Italy

It had been rumoured for some time. It seemed that the European Union's competition authorities were going to temporarily veto the takeover of the Italian carrier ITA by the Lufthansa group. This is indeed the case, after the EU expressed its reservations about a possible reduction in competition and the possibility of...

Buoyed by a healthy cash position during the pandemic, MSC is continuing its shopping spree. After acquiring Bolloré Africa Logistics and Aliscargo Airlines in the freight sector, the Swiss-Italian shipping group is now gaining a foothold in passenger transport by acquiring a 50% stake in Italo, Trenitalia's competitor in the Italian high-speed rail market. The...

The opening of the FirstName hotel last year, the new lifestyle face of the Burdigala, which is due to return to business this month, and soon a Mondrian establishment designed by Philippe Starck: contemporary hotels are all the rage in Bordeaux. This autumn, the Gironde city will have the privilege of welcoming the Hotel Indigo brand, part of the...

The same message is appearing on the various rail companies' online booking sites: trains cancelled between France and Italy. The situation is critical for road and rail traffic between the two countries. With torrential rain in the Alps, a landslide occurred on Sunday in the Maurienne Valley...

Considered to be the railway project of the century, the Gotthard Tunnel was dug in the heart of the Swiss Alps. With a length of 57.1 km, it has been the longest tunnel in the world since it opened in 2016. For travellers, the tunnel means considerably shorter journey times. You can travel...

On 25 May, Lufthansa reached an agreement with the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance to acquire a minority stake in Italy's ITA Airways. Following a capital increase of 325 million euros, Lufthansa will have a 41 % stake in ITA. As part of the agreement, the Ministry is also committed to...

Simplifying the passenger's travel experience and promoting sustainable mobility. This is what ITA Airways and Trenitalia are now offering at Rome Fiumicino airport with the launch of an Air/Rail product. A single ticket for plane and train The offer allows passengers to combine plane and train travel on a single ticket, with baggage check-in and...

Following the success of Ouigo in Spain, SNCF plans to roll out its low-cost concept in Italy by 2026, according to information presented by Le Parisien on 15 March. Called Allegro, this project - which is due to be made official by SNCF shortly - involves operating high-speed trains on the Turin-Milan-Rome-Naples routes...

The Meloni government had made no secret of its hostility to Air France-KLM taking a stake in ITA, the successor airline to Alitalia. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government considered the rival proposal from the Lufthansa group to be more credible. An initial agreement between Lufthansa and ITA is expected by mid-March...

While the future of Italian carrier ITA Airways may be moving away from the Air France fold, another key player in French tourism, Accor, is forging closer links with the transalpine carrier. From 26 January, the two airlines' frequent flyer programmes will offer a two-way conversion service. Under this scheme, all points...

What is your assessment of 2022, and of this first year of operation in France? Roberto Rinaudo - We're proud to have performed well beyond our expectations in terms of customer satisfaction, load factors and positive feedback from passengers. But also in terms of our pricing policy. It's an excellent...

2023 will see the expansion of ITA Airways' intercontinental network with the addition of two new routes to the United States: San Francisco and Washington-Dulles International. All sales channels are already accepting bookings on these two routes, served from Rome Fiumicino. ITA Airways prepares for its arrival in Rio The airline will inaugurate the...

On 18 December 2021, Trenitalia's Frecciarossa trains set out to conquer the French rail network. On Wednesday, the management of the Italian carrier was keen to celebrate this first anniversary, and to take stock of these twelve months of operation. "One year on, it's a winning bet for passengers, and for...

A report in the Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore has not gone unnoticed on this side of the Alps: SNCF is planning to move further into Italy, following on from its service to Milan from Paris. From 2026 onwards, it plans to provide services from Paris via Lyon to...

The Rosewood group seems to have found a providential windfall in transforming the former headquarters of banking institutions into ultra-chic hotels in order to consolidate its presence in Europe. This summer, for example, the Asian hotelier set up shop in Vienna in the Erste Bank premises, which have been converted to offer exclusive hospitality. In the near future, this is also how the brand...

In Southern Europe, Air France-KLM has until now had its eyes on ITA. The previous Italian government had selected the consortium formed by Certares, Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM. On August 31, this consortium was granted exclusive negotiating rights to acquire a stake in the airline. But everything...

The air traffic controllers' strike scheduled for Friday will last 24 hours. ITA Airways recently announced the flights that will be affected by the strike. Some 220 domestic and international routes will be affected. Return flights between Nice and Rome (AZ 343 and AZ 354) have been cancelled. Thirteen flights to and from...

ITA Airways now operates a network of some 50 destinations, 23 of which are short-haul (Europe/North Africa/Middle East), 19 within Italy and 9 intercontinental. "We have resumed our intercontinental services where there was traditionally strong demand. This means to the United States - in particular New...

The capital of Sardinia, located in the south-east of the Mediterranean island, Cagliari is expanding its hotel offering in a big way in 2022. Firstly, with the Palazzo Doglio, an establishment housed in the Art Nouveau buildings that for a long time housed the regional prefecture. Renovated and enlarged, the complex has been designed as a...

ITA Airways is in the midst of negotiations with its future buyer, but is not forgetting to continue building up its network. And in particular its long-haul offer, which is gaining in consistency with each passing week. In fact, the airline will be taking off for Tokyo in November, proof of its ambitions in the Asian market, and in particular for...