Rapid test facility launched before departure at Heathrow

“We need to learn to live with this disease, and it will stay with us for a long time,” says a senior hotel official. Sir Rocco Forte.

TThe founder of Rocco Forte Hotels, who was a guest at the press conference hosted by the Italian National Board of Tourism this afternoon, was pressing the government to rethink its approach to travel quarantine.

He urged “those of us who participate in tourism, whether as spectators or participants, should encourage governments to try to organize things.”

British travelers heading to Italy are currently required to present evidence of a negative Covid-19 test, either 72 hours before arrival, upon arrival at major airports in Italy, or within 48 hours of reaching their destination – during this period they must be quarantined . The Rocco Forte Group is offering pre-departure testing to its Italian-bound guests at a reduced rate of £ 129, via a courier service and partnership with UK-based company Blue Horizon, as well as testing at its hotels.

Today, however, Heathrow is starting to test travelers to Italy. When asked if the LAMP test has been accepted by the Italian government, Ambassador Rafael Trombetta said there was “no specific decision”, which means that people still have to take the test again upon arrival at the moment.

Sir Rocco also spoke of a “mega-leap in British business” in the Italian group’s hotels this summer. “Some of these people have tried Italy for the first time, and many have booked again for the next year.”

“People were able to enjoy their vacation in a completely satisfying way, and the only difference was that the staff wore masks.”