Calls to raise Venice entry fee to stem ‘obscene rivers of tourists'
Setrak Tokatzian, president of St Mark's Square residents' association, said that the historic Italian city is in a 'state of calamity' in an interview with local newspaper Corriere del Veneto.
He said: 'This tourism is obscene.
'There's a complete explosion of overtourism like never before, with a type of people wandering around without entering shops or even knowing where they are.'
Tokatzian, a jewellery shop owner, called for the charge in order to stem the 'rivers of people' arriving in Venice.
Around 30 million tourists visit Venice annually. Seven out of 10 stay only for the day.
'They move from one place to another, often guided by tour operators, boarding gondolas, hopping into taxis, rushing here and there, but no one buys anything', Tokatzian added.
The residents' association president said that tourists who 'don't know what culture is' often bypass storefronts to spend money on 'illegal vendors' selling grain for pigeons and roses.
On 25 April 2024, Venice became the first metropolis in the world to charge admission for daytrippers.
An almost £90 fee would be 20 times more expensive for travellers than the usual €5 (£4.20) charge.
A €5 to €10 levy was trialled between April and July this year, with last-minute tourists who make reservations less than four days in advance paying the higher €10 (£8.35) rate.
Daytrippers visiting during peak hours – 8.30am to 4pm – have to pay the daily fee, while overnight tourists with hotel reservations are exempt from the charge.
Exemptions are also granted to residents, Venetian-born visitors, students and workers.
Not everyone agrees with calls to increase the Venice entry tax.
Claudio Vernier, former president of the St Mark's Square association, wrote on social media that 'to believe that an entry fee of €100 can solve this sick system is a pure illusion'.
Vernier said: 'Asking 100 euros to enter does not educate the visitor. Doesn't teach them respect, doesn't make them more aware.
'On the contrary, those who spend a similar amount will expect a perfect, luxurious, frictionless 'theme park' experience — an expectation that cannot be met in a lively, historic, fragile city.'
Simon Calder, travel correspondent of The Independent, said: 'I was in Venice on the first day entry fees were charged, and it was clear that the €5 levy had no significant effect in reducing tourist numbers.
'Much higher fees would certainly have an impact, but to avoid means testing visitors, there must also be times of the year when admission is free.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
32 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Could Pep Guardiola's 'imminent' divorce 'hurt Man City'? Sources close to legendary boss say there is 'more urgency' to finalise split as start of season approaches
Pep Guardiola and his wife are set to divorce imminently, as fears grow that their split could hurt Manchester City. The details of the Spanish football manager's divorce from wife Cristina Serra are expected to be finalised within weeks and made official as early as next month, The Sun reports. The couple had hoped to keep their separation on friendly terms, but there is now 'more urgency' as their relationship seems to have deteriorated, sources said. Pep's relationship from estranged wife Cristina has reportedly moved from 'friendly to cordial' amid 'complicated negotiations'. Spanish journalists Laura Fa, who broke the story of their split said: 'The signing of this divorce is going to be imminent. Evidently their relationship sentimentally has come to an end.' And there are now fears his marriage troubles could overshadow the start of the new season, sources say. Daily Mail has approached Manchester City for comment. Pep, 54, and Cristina, 52, have been together for 30 years and got married in 2014. Cristina, who runs a fashion business, struggled to settle in Manchester and moved back to Spain five years ago. The couple reportedly agreed to go their separate ways in December shortly after he signed a new contract with the football club, with sources claiming that it was the last straw for Cristina. The estranged couple even hired the same lawyer to avoid a messy divorce. They both attended an Oasis concert in Heaton Park last month with their two children Maria, 24, and Marius, 22, but were not pictured together. The Manchester City's boss marriage troubles, which were first reported in January, also come during his worst slump as the club's manager. Pep has already said he will leave the club in 2027 after his contract runs out to 'focus on myself'. It was claimed back in April that the couple had been trying to give their marriage a second chance after Pep and his fashion entrepreneur wife spent three days together at their former Barcelona marital home over Easter. It was the second time since news of their shock split became public in January that the former Barcelona footballer had travelled to the Catalan capital and spent time with Cristina. Barcelona-based newspaper El Nacional said after the second reunion they were prepared to 'give each another chance' and claimed 'all was not lost in their marriage.' But the journalists who broke the story of their shock split have shot down the chances of a fresh start for Pep and Cristina after their decision to call time on their 30-year relationship. Lorena Vasquez, one of a duo of well-respected Spanish showbiz reporters who call themselves the Mamarazzis, went on a Spanish TV show in February to say they had launched divorce proceedings which were 'amicable' because they were using the same lawyer. She also linked the split again to the Man City manager's unexpected decision last November to renew his contract with the Premier League club until 2027.
