Venice launched its entry fee online portal today

The city will begin charging day-trippers 5 euros on certain dates in a trial phase of the new policy

Today, the City of Venice has launched its online payment platform where would-be day-trippers can begin booking their visits on specific days. The new entry fee has been set at 5 euros and will serve as an alternative to the tourist tax paid by people who are spending nights at tourist accommodations.

For now, day visitors will only have to pay the entry fee on certain dates. This year, 29 such dates have been determined by the authorities. Most of these fall on Italian public holidays and weekends between April and July.

Here are the dates: 25 April to 5 May and every other weekend in May (11-12, 18-19, 25-26 May), the last four weekends in June (8-9, 15-16, 22-23, 29-30 June) and the first two weekends in July (6-7, 13-14 July).

This means that this year at least, people visiting during the summer but avoiding these high-intensity days can still visit Venice for free.

Here’s what you need to know about the Venice entry fee

As of 16 January, you can head to the multilingual online platform on the Venice municipal website and pay the fee if you’re planning to visit during any of the above dates.

The fee applies to visits between the hours of 8:30 and 16:00 on the indicated dates. The fee is only requested for the Old City and is not necessary for visiting other of the populated islands in the Venetian Lagoon. The fee doesn’t apply to residents, and commuting students and workers in the Old City of Venice.

The entry fee is thus revolutionary as it will make the Lagoon City the first to begin charging day tourists and not only visitors spending the night there. It has been in the works for at least five years, however, the Covid-induced chaos slowed down the implementation. Now that tourism levels have returned to pre-pandemic levels, the implementation of the 5-euro entry fee has been greenlit.