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Starting in spring 2024, Venice will introduce a booking system and an access fee for day trippers : visitors not staying in accommodation in Venice overnight (and residing outside the Veneto region) will have to book online and pay a fee of €5 during the peak tourism periods of the year  (those sleeping in accommodation in Venice already pay a tourist tax).

The fee will apply on 29 days , starting from April 25 to May 5 and also during weekends in May and June -  excluding the Festa della Repubblica weekend (1-2 June) - as well as the first two weekends of July. The day-tripper fee will only apply during peak hours from 8:30am to 4pm .

This fee, a first-of-its-kind experiment, aims at managing visitor influx more effectively and preserving the city's unique heritage, discouraging 'hit-and-run' tourism .

On the website of the City of Venice there are FAQs on the Access Fee that explain everything you need to know before arriving in Venice.

ph. @murnudinvenice via Instagram

VENICE ACCESS FEE

For the year 2024 the amount is  5.00 € a day , not subject to reductions.

The entry fee will NOT be applied to the smaller islands , including Venice Lido (including Alberoni and Malamocco), Pellestrina, Murano, Burano, Torcello, Sant'Erasmo, Mazzorbo, Mazzorbetto, Vignole, Sant'Andrea, La Certosa, San Servolo, San Clemente, Poveglia.

It is NOT due by those transiting Piazzale Roma, Tronchetto or the Maritime Station, without accessing the Old City.

ph. Matthias Süeßen CC BY-SA 4.0 Wikimedia Commons

WHO HAS TO PAY TO ENTER VENICE?

All  visitors over the age of 14,  who do not stay overnight  on the dates on which the fee will be applicable, and do not reside in the Veneto region,  will have to book their visit and pay the  €5 fee  in advance. 

To manage the entry process, visitors   will need to register on the online platform  http://cda.ve.it  that will be launched  on January 16 .

Upon booking, visitors will receive a QR code that  certifies the payment of the fee (or the exclusion/exemption condition). I n order to prove that you have booked and paid for entry - as well as that you are exempt from payment - simply show the  QR-code  to officials at Venice's main access points.

ph. @frankpicc via Instagram

EXCLUSIONS AND EXEMPTIONS

Persons born in the Municipality of Venice, residents of the Municipality of Venice, minors under the age of 14 years are not required to pay the Access Fee. In case of a check, it will only be necessary to show an ID.   Holders of the European Disability Card (Disability Card) and their companion are not required to pay the Access Fee. In case of check, it will only be necessary to show the Disability Card.

Personnel belonging to the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Forces (including Fire Brigade personnel) are not required to pay the Access Fee. In case of check they can show the relevant service card.

They are not required to pay the Access Fee but must apply for exemption on the portal https://cda.ve.it, workers (employees or self-employed), even commuters, students of any grade and order of schools and universities that are based in the Ancient City or the Minor Islands, subjects and members of the families of those who have paid the IMU in the Municipality of Venice; residents in the Veneto Region, those in need of care, who participate in sports competitions, the spouse, the partner, relatives or relatives related up to the 3rd degree of residents in the areas where the Access Contribution is valid, and an additional set of exemptions provided for in the Regulation .

ph. Vladimir Korolkov CC BY-SA 4.0 Wikimedia Commons

The Municipal Administration may carry out checks, inspections and site visits through authorized personnel, in the main points of access to the City .

Fine from 50 euros to 300 euros (+10 euros of the entry fee), with the possibility of reporting under the Italian Criminal Code and special laws on the subject to anyone who makes false declarations, and falsification of documents in the cases provided for by the Regulation.

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Venice entry fee in 2024: all you need to know

In spring 2024 , the City of Venice takes a step forward to combat overtourism and move towards a more sustainable and responsible tourism . From 25 April , in fact, there will be a fee for tourist to enter Venice for a trial period that will last until July, in order to support local tourism and preserve the authenticity of the city and its inhabitants by limiting entry on the "black sticker" days of the year.

Here is all the information you need to organise your trip in the best possible way.

How much does the ticket cost and how to pay

Admission to Venice from 25 April will cost €5 per person per day. The fee is the same for everyone and there are currently no reductions. Each ticket is nominal and valid for the entire day , so if you leave the city centre to re-enter during the day you will not need a new ticket, but you will not need to buy one if you enter the city between 4pm and 8.30am.

To purchase the ticket simply go to the official website of the Municipality of Venice and follow the instructions. Once you have made the payment you will be issued with a voucher with a QR-code to take with you and show in case of controls at one of the eight access points.

Venice oentry fee: who has to pay

The dates on which you will have to purchase your ticket

For this trial period, Venice entry fee is limited only to "black-sticker" days , when the overcrowding is greatest.

Here are the days on which you need to purchase an entrance ticket:

- From April 25th to May 5th .

- The remaining weekends of May , namely 11/12, 18/19, 25/26 May.

- All the weekends in June, except the first one , and therefore: 8/9, 15/16, 22/23, 29/30 June.

