TOURING CLUB ITALIANO. - An association whose purpose is the dissemination of knowledge of Italy among Italians and foreigners and the promotion of Italian tourism in all its aspects. Founded in Milan in 1894 under the name "Touring Club Ciclistico Italiano" on the initiative of some cycling enthusiasts, it changed its name in 1900 to the present one and soon became one of the most powerful private associations in the country; it currently has about 400,000 members.
Characteristics of its organization are the modest membership fee and the fact that the members, scattered throughout Italy and the world, maintain direct relations with the single Head Office (Milan). It is governed by a council of no fewer than 18 and no more than 24 members, which chooses from within itself a president, two vice-presidents and the holders of the other corporate offices, all unpaid. The T. C. I. is furthermore represented in the principal cities of Italy by about 7,000 consuls and in many foreign countries by its own delegates. The principal merit of the T. C. I. is having endowed Italy with tourist cartography and literature superior to that of any other country. The sending to members of free publications, or for modest contributions, has always constituted the main consideration for the membership fee; these are for the most part reference works (guides, maps, illustrated monographs), of practical utility and easy reading, aimed at illustrating Italy analytically in all its aspects, but especially for the use of tourists. Particularly noteworthy, moreover, for their scientific character, are the great Atlante internazionale del T. C. I., the most modern and most comprehensive reference atlas in existence today, and the Atlante fisico-economico d'Italia.
In the field of active tourism the T. C. I. organizes national excursions, reserved for members, in the different regions of Italy, individual and collective holidays, camps, cruises, etc. The T. C. I.'s initiatives in this field almost always have as their purpose to make known the lesser-known regions of Italy or to encourage the spread of new forms of tourism.
Within the T. C. I. bodies have arisen such as school tourism, which attends to the spread of tourism among young people, and the Cassa Viaggi e Vacanze, whose purpose is the promotion of savings earmarked for tourism.
Among the other initiatives are: the Istituto Sperimentale Stradale, founded in Milan in 1921 with the purpose of studying the technical problems of the construction and maintenance of roads; the Ufficio tecnico segnalazioni stradali which, since its foundation, has provided the roads of Italy with ca. 400,000 signs.
Among the publications of the T. C. I. the following are noteworthy (indicating in parentheses, for those in progress, the year of beginning): Journals: Le Vie d'Italia, monthly (arisen in 1895 under the name Rivista mensile del Touring Club Ciclistico Italiano, it assumed its present name in 1920); Le Vie del Mondo, monthly (1924); Monti e boschi, monthly (1950); it continues the work of the journal L'Alpe (1928-38); Turismo e alberghi, monthly (1947); it continues the work of the journal L'Albergo in Italia (1925-43); Le Strade, monthly (1919); Marco Polo, bimonthly, organ of the School Tourism of the T. C. I. (1950); it resumes the work of the journal La Sorgente (1917-1928). Series Attraverso l'Italia, 20 regional monographs illustrated with ca. 500 black-and-white illustrations and color plates (1930). Guides: Guida d'Italia, 23 vols. (1913); Guida breve d'Italia, 3 vols. (1937); Guida dei Monti d'Italia, so far 13 vols., out of ca. 45 (1934); Guida da rifugio a rifugio, 6 vols., out of ca. 12 (1929); Guida d'Italia per gli stranieri, comprising volumes in the principal languages (1922). Cartography: Carta d'Italia al 250.000, in 62 sheets (1906); Carta automobilistica d'Italia al 200.000, in 28 sheets (1934); Carta automobilistica della Svizzera al 200.000, in 4 sheets (1949); Carta automobilistica d'Italia al 650.000, in 2 sheets (1909); Carta stradale d'Italia all'800.000, in 1 sheet (1948); Carta d'Italia al 500.000, in 13 sheets (1933); Nuova carta generale d'Italia al 500.000, in 4 sheets (1950); Carta stradale d'Europa al 500.000, in ca. 37 sheets (1951); Grande atlante internazionale, 176 plates (1927); Atlante fisico-economico d'Italia, 82 plates (1940); Annuario generale, directory of the Communes and hamlets of Italy (1904).
Bibliography
Giuseppe Vota