Why the Dutch are flocking to this village in Italy

What a wtf moment those Sardinians must have had when suddenly busloads of Dutch people appeared on the doorstep. What happened? RTL 4 has launched a new program: ‘The Italian Village: Ollolai’, in which five Dutch couples are followed as they renovate their 1 euro house.

Now thousands of Dutch people want to see what Ollolai looks like. In fact: visitors can now take a reality tour along the colorful 1-euro houses. ‘I still don’t understand any of this,’ says mayor Efisio Arbau to the AD. ‘I wanted to improve the lives of the residents of Ollolai. I think I succeeded. It has never been this busy here. The economy has received a significant boost.’ A third of the houses in the old center are empty, often for more than thirty years.

According to resident Mario, there are now at least thirty tourists per day: ‘Normally we get that number in a year.’ Café owners have even specially purchased mayonnaise for the Dutch and they say they have never worked so hard. So, if you’re in the area this summer, be sure to check out Ollolai. And, mayor, do you still have any houses available? Seems like a great plan.