Italy’s Sicily lures holidaymakers back with huge discounts & offers after lockdown on May 4

ITALY’S island of Sicily is enticing holidaymakers back with huge discounts on flights and accommodation as the country gets ready to relax lockdown restrictions on May 4. It is offering half-priced flight tickets, as well as a free night’s hotel accommodation for every three days booked.

Additional discounts include entry to museums and historical sites to entice tourists back. The offers are expected to be available soon from the Sicily’s official tourism website, according to The Times today.

It’s not the only European destination looking at enticing tourists back with special offers. Other countries, such as Portugal, are also working on heavily discounted offers to encourage travellers to book a holiday later this year or next, to recuperate the millions lost in the tourism sector as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Given that Italy has the second highest Covid-19 death toll in the world, registering around 25,969 fatalities and more than 192,994 infected, the country’s tourism industry is aware that it’s not going to be easy to attract the same level of tourism back. Around 13 per cent of Italy’s GDP comes from tourism, and losses just from March and April this year account for over €1 billion. However, Italy’s tourism sector is keen to recover as soon as lockdown ends through big discounts and special offers, thanks to government support.