In 2024, the Serenissima takes action - moderately - against overtourism.
Since January 16, Venice has put online the website dedicated to its tourist tax.
Announced in August 2021, it had been postponed several times.
From now on, visitors who only stay one day in the City of the Doges will have to pay a tax of 5 euros if their trip takes place on the most popular dates.
In detail, this rate will be applied from April 25 to May 5, weekends in May (11-12, 18-19, 25-26 May), June (8-9, 15-16, 22-23 , June 29-30) and certain weekends in July (July 6-7 and 13-14).
The tax concerns the time slot from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
It only applies to the ancient city and not to the islands.
And for the moment, no limitation on the number of visitors is planned.
“
There will certainly be no immediate impact on the number of daily tourists
,” underlines Isabelle Kahna, who founded Les Ailes de Venise, an agency working for more sustainable travel.
According to her, this tax “
may seem like a window dressing measure
”.
Due, among other things, to its unrestrictive amount and its scope of application: there are no official figures on the number of visitors per day in Venice... "
One might think that this tax was introduced solely to respond under
pressure from UNESCO
.
For years the Italian state has been accused of allowing irreversible changes to occur in the city
.”
Also read: Venice will tax certain tourists in 2024: dates, perimeter of the city... What you need to know
In September 2023, the City of the Doges narrowly escaped being listed as a UNESCO heritage site in danger.
What’s more, “
the measure is not part of a coherent tourism management strategy.
If it has the merit of existing, projects to expand the Venice airport, for example, and the construction of hotels offering nights at twelve euros, are also financed.
»
However, Isabelle Kahna welcomes a tax which “
participates in changing the vision of a trip to Venice
”.
For her, reserving your place makes the traveler aware of their impact on the city: “
It forces them to no longer leave on a whim
.”
The founder of the Wings of Venice also highlights a step towards organizing the management of tourist flows.
Also read Dates, program... Everything we already know about the 2024 edition of the Venice Carnival
The control system has not yet been revealed
Some people are exempt from paying the fee to obtain an entry ticket.
Screenshot Le Figaro
So, what are the steps to obtain the precious sesame?
Simply go to the tax website and enter the number of visitors.
You will then be asked for your first and last name, email address and telephone number.
And all you have to do is pay.
If the process is simple, we regret the instructions available only in Italian – or in English.
Please note, however, that certain search engines offer an almost instantaneous and rather faithful translation of the page consulted.
Once you have completed your procedures, you will receive an email, also in Italian: attached is the PDF version of the entry ticket.
The QR Code is located in the area at the top left of it.
The fine imposed for non-payment can range from 50 to 300 euros, plus a 10 euro access fee.
For the moment, the QR Code control system has not been detailed: “
I can't wait to see how they are going to put this in place…
” asks Isabelle Kahna.
If the idea of installing turnstiles had emerged, it was considered too restrictive.
“
And the Venetians rejected the idea of a museum city
.”
Some benefit from an exemption from the tourist tax.
This is the case for people staying in accommodation located in the municipality of Venice (they already pay the tourist tax), people with disabilities or accompanying a loved one with disabilities, participants in a sporting event, under 14 years old… Exemptions among (many) others.
LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST
Other measures to limit the influx of tourists
The fine imposed on tourists who do not pay the tax will be between 50 and 300 euros.
MIGUEL MEDINA / AFP
Welcoming an average of 30 million visitors per year, La Sérénissime wishes to regulate the influx of travelers who set foot on its soil.
In December, she announced several measures in this direction.
Among them, in particular, the ban on groups of more than 25 people in the historic center and on the tourist islands of Murano, Burano and Torcello, as well as the ban on loudspeakers.
These two measures must still be examined by the Municipal Council: if it gives its agreement, they will come into force from June 1st.
Parking in narrow streets, on bridges or in places of passage has also been prohibited.
For Isabelle Kahna, however, these measures will eventually have to be supplemented by a quota, like certain sites such as Machu Picchu or, in France, the island of Porquerolles or that of Bréhat.
In this sense, Venice has also banned boats of more than 25,000 tonnes in its historic center and closed souvenir shops.
And the City of the Doges is not the only tourist destination to implement various strategies to control the influx of visitors.