- The first two weekends of July , i.e. 6/7, 13/14.

This solution implemented by the municipality of Venice is aimed at preserving the heritage and uniqueness of this city , containing daily tourism and making it more sustainable. Moreover, this measure is also intended to give residents some breathing space, allowing them to enjoy their city.

In these "black-sticker" days, the entrance ticket will make the streets and monuments more enjoyable for everyone, but the smartest way to visit Venice remains the Venice Pass , which allows you to skip the queue at the most important attractions and take advantage of discounts and concessions.

Let us all commit to safeguarding Venice's heritage!

Discover the Venice Pass ❯

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Venice implements new access fees for day-trippers: What to know about the new system

The waterfront city is popular for Piazza San Marco, canals and bridges.

Peak summer travel season is fast approaching, and some cities abroad have already implemented fees in an attempt to protect popular destinations from potential damage from increased tourism.

Bustling European cities from Barcelona to Amsterdam that get flooded with tourists, especially at historical hotspots during the high season, have used tourist taxes to help raise revenue without taxing local citizens.

Now, the city of bridges is following in the footsteps of Spain, Greece and Germany, which have all utilized a similar fee-based approach, testing a new entry fee for any visitors who come to Venice just for the day.

Earlier this year, the coastal city, known for it's lagoon, hand-blown glass and close proximity to the heart of Italy's popular Prosecco region, announced a new reservation system that would charge day trippers 5 euros to enter and enjoy Venice.

With nearly 40,000 visitors on average per day -- nearly double the city's population -- local authorities hope this move will help protect the UNESCO World Heritage Site from the influx of tourists.

Starting Thursday, travelers can download an app to pay and attain a QR code, which will be checked by inspectors to enter the city as a visitor. If someone traveling for the day in Venice is caught without the code, they may face a fine of up to 300 euros.

"It is not a revolution, but the first step of a path that regulates the access of daily visitors. An experiment that aims to improve the liveability of the city, who lives there and who works there. We will carry it forward with great humility and with the awareness that there may be problems," Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro said in a statement on X regarding the announcement.

"The margins of error are wide, but we are ready, with humility and courage, to make all the changes that will serve to improve the procedure. Venice is the first city in the world to implement this path, which can be an example for other fragile and delicate cities that must be safeguarded," he continued.

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Simone Venturini, Venice city councilor for tourism, told ABC News that the smart control center is within the most important part of the city -- Piazza San Marco, or St. Mark's Square.

"Authorities will use the new QR codes, plus cell phone data and the roughly 700 cameras around Venice to track and potentially regulate visitors," he explained. "We are switching to action after 60 years of only debate... our ultimate goal is to find a new balance between the needs of the residents and the needs of tourists."

Venturini told ABC News local officials had "a lot of discussion" with leaders in other cities who have worked to combat overtourism, including Amsterdam, Barcelona and Kyoto.

"We are talking together just to find the solution," he said.

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Venice launches its experimental entry fee today. Here's what visitors need to know

Apr 25, 2024 • 5 min read

A tourist shows a card with the days the Venice Access Fee is implemented highlighted in red © Christoph Sator/picture alliance/Getty Images

Today marks a big change for Venice as it officially rolls out an entry fee for day trippers. This long-anticipated measure aims to ease the heavy toll of overtourism that the UNESCO-listed city has struggled with for years.

Alongside cities like Barcelona and Amsterdam, Venice has become synonymous with the challenges of overtourism. With a staggering 30 million visitors in 2019,  many of whom stayed for just one day , Venice is desperate to protect its fragile infrastructure and historic charm with the new so-called Venice Access Fee. 

Local officials, including Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, have championed the fee as a "first-of-its-kind" experiment intended to make Venice more livable. However, not everyone's on board. The policy has sparked controversy, with protests from local committees and activists throughout the city on Thursday. Matteo Secchi from the residents group Venessia.com  argues that this fee might turn Venice into a "theme park," stripping away its authenticity and offering little real benefit to the locals.

Speaking to the Guardian today, Secchi said: “You can’t impose an entrance fee to a city; all they’re doing is transforming it into a theme park. This is a bad image for Venice." 

UNESCO has previously expressed serious concerns about irreversible damage and ongoing deterioration in Venice due to human activities, climate change, and mass tourism. The organization has criticized Italy for not making significant progress in addressing these complex issues.

The entry fee is part of Venice's broader strategy to manage tourist numbers and protect its heritage more effectively. Here’s what you need to know about this new tourist fee and other initiatives the city is implementing to control its visitor numbers.

What is the Venice Access Fee in 2024?

It costs €5 and must be paid by day trippers over 14 years old. 

The fee is known as the Venice Access Fee, and according to Simone Venturini , the local councilor responsible for tourism, around 10,000 tickets had been sold by the time the scheme began at 8:30 am on Thursday.

On what days do I have to pay the Venice Access Fee?

Day trippers will need to pay an entry fee on 29 peak days in 2024. This is during the first peak tourism period of 2024 (April 25 to May 5), each weekend in May and June, plus the first two weekends of July.

