Italy is handing out castles for free. But there's a catch

Italy is giving away free castles, farmhouses and historic sites in the hope that it will boost its faltering regional tourism sector.

Via their Facebook page, Italy’s department of Infrastructure and Transport is giving away 103 run-down castles, farmhouses in remote areas and historic sites, in the hopes of attracting overseas visitors and tourists.

The caveat of the offer is that anyone who bags a property will need to commit to restoring or renovating the property and turning it into a tourism facility.

The project is aimed at alleviating tourist overcrowding at Italy’s most popular spots, including Rome, Venice and Florence, and promoting the country’s lesser-known destinations.

There are plans to add another 200 buildings and sites to the list in the next few years.

Efforts to lure in more tourists to other areas of Italy have been ramping up lately.

Just last week, an Italian mayor was offering $2,946 and a week’s worth of rent free rent to bolster the population in Bormida, a small village in Liguria, which is about an hour and a half’s drive to Genoa, in north-west Italy.

Take a look at some of the properties on offer below.