Italy Tourism Down Since Attacks

ROME— Thousands of jobs in Italys normally thriving tourism industry are likely to be cut because of a slump following the attacks on the United States, a senior tourism official said on Wednesday. “Travel agency associations say that between 10,000 and 16,000 jobs will be lost in the very near future,” Piergiorgio Togni, head of the Italian State Tourism Board, told Reuters. “If things carry on as they are, the attack is going to cost us 600 billion lire ($280 million) in lost revenue by the end of the year,” he added. Many big-spending visitors from the United States and Japan have deserted Italy over the past month, sending the top end of the tourism market reeling. “Travel from America is down 25% and from Japan 15%. These are the business tourists and those who tend to stay in the four- and five-star hotels,” he said. Francesca Villarosa, spokeswoman for the luxury Hotel Excelsior on Romes Via Veneto, said tourist numbers had plummeted immediately after the strikes on New York and Washington, but added that visitors were slowly re-emerging. “Like all hotels in the capital we have felt the impact of what happened in the States. The strongest drop was in the days immediately after the attacks, where a third of our bookings were cancelled,” Villarosa said. This year was expected to have been a bumper year for the Italian tourism sector, with 4% growth predicted by the end of December. The rash of cancelled bookings means growth will only hit 3%, Togni said. However, he was optimistic about future prospects and thought more Italians would holiday at home because of worries over flying, while more European neighbours would also head there rather than far-flung destinations. “I believe people will start living and traveling again. I believe there will be increased tourism within Europe and as Italy is the natural resort for Europeans, it perhaps stands to gain,” he said. Italys tourism industry is valued at 140 trillion lire ($65 billion) per year, representing some 8% of gross domestic product. SOURCE: Reuters