The Venice Access Fee will only apply during peak hours from 8:30am to 4pm. Those arriving later for dinner or a concert won't have to pay.

One of Venice's most iconic landmarks opens to visitors for the first time in 500 years

Who has to pay to enter Venice?

All day-trippers over the age of 14 must pay the fee. Those staying overnight in Venice accommodation will not have to pay but will still need to register to visit Venice via a new online booking platform .

Residents of Venice and the wider Veneto region (and their relatives) will not have to pay an entry fee. People with disabilities, students enrolled to study in the city, and those visiting the city for the day for health reasons or a sporting event or concert are also exempt.

How do I pay the Venice Access Fee?

Day trippers can pay the fee through the  online booking platform . Upon booking, visitors will receive a QR code that they can then scan at electric turnstiles located at Venice's main access points, including the main train station, to gain access to the city. Officials say they will also check people's QR codes at random.

Authorities say this new system will allow them to understand better how many people will be coming and going and prepare accordingly. They hope to apply more resources in areas like waste management and traffic control on busy days.

Venice's other measures to manage overtourism

The entrance fee is another cog in an ambitious and heavily monitored system that tracks the comings and goings of people in Venice. In 2022, the council installed a network of cameras, sensors, and mobile phone data in the city to keep track of visitor numbers and information.

This tracking system aims to identify areas where crowds gather and temporarily restrict access until the congestion eases, diverting people elsewhere to avoid blocking pedestrian traffic. Officials say the tracking system gives them a clearer picture of the number of people passing through and allows them to predict when specific areas will get busy. They insist it's done with “absolute respect for privacy.”

Furthermore, in response to UNESCO's warnings about the damage caused by cruise ships, Venice officially banned such ships from the historic city center last April. Instead, large ships are now redirected to alternative ports like Fusina and Lombardia, alleviating the pressure on Venice's infrastructure.   

Is Venice restricting tourists?

No, the Venice City Council has previously said that they won't limit the number of visitors. Instead, they plan to raise the entry fee on days when visitor numbers reach a certain threshold. However, they have never revealed any details of what that threshold number is.

Are there any rules in Venice?

Yes. Venice has implemented various rules designed to maintain its cleanliness and heritage. These are enforced by the Venice City Council Municipal Police. Violators face penalties ranging from a €25 to €500 fine or, in some cases, a ban from the city. These rules include the following:

- Do not consume food or drink on St Mark's Square, unless at a bar or restaurant.

- Always walk on the right.

- Do not stop on any bridges.

- Bicycles are banned (even if pushed by hand).

- Only book tours with qualified tourist guides .

- Never buy goods from illegal vendors.

- Picnics are only allowed in public gardens on this map .

- Do not walk around in swimwear.

- Swimming and divining are both banned.

- Do not litter or do graffiti.

- Love locks (and all other types of padlocks) are prohibited.

- Do not feed the pigeons.

This article was first published July 2020 and updated about 6 hours ago

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Venice entry fee launches: Day-trippers now have to pay to visit the Italian city at peak times

Venice has rolled out a tourism tax to try to stop overcowding on peak weekends.

Last November, Venice authorities unveiled a pilot program for their long-mooted plan to charge day-trippers to visit the city. 

Today (25 April) the pilot programme has finally come into force.

Signs advising arriving visitors of the new €5 fee for a test phase of 29 days through July have been erected outside the main train station and other points of arrival.

Some 200 stewards have been trained to politely walk anyone unaware of the fee through the process of downloading a QR code. A kiosk has been set up for those not equipped with a smartphone. Once past designated entry ports, officials will carry out random checks for QR codes that show the day-tripper tax has been paid or that the bearer is exempt.

Transgressors face fines of between €50 and €300. The requirement applies only for people arriving between 8.30 am and 4 pm. Outside of those hours, access is free.

Tourists can book tickets and get their QR code via the  online payment platform , which went live on 16 January. 

The entry fee aims to reduce crowds, encourage longer visits and improve quality of life for residents. 

Here's everything you need to know about what you have to pay and why. 

Why is Venice introducing a tourist tax?

The rollout of the tourist tax comes after Venice narrowly escaped being placed on UNESCO's danger list last year because of the damage from overtourism on its delicate ecosystem. 

Member states cited the proposed new entry fee in deciding to spare Venice from the list.

Venice mayor Luigi Brugnaro said that the fee is not an attempt to bring in extra revenue. Rather, it is a 'first-of-its-kind experiment' to regulate tourist flows in one of the world’s most-visited places . 

The aim of the charge is to incentivise visitors to avoid high-traffic periods and come on other days.

“Our attempt is to make a more liveable city,” he said at a news conference outlining the pilot program.

The city is strained when the number of day-trippers reaches 30,000 to 40,000, according to the city’s top tourism official, Simone Venturini. Its narrow alleyways are clogged with people and water taxis packed, making it difficult for residents to go about their business.

