For years, Enea worked alone. He answered in the middle of the night, on Ferragosto (the mid-August holiday), in five languages, to anyone with a question about this city: where to park, what time the Castello closes, what’s on tonight.
Since late August, there are four of them.
Scopri Formia, Scopri Sperlonga, and Scopri Lazio are now online, each with its own assistant: Cicerone, Ulisse, and Livia. Together with Enea, they form the Scopri il Territorio network.
We launched them without press conferences and without presentations, letting those who use them do the talking. After five weeks, it is time to share their story.
Four names that were already here
We didn’t make them up. They are real figures once hosted by these lands, and each one has remained right at home.
Enea in Gaeta — the city bears the name of Caieta, the nursemaid who, Virgil writes, the hero buried on this promontory before setting sail again. Cicerone in Formia — here he had his villas and here, in 43 BC, he was caught and killed: along the Appia, there is still the tomb traditionally attributed to him. Ulisse in Sperlonga — in the cave of the Villa di Tiberio, the Odyssey isn’t just told, it’s sculpted in marble; it’s no coincidence that this coast is called the Riviera di Ulisse. Livia for Lazio — Augustus’s wife, known for the painted garden of the Villa di Prima Porta.
Among the four, Livia plays a different role: Scopri Lazio is the network’s upper floor. It welcomes those arriving from afar — travelers searching for “what to see in Lazio” from Munich or Amsterdam, who don’t yet know that Sperlonga exists — and guides them to the right town, where someone who knows every alleyway is ready to answer.
The same approach, three more destinations
Inside the new portals, you’ll find what has worked for Gaeta for years: attractions with accurate opening hours, updated the very day they change; up-to-date events; beaches, parking, bus timetables, itineraries, and practical guides. Plus an assistant answering the questions people actually ask, whether in the car or under a beach umbrella. The websites are available in six languages (Italian, English, French, Spanish, German, and Russian); among the assistants, Livia answers in all six, while Cicerone and Ulisse currently answer in Italian.
None of these pages will ever see a printing press. When a schedule changes, it updates there the very same day: that’s the difference between a guide that ages on its own and one that someone refreshes every morning.
Today Scopri Formia features 33 places and 17 practical guides, Scopri Sperlonga 27 places and 10 guides, and Scopri Lazio 25 towns and villages across all five provinces, with 104 attractions and 113 guides. They grow one day at a time, just as Gaeta did: better small and genuine than bloated on launch day.
And the assistants don’t work isolated within their own sites: the “handover” feature is already active. If you ask Livia about a specific town, she can pass you over to the local guide, who knows the local hours and beaches, without having to start all over again.
The territory wins together
Gaeta, Formia, and Sperlonga don’t compete with each other. The real competition is the Amalfi Coast, Puglia, or Greece just a two-hour flight away. Those who choose this coast don’t choose a single town: they sleep in Gaeta, dine in Formia, spend the day in Sperlonga, and cross municipal borders three times without even realizing it.
Today, that choice is made on a smartphone, the night before, in five minutes. And it lands where answers are clear: real opening hours, parking with transparent rates — not a vague “please check in advance.” Every time visitors find what they’re looking for right away, the area earns an extra overnight stay; every time they don’t, they go elsewhere without ever telling us.
The easier the Gulf is to navigate and understand, the more it gets chosen. That is destination marketing, and it’s what we do. Scopri il Territorio is a private initiative: we build and maintain it, partner businesses support it, and it doesn’t cost the public a single euro.
The opportunity
There is one last thing, and it concerns local administrators.
A tool like this isn’t just useful for travelers. Every question asked to an assistant reveals something real about a city’s tourism demand: what visitors are looking for, in which month, at what time, in which language — and above all, what they can’t find. It’s a snapshot of tourism that updates itself daily, and no commissioned survey can match it.
Since late August, this opportunity no longer belongs to just one city: it belongs to four. Will local administrations seize the opportunity better than those who have already had it at their disposal?
As far as we’re concerned, our doors remain open. We aren’t asking for official sponsorships or commemorative plaques: only that, when discussing modern visitor hospitality, people know this exists, works, and costs the public nothing.
It all started here
Because one thing should be made clear: it all started in Gaeta. This is where the method was built, tested, adjusted, and refined for years before it could work anywhere else. A town of twenty thousand residents developed a way of presenting its territory that now serves three more destinations and speaks six languages.
Over recent months, we often asked ourselves what truly makes a hospitality tool modern. In the end, we stopped debating and gave the only answer we knew how: build three more, and make them work.
The next line will be written by someone who doesn’t even know we exist today: a young traveler from Germany asking Ulisse where to eat in Sperlonga — and getting the right answer, at eleven at night, in his own language.
The network’s portals
- Scopri Gaeta — this website, featuring Enea
- Scopri Formia — sea, archaeology, and trails, featuring Cicerone
- Scopri Sperlonga — old town, beaches, and Villa di Tiberio, featuring Ulisse
- Scopri Lazio — cities, villages, and events across the entire region, featuring Livia
Frequently asked questions
When did the new portals go online?
Since late August 2026: scopriformia.it, scoprisperlonga.it, and scoprilazio.it.
What languages are available?
The websites are available in six languages: Italian, English, French, Spanish, German, and Russian. Livia answers in all six; Cicerone and Ulisse, for now, in Italian.
Does anything change for those using ScopriGaeta and Enea?
Nothing: Gaeta stays as it is and continues to grow as always.
Who funds all of this?
The partner businesses that choose to join. No public funding, zero cost for travelers: no app, no registration required.
I run a business in Formia or Sperlonga: can I join?
Yes: each portal has its dedicated page for local businesses (Formia, Sperlonga, Lazio). WelcomeBook, digital menus, concierge, and portal showcase features are explained on ENEA Cloud.
