Italian town, often ignored by tourists, receives more than 2,000 applications after news of free accommodation spreads

A small Italian town in Molise found itself overwhelmed by interest after offering free accommodation in a bid to attract tourists this summer.

San Giovanni in Galdo – with a population of around 550 – received more than 2,000 applications from all over the world for a week’s stay in one of its traditional central Italian hill-top houses, Local Italy reports. 

The village association announced it would offer up to 40 free holidays in one of the local homes left empty by depopulation and within days saw “hundreds and hundreds” of applications pour in, organisers said.

In total over 2,000 applications representing 5,000 tourists were submitted since the scheme launched on June 12th, local cultural association Amici del Morrutto said, likening the response to “an enormous hug, a gigantic display of affection from the whole world”.

While applications are now closed, it hopes to inspire other towns across Molise – a region often overlooked by both Italian and overseas tourists – to launch similar initiatives, says Local Italy.

“We have a list of more than 5,000 people who have expressed interest in coming to Molise for a holiday,” the association said.

It plans to invite mayors from nearby provinces to join a network of small villages offering free accommodation in abandoned houses, thereby making it possible to host “thousands of people who will visit our region, buy our products, frequent our restaurants and businesses and, once they’ve returned home, act as ambassadors for Molise”.

The scheme aims to help put shrinking villages on visitors’ radar despite the lack of hotels or tourist infrastructure, helping to boost the local economy while making use of hundreds of properties lying empty.It’s the latest attempt to tackle a problem that plagues rural towns all over Italy. Other areas have tried offering tax breaks to retirees bringing foreign pensions with them or – most famously – selling off abandoned homes for one euro.