Italy's iconic hotels sit empty amid pandemic

Italy's luxury hotels sit empty for the first time in decades as the coronavirus pandemic continues to grip the country's tourism and hospitality industries.

Foreign visitors are the mainstay of these iconic, high-priced hotels, but Italy remains cautious in COVID-19 containment measures, as one of the world's hardest-hit countries.

Italians themselves aren't allowed travel for the purpose of tourism, so these days, elegantly-dressed staff stand at the ready for guests who are unlikely to step into their grandiose lobbies.

The Associated Press went inside prestigious hotel establishments in Rome to capture the rate sight of empty halls, restaurants and bars.

The void in the stylish yet hushed lounges and rooms is notable.

Unused keys hang neatly from wooden racks or lie stacked in drawers while cocktail bars remain empty from the usual buzz of clients drinking and chatting inside.

"It's the first time in almost 80 years of this hotel's history, since it was renovated in the 1930s, that it is empty, closed," said Maurizio Bettoja, who heads the Bettoja hotels, including the Hotel Mediterraneo.

Many of these top-of-the-line, must-stay places for politicians, industrialists and movie stars are steeped in history.

At the empty Hotel Hassler, near Rome's Spanish Steps, management likes to recall that actress Audrey Hepburn - who rode a scooter with Gregory Peck in an iconic scene in the movie, Roman Holiday - would stay in the same suite each time she visited.

Staff said that usually at this time of year, the hotel would almost be full.

There are no cocktails to mix at the art-deco Hotel Locarno near Rome's Piazza del Popolo, which has barely had any guests during the pandemic.

Federalberghi, an Italian hotelier association, predicts that one in five hotel workers in Italy could lose their jobs because of the pandemic-triggered travel restrictions and economic woes.

Tourism economy accounts for 13% of the Italian GDP according to the hotels association.

Most hotels are currently closed and only a few remained open for very few clients.

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