Final attempt? Venice once again readies to introduce tourist entry fee

This time, the plan is to set up the scheme in 2024 – at first as a trial run

Following numerous, and constantly delayed attempts to introduce an entry fee for tourists, the City of Venice has announced that it will have another go at kickstarting the measure – sometime in 2024. Details are still murky however, media reports have indicated that the proposed price to visit the Lagoon City will be 5 euros and this will only apply to day-trippers, not to people staying overnight.

These days, Venice is all glitz and glamour as the city is in the grip of the 80^th edition of the Venice International Film Festival, scheduled to end on 9 September. Nevertheless, news of the long-awaited entry charge has managed to break through and will likely occupy the headlines in the coming days.

It would still be the first city in the world with such a regime

Despite the constant delays, due to the COVID pandemic and logistical obstacles, Venice still looks to become the first city on the planet to start making out-of-towners pay in order to gain entry.

Following approval next week, on 12 September, the City Council will announce the specific details of how and when exactly this will play out.

The info that has already emerged points to the fact that this will apply to day-trippers, in an attempt to stymie that type of tourism…or at least cash in from it.

Residents of the surrounding Veneto region and visitors under the age of 14 would be exempt from paying the fee — likewise, those visiting the city for academic, medical, work or family reasons.

The authorities have decided to not rush into it immediately, as the measure will likely first go through a 30-day trial period, which might not be consecutive days, but only weekends and holidays during the spring and summer of 2024.

At the end of July, UNESCO recommended including the historical core of Venice on its Heritage Sites in Danger list due to the overbearing impact of climate and tourism on the fragile urban spaces of the Lagoon City.