The tourist entry fee introduced in Venice, Italy, this April has been heavily criticised by opponents who say it has completely failed to reduce tourist numbers in the overwhelmed lagoon city.
“A grand bluff”
After just one month of implementation on selected days, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro’s €5 “tourist contribution” to enter Venice’s historic heart has not helped to control visitor arrivals, critics say. At a Municipal Council Group of Venice press conference in Rome, members of a residents’ association slammed the scheme’s effectiveness and the intrusive effect it has on residents.
Opposition councillor Giovanni Andrea Martini dismissed the policy as a “grand bluff”, claiming it had been “artfully created to generate media buzz, which does not solve the problem of overtourism in Venice.” In the first eleven days of the scheme, the levy brought in €975,000, with 195,000 entries sold. Martini alighted on the income as a key argument against the fee, saying it was “introduced solely to generate revenue” and pointed at the fact it had made more money than foreseen as evidence of its failure.
“A month after the introduction of the ticket, the data shows that the contribution has been useless, so much so that even the municipal administration has had to admit that the revenue from the €5 payments has far exceeded expectations, meaning more tourists have arrived,” he said. The data he referred to indicates that 5,000 more visitors arrived in the city on 19 May 2024 than on what he called the “equivalent” day last year.
But citizens are not only concerned about the scheme’s failure to curb arrivals. Enrico Tonolo, the head of a Venice residents’ association, denounced the way the scheme collects private data as a violation, noting that residents and students entering the city need to register reasons for visits, even when it concerns medical treatment or inviting friends for lunch.
Despite being a Venetian citizen, I have to ask permission to invite friends, as though I was a subject appealing to my sovereign.
Enrico Tonolo, Head of a Venice residents’ association
Regulate tourist apartments
Meanwhile, speaking to The Times, Venice’s Deputy Mayor for social welfare, tourism and development, Simone Venturini, rejected the criticism and highlighted the trial nature of the scheme, saying more time was needed to assess and perfect it. “We are not going to curb tourism in 15 days,” he said. “This is a long-term project and we may increase the price next year so it is too soon to talk about results.”
But, with an opinion poll by Demetra showing 89% of city centre residents oppose the scheme, architect Franco Migliorini said the real problem is the lack of control over tourist beds in the destination. The way to solve the problem of social desertification in the city, where permanent residents number just 49,000 and daily visitors average 80,000, was for authorities to “regulate the number of tourist apartments” he said.
