Expensive Italy holiday prompts complaints of price hikes in popular cities

A couple were surprised to be charged for requesting an extra spoon. Photo / 123rf

Earlier this week, a couple’s story of price gouging in Italy went viral after they were charged €2 ($3.60) to have a sandwich cut in half at a restaurant.

Now, another brazen ripoff has been reported.

An Italian couple were travelling around the Italian region of Piemont when they stopped at a pizzeria near the town of Alba, The Independent reported.

During the stop, the couple ordered a cream catalana (similar to a creme brulee), which came with only one spoon.

Since they wished to share the desert, they asked for another teaspoon. Little did they know, this would come at a cost, and at the end of the meal they were surprised to see the bill included a €1.50 ($2.73) charge for “due cucchiaini”, which means two teaspoons.

In the scheme of a holiday budget, $2.73 is somewhat insignificant. However, the unnecessary charge is another example of how people in the tourism industry are hiking up prices during the post-pandemic boom; something Italians have both noticed and started complaining about, according to The Independent.

Locals have spoken out about how beach clubs, hotels and restaurants are introducing new charges and higher fees for everything from a scoop of gelato to a sun lounger.

The issue tends to be worse in popular tourist cities such as Tuscany, Sardinia and the Amalfi Coast.

This hasn’t seemed to stem the flow of tourists, but locals have struggled to bear the cost.

Italian newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano stated 41 per cent of Italians would not take a summer vacation because of increased costs and 45 per cent of families said if they did, they would have to tighten costs or forgo local destinations for cheaper spots such as Albania, which has seen a 35 per cent increase in tourist numbers this summer, the Independent reported, many of whom have been Australians.