Venice Charges Admission Fee For Tourists

According to the VENICE, Italy (Reuters), an entrance fee for visitors will be imposed. The Venice council has voted for it mainly for the upkeep of the much-visited World Heritage Site, Venice of Italy.

“This is a significant turning point in the management of Venice’s tourist flows,” said Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, who has championed the scheme.

Venice’s population has gone down rapidly from roughly 175,000 in recent decades to about 50,000 today. Around 25 million tourists pour into the lagoon city each year, of whom around 14 million spend just one day there. The day trip tourists may bring along their food just like picnic without spending much on local businesses. Venice residents complain that their city is being overcrowded by tourists while they have to bear the bill for cleaning and security.

Councillors endorsed the entrance fee on a meeting on Feb 2019, saying day-trippers would now have to pay 3 euros ($3.42) each this year to enter Venice. The amount will rise to between 6-10 euros from the start of 2020, depending on whether tourists come in high or low season.

There is fee exemption for tourists who spend the night in local hotels, which already apply visitor taxes to their rates, and children under the age of six.

“Venice needs respect, and as is the case with museums, sports stadiums, cinemas, trains and aeroplanes, it needs to have planned visits… which makes it sustainable both for tourists and the city,” Veneto governor Luca Zaia said.