From an itinerary among caves frescoed by Basilian monks on the Ionian coast of Calabria to an essential oils workshop in the Lombardy countryside. Taking in the cork oak grove of the Niscemi nature reserve in Sicily along the way. These are just some of the gems mapped and brought to life by SharryLand, a digital platform and app that aims to promote rural tourism in Italy. It does so by connecting users with operators, local authorities and businesses through an interactive map of wonders where visitors can book experiences and workshops, as well as purchase products directly from local artisans and farmers.

Cherries to share, the spirit of SharryLand

The quirky name captures, in a playful and vivid way, the mission of this digital ecosystem founded in 2017 in Cittadella (in the province of Padova) from an idea by Luigi Alberton together with Maria Cristina Leardini and Paolo Bernardini. A word that seals the meeting of share, cherry and land, and sets out to network and promote communities, traditions and treasures well off the beaten track. Much like an irresistible cherry enjoyed one after another, the venture (which became a benefit company in 2020) aims to spread good practices at a slow pace, generating a positive impact on territories and communities that are thus given the chance to make themselves known. Collaboration is another keyword of the project: users do not simply consume content, but also contribute to the platform by flagging places, traditions and experiences they feel connected to.

The map of wonders off the beaten track

But how exactly do operators, residents and travellers find each other? The interactive digital experience created by the map of Italy's wonders is the great, colourful Boot waiting to be clicked, ready to surprise with its lesser-known natural, cultural, historical and food-and-wine heritage. Our country is a varied basket of beauties that often lack the means and the voice to tell their own story. SharryLand wants to provide a launchpad for all of this, promoting short supply chains, strengthening local identities, generating shared value and inspiring a new kind of traveller through a marketplace and a community. The simplicity of the system and the free nature of the service do the rest, inviting everyone to become an active part of a collective narrative.

The power of people beyond algorithms

Digital tools, yes — but also a great deal of human capital. Behind SharryLand's services there are no algorithms, only people working as a team in a continuous exchange between communities, users and territories. Small rural and artisan realities therefore find space within a national network, with their slow and sustainable know-how, without being crushed by the logic of mass tourism. Behind the motto — rendered in multiple languages — of "buy local", the platform also seeks to promote the resilience of villages and territories against isolation and depopulation. In this sense, rural tourism is not the end but the means to give voice to the true riches of rural Italy: its cultural and landscape treasures, and the people who safeguard them. Because a cherry tastes even better when shared, picked from a tree with the care of those who watched it grow.