The date for the implementation of paid entry in Venice has again been postponed. This has been confirmed by sources in city’s administration, making it clear that, in the best case scenario, the matter will slip at least until summer of 2023. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, however, did not miss the opportunity to reiterate that the measure is indispensable, given the current number of guests. “I will not force anything but I am determined to go ahead.”
The official date of implementation for the new entry fee had originally been scheduled for January 16th, 2023. Brugnaro announced the city would start charging between 3 and 10 euros to tourists who do not spend the night in the city. Overnight visitors who book a hotel stay will be exempt as they already pay a €5 per night tax. The new tax was originally announced in 2019 but with the outbreak of the pandemic its implementation was put on hold.
The system is the right way forward for a more balanced management of tourism.
Luigi Brugnaro, Mayor of Venice
At this point, everything will depend on when the City Council approves the regulations, a matter of months. However, the road is mapped out: the city is saturated and to visit it, soon, it will be necessary to pay between three and ten euros per person.
Among the knots that remain to be unraveled is also the question of the exclusion of Venetians from paying the ticket. It seems that something is moving in this direction and an experimental phase could be launched: the inhabitants of the Veneto will not pay the access fee, but will be obliged to book the visit like all non-residents of Venice.
Meanwhile, Italy’s Minister of Culture, Gennaro Sangiuliano, is looking to the Venice model to solve the problem of overbooking in the country’s art cities. “In general, I say that the issue of overcrowding in art cities, which puts the cities themselves at risk, needs to be addressed,” he said.
Nearly 300,000 tourists visited Venice over the Easter weekend this year. As reported by CNN, Brugnaro has defended the measure on Twitter. “The system is the right way forward, for a more balanced management of tourism. We will be the first in the world in this difficult experiment,” he tweeted.
The new tax in brief
The amount of the tax to enter Venice will be 3, 6, 8 or 10 euros depending on the level of affluence of the day. This tax will be payable on a dedicated website or through an application for smartphones (which do not yet exist) and which will issue a QR code to be presented in case of control.
Tourists who can prove that they have booked a hotel room, a bed and breakfast or an apartment in Venice (municipal territory) for more than one day will be exempted from payment, as will the relatives of a year-round Venetian resident. But this exemption will be conditioned to the registration on the site or application that will be dedicated to the tax.
The primary purpose of the tax is to better manage the flow of tourists in order to preserve Venice and also to allow those who are there to enjoy it. The tax is also intended to relieve Venetians of the costs they now pay alone to maintain the city and its services:
- The garbage service (which costs 41 million euros per year).
- The maintenance and repair of the paving stones (Masegni) that cover the streets of Venice.
- Maintenance and repair of bridges.
- Maintenance of the quays and riverbanks.
- Maintenance of the city’s heritage, monuments of art and other elements that you enjoy during your stay.
