Couple say they were turned away from a hotel in Italy because the owner ‘doesn’t host dark-skinned people’

AN Italian couple have claimed that they were turned away from a hotel in Puglia because they have “dark skin.”

Cristobal and Josephine Rojas say they were refused a room at a hotel in Margherita di Savoia when they tried to check in.

The husband and wife, who are Italians of Cuban descent, were visiting the area from their hometown of Milan earlier this month.

They revealed that they had stayed in the town several times before and never been subjected to this kind of racism.

Cristobal told the Italian newspaper : “When the owner saw us, he said we had to leave because he does not accept dark-skinned guests.

"We did not expect it. We have always felt welcome here in Puglia.”

According to Repubblica, the hotel confirmed that they had refused the couple a room but did not say why.

Cristobel added: “I hope that some people open their horizons and judge others over more than the colour of the skin."

He added: “Puglia, fortunately, is made of many different people."

The incident is the least in several accusations of intolerance levelled at the Italian hotel industry.

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Last month a gay couple revealed they were forced to cancel their holiday at a Calabrian guesthouse when the owner told them they didn’t accept “gays or animals.”

Just last week, a gay couple were also told off for hugging a beach resort in Caserta by a lifeguard because “there are children present.”