Today the Tour de France starts and for the first time in its over a century-old history it does so from Italy, from Florence. An event that has brought to the Tuscan capital something like 300 thousand fans in these days and 4 thousand people following including organizers, team members, technicians, professionals, race directors and judges, plus other workers. People who will stay not only in Florence, but also in the surrounding areas, including Prato. Some structures have recorded excellent data regarding bookings from France, in particular from several members of the organizational machine (there were no athletes or teams present). About 80 people have opted for the President hotel, for example.
“The response was really positive, for our facility but also for others – says Sauro Venturi, owner of the hotel on Via Simintendi, as well as president of the Prato section of Federalberghi – The people who booked were all people who deal with the organization, who chose Prato not only for the prices, which are certainly less expensive than those of Florence, but also because it is more convenient as a base”. As explained by Venturi and confirmed by his colleagues, the expressions of interest for bookings arrived a year in advance of the big event. “They didn’t want to waste time, you can see that we are talking about an event of absolute importance and that there is a meticulous organization behind it. We welcomed just under 50 guests”, they explain from the Art Hotel on Viale della Repubblica. “In our place, there are about 25 people from the organization who will be staying from Tuesday to Saturday (today for those reading, ed.) – adds Filippo Tomada of the Datini hotel on Viale Marconi – We probably also hosted some enthusiasts who will follow the stage, there was certainly no lack of movement”.
Francesco Bocchini
