Italy's Olympic venue a pacesetter for Chinese resorts

Natural appeal

Flora Tabanelli, one of Italy's best medal prospects in women's freeski, describes the town as her "second home", and hopes her international peers spread the word about Livigno's special appeal.

"I believe more people would know (about) Livigno and fall in love with it after the Olympics," said Tabanelli, who will challenge China's defending champion Gu in the women's big air final on Monday. The Italian added she hoped the Olympians will "love to come back more".

Of course that's the goal — to elevate the ski town's international reputation and attract affluent visitors from new markets, such as China, Japan and the United States. The key to this is to keep Livigno the way it is, according to local officials and tourism promoters.

"The Chinese market of course is where we are aiming to attract more customers,"Luca Moretti, president of Livigno Next, the town's promotional tourism agency, told China Daily.

"We'd like to look at the opportunities for more international customers, thanks to the Olympic Games' influence, but at the same time it's important to keep the look, the style and the tradition here the way they are.

"Livigno has developed a reputation as the home of slightly younger and newer sports — such as freestyle and snowboarding — and their fans. We'd like to have more people understand and appreciate the alpine lifestyle and leisure experience that we offer."

The town's 7,000 permanent residents and its natural beauty are the foundations of its family-friendly reputation. Moretti said 250 million euros ($300 million) of public funds was invested to upgrade facilities, a transformation which would have been impossible if not for the Olympic Games.