Innovative channel to promote ‘Paese Albergo’ project in Sicily

The new-generation tourist wants to experience the possibility of establishing new relations, not only with the other guests of the hotel, but mainly with the residents of the locality, adding the search for warm and sincere relations to the privacy anyone of us wants when times come to relax and spend free time.
The project “Paese Albergo” (Village hospitality), supported by the Sicily Government fund, consist in particular type of hospitality where rooms and/or apartments, within a radius of approx. 1 Km, are located within palaces and apartments which, being part of the historical centre, and being restored according to the local culture and work as B&B or Home Accomodation.
It promotes and manages, together with local municipalities and the other existing actors, new activities capable of re-positioning the territory on the tourist market, such as events, specific training courses in traditional sectors (hospitality, local cuisine, local sport events, artisanship, etc.).
New businesses are hence generated which associated to this new form of hospitality provides visitors more an experience of “temporary residents” of the area rather than that of “traditional tourists”
“Paese Albergo” is an innovative form of hospitality that can bring, sustainable development, economic animation and opportunities for the balanced utilization of the local resources and tourist potentialities.
In this context A.SI.PA. (Sicilian Association Paese Albergo) start up in April 2010 different channel and web services to promote events and local economy.

Web site (www.karasicilia.it - www.asipa.it) offer (now in italian language soon also in english) to web-user a structured calendar of events programmed in Sicily using integrated marketing with social network (Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Youtube …).
Each event pubblished on web site is connected with “Paese Albergo” hospitality offer and local business handicraft, typical products, artistic productions to increase local economy.
Local operators and single users can also cooperate promoting events and offers that will be pubblished on web site and on social network channel (over 2000 friends on facebook in only one month).
An innovative system developed consist in a “talking chair” that positionet in the center of the village and connected via WIFI to internet inform who sits on about the history, the culture and the events of the week.
Also standard promoting channel like depliant and under-plate are distributed each month to commercial spots.