“We need to find a new balance between the tourists and residents,’’ he said. “We need to safeguard the spaces of the residents, of course, and we need to discourage the arrival of day-trippers on some particular days.”

• Exclusive: Venice u-turns on overtourism tax this summer despite record visitor numbers
• We’ve travelled too cheap for too long: Are tourism taxes a good idea?

When will visitors have to pay to visit Venice?

Starting on 25 April 2024, visitors will have to pay a fee of €5 to enter the fragile lagoon city. 

The charge will be in place on peak weekends and other days between April and mid-July - 29 days in total.

The day-tripper fee will be in force during peak hours from 8.30 am until 4 pm, meaning visitors who come into Venice for dinner or a concert won’t have to pay.

Who has to book a ticket to visit Venice?

A host of exemptions apply to the entry fee system. 

Those who don't have to pay the day-tripper  tourist tax include residents, Venetian-born visitors, students and workers, as well as tourists who have hotel or other lodging reservations.

How can I book my ticket for Venice?

Visitors can 'reserve' their day in Venice on a dedicated platform . 

Day trippers pay €5 and get a QR code that will then be checked at spot controls at seven access points around the city, including at the main train station.

Visitors with hotel reservations enter their hotel information and also get a QR code to show. They don't have to pay, however, since their hotel bill will already include a Venice lodging fee.

How is Venice making tourism more sustainable?

After COVID-19 lockdowns devastated its tourism industry, Venice has been trying to rethink its relationship with visitors in a more sustainable way while also seeking to incentivise its residents to stay put.

The city has been forced to take action in response to the steady exodus of Venetians to the mainland. 

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• New tourist tax and higher transport costs: How Japan is planning to combat overtourism

After pressure from UNESCO and environmentalists, authorities have finally banned big cruise ships from sailing past St Mark’s Square and through the Giudecca canal.

Venice has been pointing to longer-term tourists as key to its survival since they tend to spend more. 

Brugnaro said in no way does the new day-tripper contribution discourage tourism overall, but just seeks to manage it better. 

He acknowledged the visitor program will probably have glitches and will need to be amended. But he said that after years of study and talk, it was time to roll it out.

Not all residents , however, are persuaded of the efficacy of the new system in dissuading mass tourism, and say more attention needs to be paid to boosting the resident population and services they need.

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Home » Blog » Italy Travel Guides » Venice Entry Fee 2024 – Everything You Need to Know

Venice Entry Fee 2024 – Everything You Need to Know

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On 25 April 2024, Venice’s Access Fee will come into force. It will impact every visitor who goes to Venice on specific dates in 2024 (even if you’re staying overnight in the city). In this guide, I’ll share everything you need to know about the fee, including the dates impacted, how to pay the fee, and how to apply for an exemption if you’re staying in the city.

Table of Contents

What is the Venice Access Fee?

The Venice Access Fee is a €5 entrance fee for visiting Venice on a day trip (around $5.50). However, even visitors staying overnight in Venice will have to apply for an exemption before arrival. The program aims to reduce the impact of over-tourism in the city. The funds will be used towards maintaining the city.

Related: Things To Do In Venice | Where To Stay In Venice | Venice Day Trips | To Venice from the Airport

Dates in 2024 when the fee applies

In 2024, the Venice entry fee will be trialed on 29 specific dates during peak season between April and July. Those dates are:

With the exception of a few holidays and events, the dates cover weekends (Saturdays and Sundays). The Access Fee only applies during peak hours – it doesn’t apply if you’re visiting between 4 PM and 8:30 AM, i.e. for an evening visit. These dates are fixed for the 2024 trial period and no more dates will be added.

Related: Italy National Holidays & Events

Day Trippers – How to pay the fee

If you visit Venice on the dates above and are not staying overnight in accommodation in Venice, you have to pay the Access Fee. The charge is €5 per person for anyone over the age of 14.

The official website for paying the fee is Venice Access Fee by Commune di Venezia . The website is in English and it is very easy to use. Simply, select your travel date, add your personal details, and then make payment. You may add multiple people to the same booking, and you can pay by credit card or PayPal.

Once you’ve paid, you’ll be sent a QR code. I suggest taking a screenshot of this in case you don’t have data service in Venice when you arrive and your code doesn’t load in your messages.

There will almost certainly be unofficial websites pop up that charge a service fee for completing the form for you. It’s not necessary. Just go directly to the official site.

Download an eSIM with Airalo if you need cheap data while you travel in Italy.

Everyone else staying in Venice must apply for an exemption

Even if you are visiting Venice and staying in the city overnight in a hotel or paid accommodation, you still need to fill in the Access Fee form, to apply for exemption. Yes, it seems like unnecessary admin that is likely to catch people out, but that’s the rule.

Related: 10 Things NOT To Do In Venice (And 10 To Do Instead)

How to apply for an exemption

You can fill in the exemption form on the same official website – Venice Access Fee .

As a tourist click on ‘go to exemptions’ and then choose ‘I am a guest of an accommodation facility located in the municipality of Venice’ (see image above). Click ‘request exemption’.

