Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympics, skyrocketing rents. Also for volunteers

For those who donate their time for the Winter Games there is no accommodation or concessions. On AirBnb, a partner company, a week in Cortina costs more than 8,000 euros, but even among the offers circulating on social networks, the prices are out of reach. So, some give up: 'They are all concerned with speculating as much as possible'

Paolo ValentiRedattore lavialibera

8 settembre 2025

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'We are passionate about the Olympic dream, but we woke up to a cold shower'. In the Facebook groups of the volunteers who will contribute to the realisation of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Games, the anticipation of the event and the enthusiasm for the assignment of roles leaves room for one worry: where to sleep?

For the 18,000 arriving from all over the world, there are no ad hoc accommodations or refunds. Thus, those who are not lucky enough to live near the assigned site will have to find their own accommodation and pay for it out of their own pocket, just like the spectators. With one difference: while those who intend to attend the competitions can already buy tickets and book accommodation, many of the aspiring volunteers who went through the selection interview months ago are still waiting to find out if, when and where they will be engaged during the Games. In the meantime, rooms and flats for rent are becoming scarcer and scarcer.

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'All concerned to speculate as much as possible'

"I'm a volunteer in Livigno, but I can't find any reasonably priced accommodation. It seems everyone's trying to get as much as possible out of it."

That volunteers had to take charge of accommodation was written in the Team26 Charter (the name given to the volunteer programme, ed.) published in September 2024 and is not uncommon, indeed it has been so for most past editions of the Games. The 'cold shower' that many complain about in the Facebook groups, however, is the discovery of a limited and decidedly unaffordable offer: 'I am volunteering in Livigno but I cannot find any accommodation at a reasonable price,' writes one user. 'I have asked everywhere but it seems that they are all concerned with speculating as much as possible. 'I've been assigned to Cortina, but I can't even find a place to park a camper van,' says a colleague.

On AirBnb dedicated portal, but no discounts

Those looking for accommodation on the web immediately come across the page 'Accommodation for those volunteering for Milan Cortina 2026' by AirBnb, a partner company of the Olympics. But no illusions: the portal merely groups together the accommodation available near the competition sites without any discounts. 'There are no booking codes or special prices for those who volunteer,' it states at the bottom of the page.

In Milan, the solutions offered in the central week of the Olympic Games, from 9 to 15 February 2026, are around 600 euro for six nights. In Predazzo and Tesero, in Trentino, the average is 2 thousand euros, 4 thousand in Bormio. The record is reached in Cortina, where no less than 8 thousand euros is spent. In Livigno, there are only eight accommodations available on the portal, ranging from 5 thousand to 21 thousand euro for a week. The closest solution under 1,000 euros is... in Switzerland, in Valchava, 40 kilometres away.

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The anger of the volunteers in chat

'The Foundation (the organising body of the Games, ed.) should and could propose to the local administrations to lower the prices,' reads another message in the volunteers' chat, where in the meantime offers from private individuals are appearing, including solutions in camper vans, but at equally unaffordable prices. 'Ridiculous are those who offer beds to people who offer their time for insane amounts of money!' vented another user. Thus, some choose to give up: 'I was assigned to Antholz, but I gave up precisely because of the fact of accommodation: impossible to find anything,' reads one message. 'After six months of silence and no answer I am leaving, I will do something else. Happy Olympics to all,' wishes another user still waiting for allocation.

Others accept instead to sleep tens of kilometres away from their place of duty, as they cannot afford closer solutions. An Indian volunteer assigned to Cortina communicates that he has found a room in Tarzo, 100 kilometres away: 'It's a three-hour drive, I'm looking for someone to share the journey with in order to share the costs,' he writes. So much for the dossier with which Milan-Cortina won the Games, which promised: 'Given the abundant local logistical offer, the volunteers and the workforce will be accommodated as close as possible to the relevant venues, accessible on foot in a few minutes'.

This article was translated by Kompreno with the support of DeepL. 

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