Garipalli startup transforms Italian city tours into interactive escape games

Luca De Bellis founded Garipalli in 2017 to reinvent cultural tourism through City Escape, a gamified experience blending escape-room puzzles with city exploration. Players solve enigmas using clues scattered across Italian cities including Rome, Florence, Milan, Naples, Venice, Lucca, Padua, Mantua, and Ravenna. The startup's team includes Carlo Knol (Development Director), Simone Mazzenga (CTO), and Simone Radaelli (Creative Director). Garipalli aims to become Europe's leader in cultural entertainment, targeting young audiences with interactive storytelling and digital engagement. The company plans to launch over 100 City Escapes within three years and develop new cultural entertainment formats. De Bellis identifies two major challenges: inadequate resources for cultural innovation and a widespread belief that digital tools diminish cultural value. He advises aspiring cultural entrepreneurs to focus on training, MVP development, idea validation, and product-market fit.