Scattered hotels, a ‘Made in Italy’ offbeat experience

Italy is dotted with hundreds of remote, sparsely populated historic villages that have fallen into

disrepair as new generations moved to the cities to find work and live modern lifestyles. Giancarlo Dall’Ara, a marketing professor at Perugia University came up with the ingenious idea of the scattered hotel, a simple, non-invasive and sustainable concept in tourism. The notion is that rooms are scattered

in different buildings within the town, but run by a manager, working out of a central reception area, who is on hand to answer questions, make recommendations and arrange bookings. The guestrooms are all within walking distance of the concierge and common areas, while traditional meals may be

served at a café or delivered to guests’ rooms. This allows visitors to embed themselves in village life, while enjoying all the amenities of a hotel. Scattered hotels, says Dall’Ara, are healthy for the host villages, because they act as social, cultural and economic stimuli. He calls them “drivers of development,” because everything is sourced on site, involving the residents and local producers, and preventing depopulation. Scattered hotels are also ecologically and culturally sound, because they

don’t call for new construction, but rather, for the restoration and preservation of centuries-old architecture.

The remoteness of these villages, which once drove the younger people away, has now become their strength, says Dall’Ara. Here is where some of the old ways of cooking, weaving, and storytelling are still preserved, and this cultural wealth is the mother lode for unorthodox travellers, who yearn for authenticity and like to move off the beaten paths.

http://www.istruzione.it/esame_di_stato/201819/Istituti%20tecnici/Ordinaria/AB24_ORD19.pdf