The next page includes a lot of technical legal wording. “Subjects staying in the accommodation facilities of the Municipality of Venice located within the municipal territory and providing temporary paid accommodation for any reason, insofar as they are subject to the tourist tax. The exemption is granted from the day of arrival to the day of departure at the accommodation facility. The exemption must be requested for each staying subject.”

That just means you’re staying in paid accommodation overnight. The next pages request personal information including details about your stay.

Frustratingly, applying for an exemption wasn’t as easy as applying to pay the fee. The system is very new and needs a few improvements, which I hope will happen in time. These are the things I found a bit difficult:

• Hotel Name: it was hard to input my hotel name. The system is set up to auto-complete your hotel name as you type but my hotel (a well-known NH brand hotel) wasn’t in the system. There is an option to input your hotel manually, which was tricky but eventually, I got it to work. Be patient with your taps and clicks.
• Privacy Policy: you have to actively click on the Privacy Policy to open the policy in a new page before you can check the ‘accept’ box. It took me a while to figure this out. Clicking on the policy doesn’t interrupt your application, it opens in a new window.
• Date of Birth: adding your date of birth is a chore. Using the calendar, you have to click back every month (you can’t jump through the years). That’s a lot of clicks at my age! You can ‘fudge’ this by inputting the date manually. They don’t want you to do this. In fact, they say “Dates must be entered via calendar and not manually”. But it is possible. Dear American friends, remember that Europe uses the format DAY/MONTH/YEAR. So, 07/04/76 is 7 April 1976, not 4 July 1976. I suspect your details might be checked against your passport, so it’s important to get this right.
• Confirmation by phone: you have to dial a toll-free number to confirm your exemption. You don’t speak to anyone, it’s just a confirmation call but a little unusual.

What’s good – you can fill in the form for your entire family/group. Just add your guest names to the form. You receive a QR code to prove your exemption. Again, take a screenshot in case it doesn’t load while you’re offline.

There are several other categories of exemption for residents, students, workers, and relatives. See the website for details.

Exemption – Santa Lucia Train Station and Piazzale Roma

If you only enter Venice to use Santa Lucia, the main train station, you do not have to pay the Access Fee or fill in the exemption form. You are also allowed to travel from Piazzale Roma to the station provided you take the ‘shortest route’ i.e. no sneaky sightseeing en route.

This is good news if you’re taking a Prosecco tour with us and simply want to drop off a car rental or catch the airport bus to Piazzale Roma, then take the train to the Prosecco region from Santa Lucia train station.

Did you know Italy’s Prosecco wine region is only 1hr from Venice? Find out more about the Prosecco Region and check out our Prosecco Wine Tours here .

Exemption – Stazione Marittima and Tronchetto Cruise Ports

You do not need to pay the Access Fee or apply for an exemption if you arrive in Stazione Marittima or Tronchetto Cruise Ports and don’t go into the Old City.

Where does the fee apply – Venice Old City

Technically, Venice is a city that expands over 126 islands . However, the Access Fee only applies to the main Venice island, which the official website also refers to as Venice City, the Municipality of Venice, and Venice Old City.

Visiting most of the minor islands is exempt from the fee (more below). The Access Fee applies to the Old City as well as the two nearest islands of San Michele and Giudecca . I’ve created a map to help, circling where the Access Fee applies.

Related: Map of the Venice & The Prosecco Region

Visiting the minor island

During the trial period in 2024, the Access Fee only applies to the Municipality of Venice i.e. the Old City. You do not need to pay the Access Fee or apply for an exemption if you are only visiting the minor islands e.g. Murano, Burano, Torcello, and Lido. For the purpose of the fee, the full list of minor islands is:

What happens if I don’t pay or get an exemption

Italy is notorious for issuing fines if you don’t follow the rules. The fine for not paying is quoted as €50 to €300 plus a €10 Access Fee charge.

What happens from 2025 onwards?

What about next year? The idea is that the fee will become permanent after the trial in 2024. But, it is a trial so things might change. I’ll keep this page updated as new information arrives.

Venice Tourist Tax vs Venice Access Fee

Venice Tourist Tax: Venice’s tourist tax (also known as the City Tax) has been in place for a long time and is charged when you book accommodation in the city. The tax is between €1 to €5 per person per night depending on the time of year and type of accommodation you stay in. Most often, it’s included in the price of your hotel booking – check the details and you’ll see it listed. Sometimes, in smaller hotels, you might be asked to pay this tax when you arrive, sometimes in cash. This system hasn’t changed. You do not need to do anything new to pay the tourist tax – just make your hotel booking as normal.

Venice Access Fee: The Venice Access Fee by comparison is for people who visit Venice but don’t stay overnight. It’s a new fee that applies from 25 April 2024. You have to pay the Venice Access Fee in advance before you visit.

Do you have to pay for children? You do not need to pay the Access Fee for children under 14 but you may need to prove their age if requested (e.g. show their passport or other official ID).