Daily Mail
34 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Julianne Moore is joined by her husband and mini-me daughter while vacationing on the coast of Italy
Julianne Moore enjoyed a dip in the ocean during a family vacation in Grosseto, Italy on Friday. The Oscar winner, 64, showcased her shapely legs while protecting her fair skin from the sun in a black long sleeve one-piece bathing suit. The Echo Valley star hid her bobbed auburn hair beneath a straw bucket hat and appeared to be makeup-free behind her dark sunglasses. Moore was joined by her husband, Bart Freundlich, 55, who looked fit in a pair of black swimming trunks, and their daughter Liv, 23. The young talent agency assistant showcased her curves in a gold bikini with a bandeau top and a string bottom. Her long reddish-brown hair was pushed away from her face by her sunglasses. Moore was seen enjoying a float in the sapphire blue waters. She was soon joined by Freundlich, who lay behind her on the flotation device. The couple first met on the set of 1997's The Myth of Fingerprints and quickly fell in love. They welcomed their son Caleb, now 27, in December 1997. Moore and Freundlich married in 2003. Caleb, a musician who teaches composition, was not seen with his family on the outing. A while later, mom, dad and daughter were seen splashing together in the warm ocean. Liv used a bright green noodle to float while chatting with her parents. Freundlich appeared to be the family photographer, using his skills as a cameraman and director to take some snaps of their outing. Liv, who works as a talent agency assistant, showcased her curves in a gold bikini with a bandeau top and a string bottom. Her long reddish-brown hair was pushed away from her makeup-free face The Far From Heaven star posed for a photo before heading down to the water, wearing her bathing suit with a pair of black palazzo pants. Liv covered up in a pair of white overalls and her own straw hat. The director later took a few snaps on his phone by the water as his wife looked at the waves. Moore recently completed work on the thriller Control with James McAvoy and Jenna Coleman. According to Deadline, she stars as a 'pivotal character' in the drama about a doctor who questions his reality after waking up one morning to the sound of a mysterious voice in his head. Moore and her husband of will celebrate their 22nd wedding anniversary in August. They first met on 1997's The Myth of Fingerprints and have been going strong since The movie is expected to be released later this year. She has also signed on to star in an as-yet unnamed musical comedy directed by Oscar nominee Jesse Eisenberg. Not much is known about the plot, but Moore will play a 'shy woman who is unexpectedly cast in a community theater musical production, going to extremes as she loses herself in the role,' according to the log line. Paul Giamatti and Bernadette Peters will co-star. Earlier this year, Moore's children's book Freckle Face Strawberry was banned from schools serving the children of US military personnel and civilian defense employees. The actress, who grew up as the daughter of an military attorney who later became a military judge, said in an Instagram post in February, the move came as 'quite a shock.' 'I can't help but wonder what is so controversial about this picture book that cause it to be banned by the US Government,' the 'proud' Frankfurt American High School graduate wrote. 'I am truly saddened and never thought I would see this in a country where freedom of speech and expression is a constitutional right.'
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Deal or no deal? World leaders walk tightrope in tariff negotiations with Trump
It was grip-and-grin time for Ursula von der Leyen as she sat across from Donald Trump in Scotland last week, with the two announcing a deal for 15% tariffs on European imports that would avert a transatlantic trade war – but came at a stiff price for the 27-country bloc. After committing to a unilateral US raise on tariffs that came on the heels of a Nato commitment to increase defense spending to 5% of national GDPs, von der Leyen then thanked Trump 'for his personal commitment and his leadership to achieve this breakthrough'. 'He is a tough negotiator, but he is also a dealmaker,' she said, as the US president beamed. The EU was one of just a number of parties to strike a deal with Trump before his temporary pause on new tariffs came to an end this week. And like many others, the guiding principle for the EU appeared to be: it can always get worse. 'This is clearly the best deal we could get under very difficult circumstances,' Maroš Šefčovič, the EU trade chief, said. Others had a far bleaker interpretation of the dynamics, as Trump has wielded the threat of sky-high tariffs to cudgel his trading partners into submission. 'It is a dark day when an alliance of free peoples, brought together to affirm their common values and to defend their common interests, resigns itself to submission,' wrote the French prime minister, François Bayrou. Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán put it another way: 'It was Donald Trump eating Ursula von der Leyen for breakfast,' he said on his podcast. Later, he called her a 'featherweight'. World leaders have been forced to adopt a position of appeasement and pragmatism as they've approached the Trump administration, which has swung between imposing staggering tariffs on imports and then announcing last minute pauses and exclusions that suggest there is little rhyme or reason to the White House's tariff strategy. But the key factor for Trump appears to be taking whatever he can get. Countries across Asia exporting to the US were quickest to begin negotiating new trade deals with the White House. Vietnam was desperate to cut a 46% tariff imposed on the country, and Trump early last month announced that he had negotiated a 20% rate with Vietnamese negotiators. Except, it turned out, they believed that they had negotiated an 11% rate, Politico reported. And treasury secretary Scott Bessent this week admitted that he had never seen the deal, which the Vietnamese authorities have never confirmed. Trump reportedly used the trade threats along with other incentives in order to broker a recent peace between Thailand and Cambodia after fighting broke out along the border between the two countries. He soon announced a 19% rate – a significant cut from 49% for Cambodia and 36% for Thailand – which appeared more motivated by international politics than trade considerations. But while many countries in the region will breathe a sigh of relief as they avert sky-high tariffs, some see a new danger in the arbitrary redrawing of the US's trade relationship with the world. 'What we felt during this negotiation is that the US trade environment is fundamentally changing,' South Korean trade minister Yeo Han-koo said shortly after a deal was made to tariff imports at 15%, down from a threatened 25%. The two sides had made a verbally agreement but had not made a formal draft, he said, because the deal had to be struck so quickly. 'I think we are entering a new normal era,' he said. 'So, although we have overcome this crisis, we cannot be relieved, because we do not know when we will face pressure from tariffs or non-tariff measures again.' Leaders who have stood up to Trump are having the hardest time. Among others, Trump has focused his ire on Canada, which he has blamed for the fentanyl crisis in the US, a charge that Canada's prime minister Mark Carney has rejected. Trump on Friday announced that he would raise tariffs on Canada, a top trading partner, to 35%, as tough negotiations between the two sides continued. Carney, who had coined the elections slogan 'Elbows up, Canada' as a signal of defiance against Trump's tariff and annexation threats, said he was 'disappointed'. 'While we will continue to negotiate with the United States on our trading relationship, the Canadian government is laser focused on what we can control: building Canada strong,' Carney said.
