VENICE'S OLD MAYOR TELLS TOURISTS NOT TO PAY €5 FEE INTRODUCED TODAY

Venice has finally launched its day-tripper fee after five years of set backs
Residents argue the policy misses the point and will not help fix key issues

Tourists to Venice should refuse to pay an 'absurd' entrance fee imposed on day-trippers when it is brought in today, a former mayor of the city has said.

Massimo Cacciari, who was mayor of the city from 1993 until 2000 and 2005 to 2010, stressed that tourists already 'pay for everything' and that he would 'invite everyone not to pay' the €5 (£4.30) fee as it comes into effect on Thursday.

He noted that day visitors already pay 'three times as much as residents' for public transport in the city, and that travellers all contribute to the longevity of Venice's restaurants and museums.

In scathing remarks, Cacciari added that he would 'love to see' city authorities 'justify in a court the legitimacy of imposing a tax on entering the city'.

'What are they going to do, block people's movement, send out the police to ask to see everyone's papers?' he told Adnkronos news agency.

Venice will today become the first city in the world to charge an entry fee for day-tripper tourists, aimed at reducing the number of short-stay visitors who cause unmanageable congestion in peak times.

The 'tourist tax' has been controversial, with several residents' committees and associations planning protests to coincide with the launch today in Italy. Reps argue the fee will not fix the fundamental issues but only cloud the city's public image.

Under the new rules, a fee will be charged to tourists passing through the city without staying overnight.

Authorities hope this might help manage the flow of some 30 million tourists drawn in by the city's history and romantic canals each year.

The scheme will be implemented only on the 29 busiest days of the calendar year between now and July, and those who choose to stay in a hotel overnight will be exempted.

Residents, commuters, students and children under 14 will also be let off the fee.

But from today, day-trippers will have to buy a ticket online that will provide them with a QR code. Stewards will be carrying out random checks to ensure cooperation, with power to issue fines ranging from €50 to €300 for being caught without a code.

The local council said 5,500 people had already booked a ticket for Thursday, bringing in €27,500 on the first day of the programme. They deny it is primarily a money-making initiative, however.

Simone Venturini, the councillor in charge of tourism, defended the policy as part of a wider strategy trying to tackle the problems of overtourism, while admitting it was 'no magic wand'.

'We want to discourage day-trippers from visiting Venice during these 29 designated days,' he said.

'Fewer day trippers does not mean less revenue because overnight tourists are more important to the economy of the city.

'We will see the results in the medium to long-term and in the meantime we will assess how it goes.'

Venturini said previously the scheme aims to find 'a new balance between the rights of those who live, study or work in Venice and those who visit the city'.

Venice's authorities have had a long wait to see the plan come to fruition, with initial proposals brought in 2019 set back by the pandemic.

The city also dropped plans to charge day-trippers €10 a day last year, with Venturini citing 'resistance'.

Once more, residents are turning out to slam the plan, arguing the move is affecting the city's image as an attractive destination for holidaymakers.

'I can tell you that almost the entire city is against it,' suggested Matteo Secchi, who leads residents' activist group Venessia.com.

'You can't impose an entrance fee to a city; all they're doing is transforming it into a theme park. This is a bad image for Venice … I mean, are we joking?'

Federica Toninello, head of the ASC association for housing, suggested the council hadn't 'really understood the consequences' of mass tourism in Venice.

'For a start, €5 will do nothing to deter people. But day trippers aren't the issue; things like the shortage of affordable housing are… What we need are policies to help residents, for example, making rules to limit things like Airbnb,' he said, as reported by The Guardian.

Venice's population has steadily fallen in recent years, in part as residents leave and let out their flats to tourists.

In turn, this reduces the supply of available housing and makes homes more expensive for residents.

Barcelona has faced a similar problem and, in 2021, set precedent by becoming the first European city to ban short-term private room rentals under 31 days.

Rome and Milan, two of Italy's most touristic cities, have also since sought the ability to restrict short-term room lets as rents rise and salaries flatline.

Venetians also have concerns that short-term visitors spend less than tourists who rent rooms or book out hotels for several days.

2024-04-25T08:23:35Z dg43tfdfdgfd