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https://theconversation.com/an-entry-fee-may-not-be-enough-to-save-venice-from-20-million-tourists-213703>
"Venice’s history, art and architecture attract an estimated 20 million
visitors every year. The city, a Unesco World Heritage site, is often crammed
with tourists in search of special memories.
But for the people who actually live there, this level of tourism has become
unsustainable. So from 2024, day-trippers will be charged a €5 (£4.31) fee as
part of an attempt to better manage the flow of visitors.
The city’s mayor has described the charge – which will be implemented on 30
particularly busy days in the spring and summer – as an attempt to “protect the
city from mass tourism”. It comes after cruise ships were banned from entering
the fragile Venice lagoon in 2021.
Both policies are designed to respond to the particular problem facing Venice,
which is that around 80% of its tourists come just for the day. Research has
shown that such a high proportion of day-trippers – who tend to spend little –
pushes a tourist destination towards decline.
So from next year, all travellers to Venice will have to register their visit
in advance and obtain a QR code online. Day trippers will then have to pay the
fee; visitors staying overnight will not.
Other exemptions include children under 14, as well as people who travel to the
city for work and study, or to visit family members. To enforce the policy, the
municipal police and authorised inspectors will carry out random checks. Anyone
without the proper QR code will face a fine of up to €300 (£261).
But some have expressed doubts about whether the €5 fee – the price of a coffee
or an ice cream – will be enough to dissuade tourists from travelling to this
iconic ancient city. One city politician commented that the charge means Venice
has become “a theme park, a Disneyland,” where “you get in by paying an
entrance fee.”
Certainly the charge is a lot less than Bhutan’s (recently reduced)
“sustainable development fee” of US$100 (£82) per night, which applies to all
tourists, and was introduced to encourage “high value, low impact” tourism.
Research also indicates that strategies aiming at persuading tourists to come
at less crowded times do not reduce numbers at peak periods, but actually end
up increasing overall demand."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
