SiteMinder, Charming Italy Partner to Offer Global Travelers Authentic Italian Experiences

SiteMinder announced that it partnered with one of Italy’s longest-standing hotel booking providers and consultancies, Charming Italy, to provide travellers “a truly authentic Italian experience”.

Beginning in 1974 as a tour operator in Sardinia before launching a collection of regional hotel booking websites – CharmingSardinia.com, CharmingPuglia.com, CharmingCampania.com, CharmingSicily.com and CharmingTuscany.com – and finally CharmingItaly.com in 2010.

Charming Italy showcases the country’s most luxurious hotels as bases for creating unforgettable local experiences. It has found that modern travellers are looking for a more personal, tailored experience when visiting a foreign country. Where previously the hotel was the destination, now hotels are simply an important starting point.

Among those hotels is Locanda Gulfi in Sicily’s countryside, which has been listed on Charming Italy for many years.

Locanda Gulfi’s managing director, Carmelo Floridia, says, “The integration between SiteMinder and Charming Hotel has definitely made our lives easier. Not only has it saved us significant costs and time; it has optimized our booking and inventory management process to enable more bookings.”

Charming Italy features a curated list of nearly 500 boutique and luxury hotels that are ‘Made in Italy’ and personify Italian hospitality. Each property is selected for its uniqueness as well as its proximity to the country’s best food and wine, design, traditions, fashion and lifestyle.

According to Italy’s national tourism agency, Enit, Italy is the most desired tourism destination in the world. Its tourism industry is worth more than €70 billion to represent over four percent of the country’s GDP. The country was also recently named the most Instagrammed country of all time, with more than 50 million posts.