Two years of limited mobility due to the pandemic and now the desire to leave again. This applies to those who have returned to fill their suitcase in search of a normality that tries to forget for a moment the war in Europe and the surge in prices. This is true for tourism operators who, after two years of anguish, are seeing a relaunch that hopefully will not stop. The sector represents a fundamental voice of the national GDP and can be the key to the success of territories that tourism have discovered perhaps only in recent years and which now aim to consolidate their attractiveness, to build wealth and generate employment. This is the case of Trieste, not by chance chosen for the stage of the Alphabet of the future – the project promoted by La Stampa and the newspapers of the Gnn Gedi News Network Group with the support of Intesa Sanpaolo – dedicated to the challenge of tourism.
That it is a challenge can be understood by listening to the interventions that have taken place in the auditorium housed on Molo IV of the old port. There is the challenge of environmental sustainability, when it comes to the growing presence of cruise ships in the Julian port. There is the challenge of facilities and services to be created or updated to ensure levels of hospitality and experiences that are worth the trip. There is the challenge of human resources: on the one hand that of entrepreneurship that is not always up to par, on the other of personnel who are scarce and must be trained on the labor market, while guaranteeing adequate salaries. And there is the challenge of connections, because Trieste is still an isolated place if we look at the railway and airport routes that connect it to the rest of Italy and the continent.
The event conducted by the director of the XIX Century Luca Ubaldeschi, editorial manager of the tour, and by the co-director of the Piccolo Roberta Giani touched on many of these themes. Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas previewed the project for the head station of the metropolitan cable car, considered by the municipal council to be a lever for the tourist development of the city, but opposed by many residents due to doubts related to the landscape impact and economic sustainability. Francesca Nieddu, Veneto East and Friuli Venezia Giulia regional director of Intesa San Paolo, illustrated the new credit instruments available to operators to innovate structures and support the tourism sector. The Regional Councilor for Productive Activities Sergio Bini took stock of the data and tourist strategies in Friuli Venezia Giulia, where from Trieste you can quickly reach the seaside resorts of Grado and Lignano, the ski resorts of Tarvisio and Sappada, in the food and wine pearls of Friuli and Gorizia’s Collio, among the Roman remains of Aquileia, but also in the setting offered by Slovenia and Croatian Istria. “After the pandemic, we are experiencing a magical moment”, emphasized Bini, highlighting that the sector “is worth 12% of the GDP of Friuli Venezia Giulia, where Trieste is the main business card: we are talking about a city that has grown and changed a lot” .
The climate in Trieste is one of great optimism. Mayor Roberto Dipiazza says: «We have a full city. The tourists who arrive tell me “but do you realize where you live?” ». A positive vision that is reflected in that of the minister Renato Brunetta, who in an interview with the director of the press Massimo Giannini stressed that “we are in the tourist boom and tourist spending is increasing. We are reaching pre-Covid levels and quality consumption is growing ».
The Alphabet of the Future then offered a focus on white ships: MSC Cruises Italy managing director Leonardo Massa and Trieste CEO Francesco Mariani focused on the surge in cruise traffic that the port is experiencing after closing of Venice to large ships. “We play it now”, said Mariani, aware that the boom in traffic due to the difficulties of the neighbors must be consolidated “by guaranteeing the quality of services”. There is the work that is created thanks to the related activities, but also the sustainability node and Massa has ensured that “many ships are now ready to connect to electricity on the quay, but we need solid institutional interlocutors with whom we can deal”.
