On the occasion of the presentation of our territories to a group of selected tour operators, we want to discuss the phenomenon of attracting small tourism investments from foreigners, which is changing not only the offerings but also the attractiveness of Ciociaria.
This is the other side of roots tourism, which has sparked the desire for a point of reference in Italy, first among Italian descendants abroad and then among the entire international community from the countries where emigration had taken place.
Ciociaria was crossed by the Gustav Line during WWII, and everyone remembers the destruction of the Abbey of Montecassino and all the surrounding villages. This led to extreme poverty and a massive emigration of entire communities, with very interesting characteristics: sometimes it was spontaneous, but in other cases it was led by the church, as in the case of Canada, which required qualified personnel.
Initially, only grandparents abroad spoke of their places of origin, and they continued to maintain contact with them by coming every summer to spend part of their holidays in Italy. Over time, thanks in part to them, Italy's image has changed for the better, and after COVID, our country has been seen as a Plan B for living in authentic territories far from the big cities.
Alta Ciociaria hasn't experienced mass emigration, but the sociological aspects are the same, and today we're seeing groups of foreign families coming to invest in our region. The phenomenon is so rapidly increasing that it can no longer be ignored.
The most attractive investments are those in buildings in the historic centers of villages and in agricultural and winemaking businesses. In our region, we highlight at least two notable cases. The first is Donna Vittori Borgo Agricolo (www.donnavittori.com) in Paliano, a winery founded by a group of international friends, one of whom is from the area.
Today, this agritourism exudes a unique atmosphere where local authenticity and native grape varieties blend with Eastern traditions and a Ciociarian-Lebanese fusion cuisine.
In Anagni, we also highlight the case of Casale San Pietro, a farm founded by an English couple, one of whom is of Sicilian origin, far from Ciociaria. They chose the Anagni countryside for its beauty and proximity to Rome's international airports, creating a complex architecturally respectful of the local agricultural style. Today, their business hosts over 90% foreigners, and they are developing a timeshare on neighboring land by renovating abandoned houses.
The resulting momentum is such that more and more Italian descendants and other family groups are deciding to explore our region and are encouraged to renovate properties in historic centers for their own pleasure.
We would also like to highlight the case of the new young emigrants, better defined as expats. Social media and digital communication have changed the way they leave their hometowns, with which they never sever ties. Their actions have promoted the region in other languages and in other worlds. The result of international geopolitical complexity, then, is that many of them today consider returning to Italy or keeping a door open to return. And this brings a wealth of experiences and relationships to our regions, combining strong local authenticity with a totally new capacity for hospitality.
Even if it were simply the ability to interact with other cultures in other languages and to offer guests authentic experiences on a more intriguing intercultural level, the role of Italian descendants and expats is helping our regions evolve towards an international hospitality based on the strong identity and authenticity of Ciociaria.
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