The Italian Oscars of cycle tourism are assigned to the “green ways” of those Italian regions that have particularly distinguished themselves in attention to “slow” tourism and which have been able to enhance the cycle paths by completing them with services suitable for the development of slow tourism. The goal is to spur on them investing in infrastructure and services.
It has been so for exactly ten years And in all this time almost 50 routes in Italy have been awarded for a total of 12500 km, the equivalent of Marco Polo’s trip from Venice to China. The tenth edition was presented yesterday at the Bit, the Tourism Fair in progress at the Milan Fair and, with the Milanese event, the candidates for the regions that will have time until 10 May to propose, up to two cyclovies, were officially opened. This year, among other things, a special recognition will be established for the Jubilee for a path that can also be traveled by bicycle.
“The cycle tourism Oscar acted on two fronts – explains Ludovica Casellati The creator of the prize. – On the one hand it stimulated the awareness of the regions on the importance of investing in infrastructure and services for slow tourism, leading them to enhance what is locally made with new initiatives, better transport, greater promotion; On the other, with his media echo, he turned on a reflector on the territories and has prompted more and more people to pedal and practice a form of sustainable tourism. The awarded cycle paths have thus contributed to making the Italian regions more beautiful, attracting investments and creating new activities and jobs, giving young new opportunities to their territories of origin. “
In recent years cycle tourism has stopped being considered a “fashion” Environmentalist and a little snobbish and has become in all respects a participatory form of tourism, alternative to the traditional holiday, far from traveling intended as a simple movement from one place to another but an integral part of the holiday, culturally oriented to discover places with high naturalistic, historical and artistic content. You travel with a racing bike but more and more often “gravel” or MTB and now also with pedal assisted but still always with bags and trunk. With a little effort (a lot) but without the nightmare of finding yourself in the queue on the highway or for a coffee in a motorway shop. On roads as little jokes possible, increasingly mapped and indicated paths that often intertwine with real cycle paths, which cross the long peninsula in Largo. “Silent” roads, abandoned by motor traffic by more straight and fast streets.
It is the “Stilnovo” of traveling, Slow to enjoy landscapes and silence. And it is a constant growth of cycle tourism which, according to the data data of the relationship “Traveling with the 2024 bike” Of Isnart And LegambienteIn our country last year, 56 million presences recorded 6.7% of the total presences in Italy, with a direct economic impact estimated at over 5.5 billion euros, growing 35% on 2022 and 19% on 2019.
Returning to the Oscars, some numbers must be remembered: In 10 years, over 200 nominations have been presented by the Italian regions and the cycle tourism Oscar – in its various categories, 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, special mentions, press prize etc. – has also gone to almost 50 “green roads” also very different from each other, from north to south, for a total of 12500 km of cycle paths in Italy, equal to traveling by Bicycle the journey of Marco Polo from Venice to China. The region that has totaled multiple podiums and placings is Trentino with 7 wins, followed by Tuscany and Emilia Romagna with 5 wins, Lombardy and Liguria with 4, Veneto, Marche, Abruzzo and Campania with 3, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Puglia, Calabria, Basilicata with 2 wins (FVG with 2 first places!), Umbria, Lazio, Sicily and Sardinia with 1. Piedmont, Valle d’Aosta, Molise who could therefore be the protagonists of this tenth edition. Two prizes awarded by the jury to as many foreign destinations, Gran Canaria (Spain) and Flander (Belgium).