Venice debuts a new scheme Thursday to charge day-trippers who want to enter the historic Italian city, a global first meant to alleviate the strain of mass tourism.
Visitors to the UNESCO World Heritage site for the day will need to buy a five-euro ($5.3) ticket, with inspectors conducting spot checks at major entrance points.
Venice, regarded as one of the most beautiful towns on the planet, is one of the world’s top tourist destinations, but it is drowning in visitors.
Under the trial approach, so-called ‘Access Fee’ tickets will be required just on 29 busiest days throughout 2024, typically weekends from May to July, to encourage day-trippers to visit during quieter times.
Simone Venturini, the local councilor in charge of tourism, said, “The aim is to find a new balance between tourism and the city of its residents”.
“We must work to reduce the impact of daily tourism on certain days… (which) generates stress for the city”, Venturini added.
The scheme is being keenly studied as destinations throughout the world deal with massive crowds of tourists who help the local economy but risk overwhelming local populations and destroying delicate ecosystems and historical artifacts.
Venice stretched across more than 100 tiny islands and islets in northeastern Italy, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.
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