Italian News

In October, we will depart Naples for Villa San Giovanni (almost at the bottom of Italy) where we will walk from the train platform onto a ferry to cross the Strait of Messina, arriving in Messina, Sicily, twenty minutes later. This may well change in a few years.

A controversial 13.5 billion euro project to build a bridge connecting Sicily to the Italian mainland is expected to get underway this month after it was approved by the government in early August. This has been talked about for decades.

Preliminary work is expected to start by the end of September, followed by the first construction sites in October, according to Italy’s transport ministry.

Under the current project, the structure would span 3.3 kilometres, making it the world’s longest suspension bridge ahead of Turkey’s Canakkale Bridge.

Due to be completed by 2032, the bridge has drawn fierce criticism in recent months, with critics voicing fears of potential mafia infiltration, as well as concerns about the structure’s environmental impact. Locals have told me that another problem is the lack of infrastructure to cope with increased traffic on the roads. Time will tell.

Italy’s summer sales finish in early September in most regions, so not really helpful if arriving later in the month. However, it’s interesting to know what the rules are. Retailers in Italy are allowed just two big saldi, or sales, a year - one in the summer and one in the winter. The reason behind this is to give vendors a chance to sell stock from the previous season while keeping it fair between competitors.

The custom dates back to the Fascist era, as it was first introduced by a government decree in June 1939. It was then stopped for about four decades after the collapse of Benito Mussolini’s regime, but was brought back in an updated form in 1980.

In 1997, the law was revised to hand autonomy over to individual regions, which is why the length of the summer sales season varies from region to region. Though Italy’s saldi estivi can go for over two months in some cases, they run for at least a month in all parts of the country.

Discounts usually start at around 20-30% of the original price, but can climb as high as 70%. Shops are required to display both original and discounted prices, so you know exactly how much of a bargain you’re getting. Italian law states that the items on sale must only come from the season just gone, rather than being from old stock, but that rule is hard to enforce.

The EU’s soon to be launched Entry & Exit System (EES) is an enhanced biometric passport check designed to replace manual passport stamping. After repeated delays, the current scheduled date is 12th October, 2025, with a phased introduction planned.

When non-EU travellers first enter the Schengen area, they will need to register with the EES by sharing their name, biometric data (fingerprints and facial scans) and the date and place of entry and exit. Once completed, you only need to repeat this process once every three years, or when your passport expires.

While the start date is in mid-October, it will roll out at different checkpoints over a six month period, with at least half of Italy’s checkpoints using the system within three months. To avoid major delays at checkpoints when the system first launches, the EU’s border agency, Frontex, has created the Travel to Europe app.

ETIAS - European Travel Information and Authorisation System

The ETIAS is due to launch in the fourth quarter of 2026. It is an online visa waiver required for tourists and other visitors to the EU/Schengen zone, similar to the US’s ESTA. The EU’s current proposed fee is 20 euro, up from an original 7 euro. The application process will be entirely online. Applications should be processed within minutes, but travellers are advised to apply 72 hours in advance in case of delays.

Both EES and ETIAS are primarily aimed at digitising enforcement of the EU’s 90 day rule, which limits visitors to stays of 90 days within a 180 day period.

The Schengen area is one of the main achievements of the European project. It started in 1985 as an intergovernmental project between five European countries - France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg - and has gradually expanded to become the largest free travel area in the world.

Schengen is the name of a small village in Luxembourg, on the border with Germany and France, where the Schengen Agreement and the Schengen Convention were signed in 1985 and 1990 respectively.

The Schengen area allows people to travel freely between member countries without going through border controls. Today Schengen includes 29 countries. As at the beginning of this year, Bulgaria and Romania became part of the Schengen area.

Passengers at five major Italian airports are no longer restricted by the 100ml limit for liquids in hand baggage, following a landmark announcement by Italy’s civil aviation authority. People travelling from Rome Fiumicino, Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa, Bologna Guglielmo Marconi and Turin Caselle are no longer required to comply with the 100ml limit on liquids in cabin bags.

These airports have installed high-tech Explosive Detection Systems for Cabin Baggage scanners that are capable of detecting the presence of explosive particles with a high degree of precision. The technology allows both liquids and electronic devices such as laptops and phones to remain inside passengers’ luggage during scans.

Passengers may now carry water, wine, olive oil and other liquids and creams in containers of up to two litres in their cabin bags without having to unpack them.

Obviously, the 100ml limit on liquids applies when leaving Australia, but this is good news for leaving Italy!

Ci vediamo la prossima settimana.

Deb