Italy’s most romantic spot reopens after 12 years

The spectacular Via dell’Amore Italian The Riviera closed twelve years ago and has now reopened as an “open-air museum”.

The “Lover’s Lane” connects the seaside villages of Manarola and Riomaggiore, about 75 miles away Genoaforming part of the Cinque Terre National Park.

During its years of operation, tourists came here with excitement – fortunately, meetings in the Ligurian hotspot do not require climbing the cliffs – and route They use padlocks and graffiti to express pure emotions.

Italy’s tourism minister, Daniela Santanchè, said tourists can “see all that our wonderful country has to offer” during their trip.

But officials were forced to close access to the famous trail after a landslide in 2012. Now, overtourism plagues the villages connected to the trail, which is why officials have capped the number of visitors at 4,000 per day.

Photo: Flickr

Visitors must buy a time-stamped ticket before being escorted along the rugged Italian coastline by staff who will be there to oversee their lovemaking. Locals have even reported couples trying to create makeshift padlocks by tying a pair of underwear to the railings.

“To understand the story”

Riomaggiore Mayor Fabrizia Pecunia wants to tackle overtourism because the Cinque Terre is set to receive an impressive 4 million tourists by 2023, despite having fewer than 4,000 inhabitants.

More specifically, the mayor said: “We are not doing this to make money. In 2011, we had about 870,000 tourists here, so we want to maintain the same number of tourists but distribute them better.”

The Cinque Terre, a coastal national park of five fishing villages and cliffs, saw a drop of 1 million visitors last year. Pecuña had wanted to make guided tours mandatory but backed off.

Pecuña hopes the plans will encourage people to book hotels in the village.

The trail has undergone years of renovation in preparation for its opening as an open-air museum on July 26. “(Staff stationed along the trail) will do their best to get people to stop and learn about the story,” the mayor added.

It will be open to visitors between 8.30 a.m. and 7 p.m. during the summer, but closes at 5 p.m. during the winter.

“Unique experience”

The Via dell’Amore trail will be open only to residents of the city of La Spezia during the first two weeks of operation. Residents can enter for free between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m., but tourist access will start on August 9.

Holidaymakers who choose to stay overnight in Manarola and Riomaggiore are entitled to extra nights if they buy day tickets, and Pecugna hopes the schemes will provide an incentive for people to book hotels in the villages.

She went on to say, “We want to incentivize people to stay the night. If people sleep here, eat here, and go somewhere else, too. We want to provide them with a unique experience.”

Italy’s tourism minister, Daniela Santanchè, said the route would allow visitors to “see all that our beautiful country has to offer”. The Via dell’Amore first opened in 1931 when tourists worked together to build the route in an effort to combat loneliness.

In the past, unless they preferred to take the train, they had to climb 600 steps of rock to get between Riomaggiore and Manarola. The local government spent 23 million euros to renovate the road.

*Information from: The Sun | Subject photo: Flickr