Do I have to pay if I’m visiting the minor islands? During the trial period, you do not need to pay the Access Fee if you are only visiting the minor islands e.g. Murano, Burano, Torcello, and Lido. Giudecca is considered part of Venice and the fee does apply. More details above.

Can I transfer, cancel or change my QR Code ? Your QR code is in your name so it cannot be transferred. You also can’t change the date on the QR code. However, you can cancel up to 11:59 PM on the day before your visit. You will get a full refund.

Can I pay on arrival – the city is in the process of putting payment terminals at Piazzale Roma and Santa Lucia Train station for people who don’t have internet access or the ability to pay online in advance. These are for exceptional cases and are not intended to be used as a last-minute option if you simply forget to pay in advance.

More Details – Official Access Fee Website

You can find a full list of questions and answers on the Access Fee FAQs page.

So, that’s everything you need to know about the Venice Access Fee. Leave a comment below if you have any questions.

3 thoughts on “Venice Entry Fee 2024 – Everything You Need to Know”

Do you know if they will likely add more dates for 2024? We will be there for 3 nights in September and just do not want to get “caught” not knowing they have added dates. Grazie

Hi Denise, these dates are fixed for 2024 and no more will be added. Venice is just trialing the fee this year and wants to test it over peak season, in summer and mostly over weekends. Your September trip will be fine! All that said, if there are any unexpected changes, I’ll send a message out via our newsletter and on Facebook. Have an amazing trip!

This was very helpful, thank you! The exemption form for overnight stays was very easy to fill out and confirm.

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Venice Unveils Exact Dates in 2024 When It Will Charge Tourist Entry Fee

The venice city council just released a 2024 schedule of dates during which day-trippers will need to pay to enter the city. here’s the full list of dates and what it will cost..

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It’s about to cost a little more to head to Venice for the day.

Courtesy of Vidar Nordli/Unsplash

Whether arriving by boat, bus, car, train, or plane, Venice, Italy’s famed floating city, has always required a little bit of extra effort to visit—and starting in spring 2024, it’s going to require a little bit of extra cash.

This past fall, Venice’s city council approved the introduction of a 5-euro (US$5.45 based on current conversion rates) entry ticket for day visitors into the city. And on November 23, the city revealed the exact 29 days during 2024 when day visitors will have to purchase a ticket for entry if they want to step foot on La Serenissima .

Venice’s 2024 entry fee schedule

• April 25–30
• May 1–5, 11–12, 18–19, 25–26
• June 8–9, 15–16, 22–23, 29–30
• July 6–7, 13–14

On those dates, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., the 5-euro entry fee will be charged to every person over the age of 14 entering the ancient city of Venice, with the exception of residents, property owners, students attending universities in the city, and employees who work in Venice. Hotel guests, who already pay a per-night tourist tax, will also be exempt. However, they will still need to register in advance online or get a QR code from the hotel.

In order to pay the fee, day visitors will need to log on at http://cda.ve.it , where they will be able to obtain a QR code that can be shown to the authorities “in the event of checks,” according to the latest update from the city council. The QR code “certifies payment of the contribution or the condition of exclusion/exemption and must always be kept with you,” the city stated.

An attempt to curb overtourism

“We need to show to the world that, for the first time, something is being done for Venice,” said city mayor Luigi Brugnaro during the September 12 council meeting . In this case, “something” means a ticketed pilot program to gauge the effects and logistics of an entry ticket in the hopes that it could potentially ameliorate Venice’s storied issues with overtourism .

Approval of the entry ticket follows more than two years of talk, debate, and postponing, and a UNESCO recommendation to add Venice to the List of World Heritage in Danger. On September 14, UNESCO voted to spare Venice from the so-called endangered list, which includes approximately 55 locations that face threats such as war, natural disasters, climate change and/or unchecked tourism. Though it was once again spared, it’s not the first time Venice has seen its UNESCO protected status threatened.

Venice has experienced a steady rise in visitors since the turn of the 21st century, with 2019 shattering records and 2023 looking to potentially top 2019 numbers. In 2019, nearly 13 million people visited the historic city, according to the City of Venice and Italy’s National Statistics Institute (ISTAT), drastically overshadowing the city’s 49,665 residents. To be honest, that’s not news—Venice has been overrun by tourists going back decades now. And in 2021, and after a very vocal protest from residents, environmentalists, and Venice lovers, the Italian government banned large cruise ships from Venice’s historic center . But this doesn’t mean the city no longer sees crowds pile up during the daytime. It still does.

Cramped calle (streets) and long lines to enter St. Mark’s Basilica and the Doge’s Palace have become signatures of the Venice experience. During high season, which stretches from March through October, mornings at Stazione Santa Lucia, Venice’s train station, can feel like Grand Central at rush hour or the final minutes before a Harry Styles concert, as visitors rush out to the Rialto and San Marco in a tight single file march.

“Venice is so much more: its artisans, its food, its museums, its art, its music, its boats, and endless other marvelous things,” says Monica Cesarato , Venice culinary guide. “I truly believe that the way to reduce the number of tourists is by educating people, not by taxing them.”

