Italian region looks for foodies in bid for tourism boost

Long mocked for its poor weather and relatively obscure for many foreign tourists, the Piedmont region in northwest Italy is bidding to become a new destination for food and wine lovers.

With Tuscan cities like Florence and Pisa regularly overrun by the summer hordes, tourism officials in Piedmont say their region has been spared and is a better fit for higher-spending foreigners who want some peace and quiet.

"Bed and breakfasts, charming hotels and farmhouses - that's the tourism we like, not mass tourism," Maria Elena Rossi, head of the tourism department for Piedmont told reporters on a media tour aimed at boosting the region.

Inside the fresco-filled Castello della Manta, a mediaeval manor set on a wooded hillside southwest of the regional capital Turin, the talk at the gourmet restaurant is about making the most of the local cuisine.

Source: Relax News