Pope Francis Pays the Bill at His Own Hotel

Pope Francis I greets the crowd; photo by Catholic Church of England and Wales

By Colleen Clark

As head of the Catholic Church, the newly elected Pope Francis I technically owns the Vatican-run boarding house that he had been staying in during the papal conclave. But he personally stopped by yesterday to pay the bill anyway, according to Time. After thanking the staff, he carried his own bags out to the awaiting car. And that’s not the only way that the new pontiff is revving up Rome tourism. Giuseppe Roscioli, head of the Rome division of the hoteliers association Federalberghi, expects the pope’s election and inauguration to bring in an additional $71 million in tourism dollars, according to Bloomberg. Want to attend the official installation festivities on Tuesday in St. Peter’s Square? Flights from New York are as low as $1070 roundtrip.