Added Cesarato, “Nowadays people come to Venice only to take a selfie and add a tick to their bucket list. We need to educate people by using the tools we have, like social media, to research the city before coming. Once people realize how much can be done in Venice and that one or two days are not enough to discover all the incredible things that can be experienced here, then people will want to stay more and the number of day-trippers will go down.”

When the entry fee goes into effect next year, it clearly won’t be the end-all solution to years-long buildup of residents’ frustrations. And it has also already opened the door to questions such as whether or not there will be a limit in the number of reservations per day (the city council says there won’t be) and to concerns about whether or not it will actually curb the crowds, potentially create bottlenecks, or worse, turn the city into a theme park of sorts.

“We [are] . . . aware of the urgency of finding a new balance between the rights of those who live, study, or work in Venice and those who visit the city,” deputy mayor Simone Venturini said in an email. “This is why, at certain times and on certain days, innovative flow management is required, capable of putting a brake on day-to-day tourism.”

This story was originally published in September 2023, and was updated on December 1, 2023, to include current information.

Venice launches world first tourist entrance fee in bid to fight overcrowding

VENICE, Italy — Ancient and beautiful, this city is sometimes referred to as an open air museum — and now visitors to Venice will have to pay an entry fee after the tourist hub on Thursday became the first in the world to introduce a charging system for day-trippers.

In a bid to thin out the crowds that throng to see the canals, bridges and striking architecture during vacation season, day-trippers will have to pay 5-euro ($5.35) to enter the lagoon city on 29 peak days, mostly weekends, as part of a trial phase until July 14. 

Tourists who have booked at least one night at a hotel in the city will be exempt from the charge, as will residents, workers and students in the city. Visitors under the age of 14 will also be exempt. But like the day-trippers they will also have to ensure they have registered online and received a QR code.  

Those without smartphones will have to go to the city’s Santa Lucia train station to buy a ticket. 

Among the thousands of people lining up at the station for a ticket Thursday was Donna Porter-Mutchler, a tourist from Tennessee, who told NBC News she thought the charge was “a wonderful idea.”  

“Venice deserves to be taken care of,” said Mutchler. “I think it’s more than worth it. I come here often and I’ll pay every time.” 

While there will be no limits on the number of people who can register, officials are hoping the fee will put people off on days that it applies. 

“We are not looking to collect money, tax people or introduce a police state,” Simone Venturini, Venice’s tourism councilor, told NBC News. “We are being democratic about it, but the important message is: ‘please, if you are a day-tripper, choose another day.’”

While there are no turnstiles at the city’s entrance points to make sure people have a pass, inspectors will be making random checks and issuing fines of between 50 and 300 euros to anyone who has failed to register.

Prominent signs across the city and a TV and newspaper advertising campaign has been launched in Italy and some other countries to let people know about it. And with the help of artificial intelligence , Venice’s Mayor Luigi Brugnaro has also recorded a video message in several languages to inform tourists about the charge.  

Officials in the city estimate an average of about 50,000 people a day visit Venice, an influx which almost matches the resident population of the city, some of whom are unhappy about the new charge.  

“Venice has turned into Disneyland, where tourists are catered more than residents, and charging $5 is not going to stop anyone,” Federica Toninello of the Social Assembly for Housing and the Solidarity Network for Housing in Venice, said Thursday. “It’s just propaganda.”

Others like tourist guide Luisella Romeo, said they were concerned about the use of personal data collected by the new system. “That’s an invasion of privacy. Those details will remain in the system for five years, and could be given to third parties, public and private,” she said. 

But officials in the city, which narrowly escaped being placed on UNESCO’s “World Heritage in Danger” list last year, in part because the United Nations body decided that it was not addressing concerns that its delicate ecosystem risked being overwhelmed by mass tourism, have insisted that something needed to be done. 

Three years ago, large cruise ships were banned from sailing into the Venetian lagoon and the city has also announced limits on the size of tourist groups.

While the charge in Venice is still in its experimental stage, other popular Italian tourism destinations like Lake Como, which has struggled with overcrowding for years, are watching closely.

Only time will tell if it ends up dead in the water.  

Claudio Lavanga is Rome-based foreign correspondent for NBC News.

Venice entry fees: How much does it cost and how does it work?

V enice has become the first city in the world to charge admission for daytrippers – it is now a city of culture, cuisine and charges.

Starting on Thursday 25 April 2024, visitors to the historic heart of Venice have had to pay €5 (£4.30) to access the city between 8.30am and 4pm on key days in spring and summer. It is effectively a congestion charge for tourists.

A leading city transport and tourism official, Arianna Fracasso, told The Independent the scheme is aiming “to safeguard the city from overtourism ”.

Around 30 million tourists visit Venice in a typical year – with about seven out of 10 (or 21 million) staying only for the day. Just before the Covid pandemic, Unesco warned the city’s “status as a World Heritage property is in jeopardy”.

