Venice abandons day tripper tourist entry fee amid coronavirus crisis

DUE to the Covid-19 emergency, the city of Venice in northern Italy has decided to temporarily scrap the proposed tourist entry fee to the city. 

The entry fee for day trippers was due to be imposed on July 1, 2020. Luigi Brugnaro, the mayor of Venice, had announced that the entry ticket price for tourists would range from €3 in low season to €10 in high season, noting that those entering the city for work, academic, or family reasons would not be subject to the fee. 

With Venice now suffering serious financial problems due to the lack of tourism, the main source of income in the city, Venice authorities have chosen to postpone the introduction of the entry fee until July 1, 2021. Brugnaro commented that to impose the fee now would be “ill-timed.” 

The entry ticket had originally been imposed in a bid to ease over tourism in the city. Venice now only has around 50,000 residents, but 30 million tourists visit the city every year. 

Brugnaro has commented that the authorities hope to encourage “a different kind of tourism to Venice” once the coronavirus crisis has passed, and noted that “Venice is Venice, and when the crisis is over, tourism will start again.”   

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Rebecca Ann Hughes

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