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Wanna Go to Sicily? The Italian Island Will Help Pay for Your Vacation | Frommer's Romas_Photo/Shutterstock

Wanna Go to Sicily? The Italian Island Will Help Pay for Your Vacation

In April 2020, I told you about a plan Sicily hatched to restart its tourism industry. The government announced it had set aside millions of euros to pay 50% of visitors' airfares and give travelers who booked two nights of hotel accommodations a third night for free. A different bill promised free entry to museums and historic sites around the island when tourism returned.

Problem was, there was nowhere for prospective travelers to apply for all the freebies and discounts.

That has finally changed. So has the offer—but it's still a tempting one. 

Under the current plan, dubbed See Sicily, visitors will need to work with a local travel agent or tour operator to book airfare as well as hotel stays. Approved agencies are listed by city on the island's official tourism website.

It's now unclear what percentage off you'll get on airline tickets. The website states that the See Sicily voucher, valid with 2-night stays, comes with an unspecified "discount on your flight ticket."

But any airfare subsidy is better than none, and visitors will still receive one free hotel night for every two booked, along with a free "tourist, alpine or underwater guided tour," free entry to all of Sicily's "places of culture" (i.e., museums and attractions), and an additional "excursion or a diving tour." 

Would-be visitors have until September 30 to apply for the program. I'd be worried, though, that vouchers could sell out, so you might want to pounce on this opportunity ASAP. Visit Sicily's tourism website for more details. 

Even if you don't book a trip, you can enjoy the exalted, not-quite-grammatical English translation of the site's See Sicily pitch, which asks, over a photo of an aquamarine ocean lapping a golden beach, "Is this the sea lying in your heart?"

The only conceivable answer is !

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