Running a shelter

The start of the activity is concomitant with the transmission of the SCIA to the Municipality where the property intended as a shelter is located through the Sportello Unico delle Attività Produttive (SUAP).

The Tourism and Sport Service consequently registers the shelter in the provincial Tourism Information System and communicates the credentials for access to the STU system.

The regulatory obligations in the management of a refuge are:

• online communication of tourist movements to ISTAT. This regulatory obligation is established by the Decree of the President of the Council of Ministers of 22 July 2011 - art.1, which provides, as of 1 July 2013, for the exchange of data for statistical purposes between businesses and public administrations exclusively by telematic means;
• for hiking refuges only, payment of the TOURIST TAX to Trentino Riscossioni. The Provincial Tourist Tax is due to the Autonomous Province of Trento and is collected by the managers of accommodation facilities, who assume the role of tax substitute pursuant to art. 64 of Presidential Decree no. 600/1973. The collection, control, reimbursement and any other management activity of the tax, including administrative sanctions, is entrusted to Trentino Riscossioni S.p.A.;
• only for excursion refuges, communicate the names of guests to the Public Safety Authority, within 24 hours, exclusively via the weballoggiati.it portal, accessible with the credentials provided by the Police Headquarters of Trento.

The commencement of activity in refuges includes overnight stays, the provision of food and drink of all kinds, and the retail sale of tourist articles.

Owners or managers of a refuge.

The hut manager must meet the following subjective requirements

• knowledge of the area, the access routes to the hut and neighbouring huts, aimed at guaranteeing adequate information for hikers, climbers and tourists. From the point of view of the mountain protection function, the manager, also with the support of his collaborators, is therefore required to carry out inspections along the various routes during the period in which the hut is open or to acquire information on the practicability of the same from the alpine guides and mid-mountain guides, as well as from those responsible for the maintenance and control of the alpine routes.
• Capacity to provide the necessary first aid, deriving from having carried out first aid courses rather than being a member of the National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps. This regulatory provision places at least the obligation on the operator to activate the emergency call to the single emergency number 112. The obligation to have first aid and medication material in a special locker at the hut also remains.
• Finally, the manager must not be subject to prohibitions, disqualifications or suspensions under anti-mafia legislation(Art. 67 of Legislative Decree no. 159 of 6 September 2011).

Once the hut has been entered in the Tourism Information System (STU), the Tourism and Sport Service will provide it with the credentials to be able to directly access its master data and obtain the production of simple processing of its data.

The hut manager must take the following steps in order to comply with the legal obligations set out in the regulations in force

• on-line sending of guest arrivals and departures (ex ISTAT form C-59) for statistical purposes aimed at monitoring refuge guests. In Trentino it is possible to send the tourist movement to the provincial Tourist Information System using one of the sending options provided, in agreement with your Promotion Board (see all information);

• for excursion refuges only, collection and payment of the tourist tax. This tax is payable by every person who stays overnight in accommodation facilities located in the province and is applied to every overnight stay of up to 10 consecutive nights on the basis of the rates approved by the Provincial Council for its type and area. (see the dedicated PAYMENTS section). At the end of each four-month period, the declaration and payment of the amount collected must be made via the website PAGOSEMPLICE using the credentials provided by Trentino Riscossioni. (see all information).