'A little bit home, a little bit hotel': this is how Giancarlo Dall'Ara, professor of Tourism Marketing - as well as founder and president of ADI (Associazione Alberghi Diffusi) - defines the Albergo Diffuso, a model that he himself conceived and developed.
This type of accommodation stems from the idea of using empty houses renovated with post-earthquake funds in Friuli for tourism purposes. Formally recognised for the first time in Sardinia in 1998, the Albergo Diffuso model has since become steadily and progressively established in Italy and Europe, in response to a tourist demand particularly sensitive to issues of sustainability and respect for the environment.
The characteristics of AD
As part of a broader accommodation offer that goes by the name of Diffuse Hospitality, the Albergo Diffuso is the only one, to date, to be recognised; it can also be considered 'the father of all models' since it meets precise regulatory (although not completely standardised at national level) and technical criteria.
The AD model provides:
- unitary management: the structure is managed in an entrepreneurial form
- hotel services: the facility is able to provide all the services typical of a hotel
- relocation of rooms and accommodation units in several separate, pre-existing buildings
- presence of common areas for guests (reception, common rooms, bar, dining areas)
- reasonable distance between buildings (max. 200/300 metres between housing units and the facility with reception services)
They complete the picture
- the presence of a living community (scattered hotels and abandoned villages cannot coexist),
- an authentic environment
- recognisability
- a management style integrated into the territory and culture.
The Albergo Diffuso as a promoter of culture
And it is precisely culture that 'captures' the customer. There are many structures, from North to South and included in the ADI circuit, that have adopted the figure of 'place storytellers'. Not professionals of an artificial storytelling, but people who tell stories related to places, establishing a unique bond with the guest that encourages him to return in subsequent years (or at least to experience similar experiences).
A conscious choice
The clientele that chooses the Albergo Diffuso is not dedicated to an ascetic life. On the contrary, they wish to stay in a valuable urban context, favouring contact with the residents, more than with other tourists, and taking advantage of hotel services without the need to build new accommodation facilities. A conscious choice in the name of sustainability.
"Preserving by renovating": this seems to be the recipe behind the success of the Albergo Diffuso, a formula that appeals. Even the government wanted to include it among the priorities of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, demonstrating that it is precisely in a small hamlet that a project of greatness can be concealed, bringing life back to a community, giving well-being and wealth to an area and helping the environment.
Photo Johanschersten from Pixabay
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