British tourists charged £54 for four ice creams receive apology and are invited back to Rome by the mayor Two British men and their wives charged €16 each for ice cream in Rome Now mayor has apologised to the Britons and invited them to return to city By Hugo Gye, Neil Sears and Hannah Roberts A group of British tourists who caused outrage in Rome when they were charged £54 for just four ice creams have received an apology from the Italian capital's mayor. Roger and Wendy Bannister have also been invited back to the city by mayor Gianni Alemanno in an attempt to make off for their rip-off experience. After they complained to an Italian newspaper about how they were treated at the cafe where they bought the ice cream, many Rome residents warned that the incident could damage the reputation of the city, one of the world's top tourist destinations. Outraged: Holidaymakers Roger Bannister, his brother Steven and their wives Wendy and Joyce with the receipt for their ice cream Mr and Mrs Bannister, along with Mr Bannister's brother Stephen and his wife Joyce, were handed the extortionate bill on Sunday, the last day of their holiday in Italy. They had ordered three scoops of ice cream each to take away from the Antica Roma cafe near the Spanish Steps, and were charged €64 (£54) for their snacks. Ripped off: The scandal is reigniting a row in the country about tourists being 'ripped off' by local businesses Mr Bannister, 58, today told BBC Breakfast of his shock at receiving the bill: 'It was just disbelief and then giving the money and having the change slapped down, the five euro note and the one euro coin, and then the receipt - 64 euros - we just walked out in disbelief.' But after they went to a newspaper, he said, Mr Alemanno had got in contact offering 'sincere apologies' and saying he was 'very upset' about the incident. Mr Bannister, from Stourbridge in the West Midlands, said the family had been told they would be treated to a free ice cream if they returned to Rome. He earlier described how the group had been on a six-day trip to Rome, adding: 'Up until then we'd had a brilliant time, but that left a bad taste in the mouth - quite literally. To be honest the ice cream wasn't that nice either. We'd had better ones earlier on in the holiday. I felt I had been ripped off but what could I do? Matteo Costantini, a local councillor, said of the tourists' ordeal: 'They were justifiably outraged at what they had been asked to pay, and it should not be allowed. There needs to be a clampdown on places like this that charge extortionate prices to unsuspecting tourists. It does nothing for the image of the city and will probably put people off coming here. Ripped off: Roger Bannister and his family were horrified after buying ice creams at the Antica Roma bar (left of picture) in Rome Mr Costantini added that he had personally offered to refund the money to the group but they had told him donate it to a charity. The ice cream parlour in question gave a chilly response. A staff member who refused to give her name said: 'The prices are clearly on display. They got what they asked for - four ice creams. She said the gelateria's most expensive cone is €25 (£21) and added: 'They got 16 euros' worth of ice cream each - almost a kilo. What more did they want? We get this all the time ... but the prices are there in black and white. If they don't want the ice cream they can go somewhere else.' Carlo Rienzi, president of Italy's Codacons consumer group, said it had officially requested 'an immediate investigation into this fraud'. Tourist spot: The bar is near the Spanish Steps, one of the most popular attractions in the Italian capital