When Italy shuttered for the lockdown, the obscure village of Campli, in the central region of Abruzzo, got to work. Its mission was simple: to put itself on tourists’ maps. It is not short of attractions, with churches frescoed by students of Giotto and Raphael, acres of lush woodland and Abruzzo’s oldest Sagra della Porchetta, a traditional festival in which locals feast on succulent, slow-cooked pork.
And when Italy reopened regional borders on 3 June, Campli was ready to cash in. “BorGO!”, a new package of initiatives, runs on Saturday evenings through June: the pedestrianised historic centre will be given over to restaurateurs; the cathedral and Santa Scala shrine will stay open until 11pm, and there will be free guided tours of landmarks such as the Palazzo Farnese, also until 11pm.
