20. 11. 2025 | Natalie Bezděková

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The Italian seaside town of Vallecrosia, on the Ligurian Riviera, is considering changing its official name to Vallecrosia al Mare (“Vallecrosia by the Sea”). According to the town hall, the reason for this is to convince internet search engines that the village is indeed by the sea – because the ‘valle’ part of its name often causes algorithms to rank it as an inland destination, which, according to the mayor, deters tourists.

The mayor, Fabio Perri, says that this makes tourists, especially those looking for a beach holiday, prefer to choose nearby resorts because Vallecrosia “algorithmically looks” like a mountain or valley village. In order to solve this problem, they suggested adding the simple but apt adjective “al Mare” to the name.

According to the deputy mayor, Cristian Quesada, the municipality commissioned several market studies which, he said, clearly showed that Vallecrosia was being neglected in search engines and was therefore losing some of its tourist potential. The town hall has already approved the proposal and the regional authorities have also said yes – the last step is to hold a referendum among the town’s residents. According to the plan, at least 30% of the approximately 6,800 voters must participate in the vote, which does not yet have a set date, for the result to be valid.

If the change is approved, the new name “Vallecrosia al Mare” will come into force automatically. Importantly, the post office, postcode and administrative matters would remain unchanged – the mayor said this would not place any additional burden on residents.

However, some analysts warn that while this is a clever marketing move, the actual impact will depend on real data. The key will be whether the name change will increase footfall, whether it will actually influence search engine behaviour and whether tourists will respond to the digital signals the municipality is sending out. Vallecrosia’s plan is a fascinating example of how even a seemingly small authority is using digital trends and “algorithmic perception” of the territory to strategically build its identity and attract tourists.

Photo source: www.pexels.com

Natalie Bezděková

I am a student of Master's degree in Political Science. I am interested in marketing, especially copywriting and social media. I also focus on political and social events at home and abroad and technological innovations. My free time is filled with sports, reading and a passion for travel.