Liz Taylor and Richard Burton would be enough to reflect the beauty of Alghero and testify to how the Catalan city has built a substantial part of its most recent fortune by understanding before others the importance of becoming a stage, film set or sports arena. In short, a magnet of events that represent the best manifesto for a city that breathes the oxygen of tourism. Sometimes it takes courage. Or a visionary spirit. Alghero had both and was rewarded. In a few days it will be thirty-eight years since the first New Year’s Eve in the square. Back then, in the mid-1990s, almost no one did it. The toast was little more than a private affair, punctuated by the rhythm of the television. It seems like we can see Piero Marras on the afternoon of December 31, 1995 in Piazza Sulis while he looks around with a slightly distorted face, to put it like Lucio Dalla, taken by the idea of an imminent flop.
«Performing with the band at night, in the middle of winter, I had never done». A few hours later, however, that square was filled with people and celebrations. «It was a courageous choice but I was sure that it would go well», says Antonio Costantino today, then commissioner of the autonomous tourist agency. The rest is a story that has lasted ever since and that only Covid stopped. It was a small and sad deceleration of the heart rate of a city that has learned to live on events and passion, combining them with history, tradition, culture and beauty. It’s nice to read the words of Antonello Cuccureddu, someone who confesses in Alghero that he always thought too (and perhaps above all) when he won championships with Juventus in the fog of Turin.
«Alghero can become like the Maldives. The potential is all there”, he says, reminding us, with a great sense of relevance and with a hope, that a trip to Sardinia cannot cost more than a holiday in Greece or Spain. Today we talk about the “Alghero model” for its ability to implement cultural development strategies, enhancing the archaeological heritage and managing the main tourist sites, also with formulas that look to the future, with young creatives in the field. This is also a form of experimentation, an essential aspect for modern tourism. Deseasonalization and diversification of the offer to increase attractiveness has been discussed for years.
Alghero has already made important steps forward, realizing for some time that, in addition to the sea and culture, tourism promotion also involves sport. Italy has won the European beach soccer title twice on the sand of Alghero and the ball will continue to bounce irregularly in these parts for a long time to come. What does it mean? Attendance, related activities. But also visibility. A more precise estimate has been made for the rally which will return to Alghero next spring. The Sardinia “brand” will reach at least 85 countries. And an overall turnover of more than 90 million euros with 100 thousand visitors is estimated. Sport has become to all intents and purposes a driving element of tourism and the future could bring interesting innovations with other disciplines and events on an international scale. We will see. Now it’s time for music. This New Year’s Eve bang is important. Ligabue will be on stage. Ok, Alghero is not Campovolo. But in Campovolo they don’t have the sea.
