Vacation in Italy: drought emergency has drastic consequences for tourists
Created: 07/17/2022, 05:00
By: Julian Kaiser
A state of emergency has been declared in northern Italy due to the persistent, severe drought.
This also has consequences for the everyday vacation of German tourists.
ITALY – Forest fires, dried up rivers and glacial collapse – Northern Italy is experiencing one of the worst droughts in the country's history.
A state of emergency has long since been declared in many places.
The residents of northern Italian towns and villages are encouraged to save water.
As RUHR24 reports, this also has an impact on tourism and thus on the German tourists who vacation in Italy every year.
country | Italy |
capital city | Rome |
population | 59.55 million (as of 2020) |
Italy vacation: State of emergency declared in five northern Italian areas
German vacationers who are looking forward to their vacation in Italy in view of a possible upcoming Corona autumn should be aware of the current situation in northern Italy.
It was not without reason that Prime Minister Mario Draghi declared a state of emergency in the following five northern Italian regions by the end of the year:
Emilia Romagna
Friuli Venezia Giulia
Lombardy
Piedmont
Veneto
The coastal region of Liguria has also applied for a state of emergency in order to receive crisis management aid.
In several cities such as Verona, Venice or Milan, water has to be saved, authorities have limited drinking water consumption by ordinance.
As the
Handelsblatt
reports as an example, the restriction in Verona applies until August 31st.
Italy vacation: Because of the drought, drinking water has to be saved in many places
There it is forbidden between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. to wash cars, fill up swimming pools or pools or water gardens and sports fields.
Penalties of up to 500 euros are due for violations.
also read
Kaufland sign confuses customers: is there a "fresh dog" at the supermarket?
Penny customer now prefers to go to Edeka for blueberries: "I can fool myself!"
Public fountains were partially switched off in Milan and Venice, reports
merkur.de
.
In Castenaso, a municipality in Emilia-Romagna, the mayor even banned hairdressers by decree from washing customers' hair more than once.
The list of sometimes drastic measures to save water in northern Italy and partially also in Tuscany could be continued.
Holidays in Italy: German tourists have to be prepared for special measures
But what do the special circumstances mean for German tourists?
Even if Italy has abolished the Corona entry rules, vacationers still have to observe various measures, reports
merkur.de
.
In addition, there are the peculiarities that the drought brings with it and that influence the holiday experience.
Firstly, a tiresome topic accompanies the holiday, which is well known to many Germans.
The mineral water, which is already popular in Italy, could be just as scarce on the shelves of various supermarkets and discounters as rice, flour or oil were in Germany in the past.
Holidays in Italy: Mineral water could be scarce in some places – Italians are hoarding more and more
The consumer behavior of numerous Italians shows that the controversial hamster purchases for an emergency supply are not a typical German habit in times of crisis.
The Austrian daily newspaper Der Standard
reports that the demand for mineral water and consumption has already risen by 30 percent since the beginning of May –
and this despite the fact that the Italians already have the highest consumption of mineral water in all of Europe.
Ice cream, fruit and soft drinks are also in high demand among northern Italians.
German holidaymakers must therefore be prepared for a few empty shelves in supermarkets and discounters.
Italy vacation: In order to save electricity, the air conditioning in Milan should not be set too cool
According to the
Berliner
Morgenpost
the location
correspondingly serious with the large mineral water springs in Italy.
The St. Pellegrino company therefore decided to “reduce the amount of aquifer water used for mineral water production in order to protect the ecosystem in the long term”.
Secondly, given the exceptional situation, tourists are encouraged to change their habits.
As the
Berliner Morgenpost
reports, the air conditioning in Lombardy, with Milan as the metropolis, should not be set below 26 degrees.
This is how energy should be saved.
Italy vacation: drought leads to low water levels
As in the case of the largest Italian river, the Po, the water level of numerous rivers and lakes in northern Italy has already fallen sharply due to the ongoing drought.
The water level of Lake Garda is currently about half a meter lower than a year ago, explains Pierlucio Ceresa from the Association of Municipalities on Lake Garda to the
DPA
. Thirdly, German holidaymakers should be more careful.
On the one hand, this applies to swimming fun, where Ceresa recommends checking the depth of the water before jumping into the cool water in order not to injure yourself.
Italy vacation: drought "not necessarily an obstacle to lucrative local vacations"
On the other hand, in view of the rationing of water in the hottest summer months of July and August, tourists should be careful not to get heat strokes, explains Wolfgang Günther from the Kiel Institute for Tourism to the
Handelsblatt
.
But there are drinking water points in every small town, he explains and adds: "Droughts and heat waves are becoming more frequent, but: That's not necessarily an obstacle to lucrative vacations on site".
After all, it is the job of the host to “make the holiday as pleasant as possible”.
This is also an opportunity.
Nevertheless, the rationing of water is of course "not what you imagine when you want to go on vacation".
The drought in Parma, in Emilia Romagna, prompted the government to declare a state of emergency.
© Ervin Shulku/Imago
Italy vacation: State of emergency could also be extended to Tuscany
Anyone who, in view of these conditions, would like to quickly rebook their vacation and, for example, move to Tuscany, should be warned.
Because according to the
Handelsblatt
, the state of emergency could also “be extended to the regions in central Italy.”
In Pisa, drinking water has only been allowed to be used in the household since July 11th.
And as in many places in northern Italy, filled pools and open swimming pools in Tuscany could soon become an absolute exception.
