The Italea project is aimed at Italians living abroad and Italian descendants: hospitality, discounts and initiatives for those who want to travel to Italy to follow in the footsteps of their family history.
A journey through Italy’s wonders to discover one’s origins and rediscover the places, traditions and culture of one’s ancestors. The Italea project has started, inviting Italians living abroad and Italian descendants to discover the places and traditions of their origins. The project provides a set of tourist services – routes, workshops, perks, discounts – to facilitate travel in Italy, thanks to the work of a dense network of professionals who will take care of informing, welcoming and assisting travelers in every region of Italy. All information is available on the website dedicated to the project italea.com, which offers support at every step of the rediscovery journey: from historical-family research to organizing the personalized experience in Italy. The program also offers a series of roots workshops, activities that allow one to deepen the knowledge of one’s culture of origin, and therefore linked to ancient crafts, traditional cuisine, folk music and dance, and dialects.
Italea is aimed at both those who already know their Italian origins and those who have yet to discover them, who can rely on a network of expert genealogists who will help trace and reconstruct their family history.
2024 is the Year of Italian roots in the world, dedicated to welcoming Italian descendants in their areas of origin with local events and initiatives, and presents itself as the ideal time for a trip to the Belpaese. Awaiting guests are events and initiatives organized by more than 800 municipalities throughout the country.
Through the Italea Card loyalty program you will be able to obtain discounts, benefits and services from the businesses adhering to the program. These can be accommodation facilities, restaurants, wineries, craft shops, transport companies, car rentals and many other activities that allow the roots traveler to have an unforgettable experience.
In addition to strengthening the bond with Italian communities abroad, Italea aims to promote a model of sustainable, responsible and accessible tourism, to promote small municipalities and areas which, both in the past and today, suffer from depopulation due to migratory flows.
Italea is the promotional program of roots-based tourism, launched by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation within the PNRR project (Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan) and financed by NextGenerationEU for the period 2022-2025. The name Italea derives from “talea”, a practice by which a plant is allowed to propagate. By cutting a part of it and replanting it, it can be given new life, making new roots grow: just as happens with migrations. This program represents an invitation to rediscover the “mother plant”.
For information: comunicazione@italea.com
