follow n their footsteps and visit the most authentic side of Tuscany.

Birthplace of the poet Carducci 

Bolgheri and Castagneto, childhood places of the Tuscan poet and Nobel Prize winner, Carducci, are a must. This is where Carducci spent his childhood, and a visit to these places will catapult the visitor straight into the verses of some of his masterpieces. 

An “idle and hedonistic" paradise

Towards Livorno, we come to the towns of Rosignano Marittimo and to Castiglioncello, one of its hamlets overlooking the sea and described as an “idle and hedonistic paradise” by Gabriele D'Annunzio. Amidst the Renaissance fortresses of Livorno, Carlo Goldoni, the father of modern comedy, experimented with his art. The author is closely connected with this seafaring city, which has a theater bearing his name.

Relaxation and spa treatments in the Park Hotel Marinetta

The Park Hotel Marinetta has suites that overlook the Tuscan seaside town of Marina di Bibbona. The Marinetta Wellness Spa at the hotel is equipped with a heated hydro-massage pool, a bio-sauna, a calidarium, a tepidarium, chrome-aromatic showers and a wide range of regenerating massages and beauty treatments. 

Emilia is a region to be experienced on foot, revealing itself to travelers and hikers who leave the city behind to immerse themselves in an intertwining of the history and nature, culture, food and wines of the great historical itineraries that were traveled by pilgrims down the centuries. 

History, nature and slow tourism 

Routes like the famous Via Francigena that crosses the heart of the Parma and Piacenza Apennines, the ancient Via degli Abati an early medieval route, the Via di Linari that touches places of great naturalistic importance such as the UNESCO Tuscan-Emilian Apennines Biosphere Reserve, and the Via Matildica del Volto Santo through the ancient fiefdom of Matilde di Canossa.  

A Council of Europe Cultural Route

One of the most popular routes for travelers of all ages is the Via Francigena. On over 1,000 kilometers between the Gran San Bernardo Pass and Rome, it crossed the heart of the Apennines in the provinces of Piacenza and Parma, and was declared a Council of Europe Cultural Route in 1994.

Walking along mule tracks and ancient pathways

The Via degli Abati, also called the Francigena di Montagna, is an ancient late-medieval itinerary used by the monks of the San Colombano di Bobbio Monastery to get to Rome, crossing part of the province of Pavia and the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. The 190 kilometres of this demanding walk are in part mule tracks, cart tracks and pathways with only small sections giving away to asphalted roads.

Following in the footsteps of the pilgrims of yesteryear

The network of paths along ancient medieval routes that constitutes the heart of the Via Matildica del Volto Santo is an opportunity to set our feet but also our imagination working as we come to the castles of the Countess Matilde di Canossa, crossing villages and trampling the same venerable land traveled long ago by pilgrims on their religious journeys.

Nature, art, fine foods and wines

The Via di Linari, an ancient deviation of the Via Francigena, takes its name from the abbey of the same name on the borders between Emilia and Tuscany. This was a commercial route and an alternative for pilgrims on their way to Rome and Lucca, and today it is a fascinating experience of discovery of nature, art, fine foods and wines.

“We are at the WTM to tell the world we can guarantee safety to those who choose our country.”

Speaking to ItaliAbsolutely Giorgio Palmucci looked back on the last 18 months. “There was a lot of uncertainty, and then the second Covid wave hit. Today there is more positivity and greater confidence in a recovery, thanks to the vaccination programme and to investments made by industry players to ensure greater peace of mind and guarantees for visitors. We are at the WTM to send out the message, to neighbouring markets and to the world, that we guarantee safety to those who choose our country.”

“We have to grow, not in volume but in value”

“Before Covid tourism was already in a phase of evolution, and we, as the operative arm of the Ministry of Tourism, were starting to think about trends, and how the ways of using a holiday and of traveling were changing. Covid accelerated these processes.  In 2019 we were worried about over-tourism. Now we need to grow back not in volume but in value, keeping people longer in our country and making sure they don’t just visit the most popular destinations.”

Boosting domestic and international markets 

“Italy is a very diversified country and we can not limit ourselves to selling certain times of year and the classical over-crowded destinations. Tourism can work 365 days a year and there is no such thing as a minor destination; what we have are amazing lesser-known destinations. The first step is to work on the domestic market as Covid has shown us that Italians do not know their country very well. The next step is to make sure that more mature neighbouring markets like Germany, the UK and France come back fast.”

“The number one variable for a holiday is safety”

For intercontinental visitors, from the USA to Canada, from Australia to Japan, and from South America to China, over these difficult months ENIT recounted a virtual story. “We told international visitors that Covid has not touched the hardware. That Italy is the same as it always was, and we have worked very hard to respond to what is now the number one variable in choosing a destination which is safety.”

We need to move fast before other destinations  

At the end of last October, before the second wave hit, the perception of 84% of international travellers surveyed was that Italian operators had done everything possible to ensure safe holidays. “The message we want to get across now is that visitors don't have to worry about Covid or anything else that doesn't add value to their stay. But if we want to be competitive we have to move fast, before other destinations.  In 2022 we will bounce back though not to the levels of 2019. It will be a year of recovery, although MICE and business travel will only kick-in later.”

The Leonardo Hotels Italia group has launched a new service for business and MICE events in collaboration with Niutek Technology Solution, a leading Italian technological services company  that produces and develops entertainment programnes. 

The latest technologies for innovative corporate events

At the five Italian properties innovative corporate events can be organised using the latest technologies such as LED wall installations, video mixers for transmission, cameras, videomapping and LED design, all with the support of Niutek. Using live streaming events and webinars, as well as live events, supported by a scenography and a stage specially designed by Niutek's team of experts, Leonardo Hotels guests will also find servies such as audio systems, simultaneous translation, lighting and lighting effects, DJ consoles and the production of video content.

In-person and remote events 

“We are pleased to offer increasingly technological and innovative systems for our business and MICE customers”, said Rafi Carmon, Cluster General Manager Leonardo Hotels Italy, Austria, Hungary. “This collaboration with Niutek will allow our guests to create engaging events in person or remotely, using cutting-edge technologies with the support of a team of experts.”

Hotels in Rome, Milan, Venice and Verona

The Leonardo Hotels are NYX Hotel Milan in the city center near the Milano Centrale railway station.  Leonardo Milan City Center is in the hub of Milanese nightlife and ckose to the city’s main monuments such as Piazza Duomo and the Castello Sforzesco. Leonardo Boutique Rome Termini is located in the heart of Rome just a few steps from the Termini central station, the subway and the terminal connecting to the airport. Leonardo Royal Venice Mestre, with its 244 rooms and suites, is the ideal place to stay while visiting the splendid city of Venice or organizing your business trips and meetings. And the splendid Leonardo Hotel Verona is the perfect choice for both leisure and business travelers, thanks to its location near the Fiera di Verona fairgrounds.