While tourists who stay overnight in Venice hotels are exempt from the fee, they must still register online and obtain a code that allows them to pass checkpoints and spot-checks by officials.

Ms Fracasso said: “It’s like a museum in the open air, so we want to safeguard it.”

During 2024, charges apply for 29 days. The first is Italy ’s Liberation Day, commemorating the struggle of the Italian resistance movement against fascism during the Second World War.

The charge applies for the following 10 days, up to and including Sunday 5 May.

Visits on the seven subsequent weekends, up to and including Sunday 14 July, will also be subject to the fee. But from mid-July onwards, the charge will be lifted.

“It’s an experimental thing just for this year,” Ms Fracasso said. “Next year, maybe it will be changed.”

Unesco warns that “Venice’s ‘Outstanding Universal Value’, the hallmark of every World Heritage property” is in peril.

Cruise ships were banned from docking in the historic centre of Venice in 2021 in response to a request from the UN body that seeks to protect cultural heritage.

But Unesco remains concerned about “overtourism, the potential negative effects of new developments [and] the lack of an integrated management system”.

How does the system work?

Any visitor who wishes to be in the historic heart of Venice – anywhere in the city apart from the Piazzale Roma transport access area and the offshore islands – between 8.30am and 4pm on the prescribed dates must register online, in advance, at cda.ve.it/en.

You will need a QR code on your smartphone or printed out to be allowed inside the ancient city.

If you simply want to pay the fee, clicking on “Pay the access fee” will take you through a fairly straightforward process. One tricky aspect is that you have to pretend you have read the privacy policy (all in Italian) by clicking on it before you can enable a checkbox.

Can’t I just pay with contactless or even a €5 note on the day?

Yes. The hope is that most tourists will apply online. But visitors who arrive at the main access point, Santa Lucia station, can pay with cash at a kiosk. Those who are caught without a permit risk a fine of up to €500 (£430).

No actual barriers are installed, but outside Santa Lucia station there are separate channels for locals and workers, tourists and people leaving the city.

How can I dodge the fee?

• Be under 14 (with proof if you look as though you might be older).
• If you live in, or were born in, the Municipality of Venice you can gain exemption simply by presenting a document certifying it.
• Be a holder of the European Disability Card or their accompanying caregiver.
• Stay overnight. Guests in hotels anywhere in the Municipality of Venice – which includes the islands and the mainland hinterland around Mestre – are entitled to exemption including the day you check in and the day you check out. This requires you to click on “I am a guest in an accommodation facility located in the Municipality of Venice”. You fill in the usual personal details. Then you have less than a minute to make a call from the registered smartphone to an Italian number. It is said that this does not go through nor results in any charge.

Note that guests in Venice hotels must pay an accommodation tax, usually included in the final bill.

What happens to the cash collected?

The pilot scheme as currently designed is not intended to make money, but to cover costs and to discern whether or not there is a deterrent effect on tourism.

The maximum fee allowed under the law is €10 (£8.60).

Is an access fee going to catch on elsewhere?

The unique geography of Venice, comprising an archipelago accessible only by bridge or water, makes it one of the few cities where levying a charge is feasible. But other cities with concerns about overtourism, including Amsterdam, Barcelona and Dubrovnik, will be watching developments closely.

The Independent is the world’s most free-thinking news brand, providing global news, commentary and analysis for the independently-minded. We have grown a huge, global readership of independently minded individuals, who value our trusted voice and commitment to positive change. Our mission, making change happen, has never been as important as it is today.

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Visiting Venice? Make a Reservation and Be Ready to Pay.

City officials are introducing a new fee to visit Venice and its islands, a move, they hope, will limit tourists.

By Elisabetta Povoledo

ROME — Traveling to Venice? Get ready to pay for the privilege of visiting the city, one of the most beautiful on earth. Oh, and be sure to reserve your spot.

Beginning in January 2023, visitors must make a reservation through a new digital system and many will have to pay a daily fee — from 3 to 10 euros depending on how crowded Venice is at the time — as part of a plan to better control the masses of tourists that can overwhelm the fragile city.

The system will allow city officials to know ahead of time how many visitors they can expect on any particular day, and can then deploy staff and services accordingly. Those making early reservations will be charged at lower rates.

The reservation system and entry fee is part of a “revolution” when it comes to visiting Venice and its islands, Simone Venturini, the city councilor in charge of tourism and economic development, told reporters on Friday. He said it aims to balance “the needs of residents, the needs of tourists who sleep in the city and those of the day-trippers, whose rhythms are different.”

Before the pandemic curbed tourism, hordes of day visitors and cruise ship passengers had transformed Venice into a prime example of “ over-tourism ,” its narrow streets so crowded that on some days the police instituted one-way flows. Annual estimates for the numbers of tourists fluctuate wildly, with some as high as 30 million and others at a more modest 12 million.

In a city with a population of just over 50,000, those numbers were overwhelming at times.

Just about everyone visiting the city will have to register their presence, but not everyone will have to pay a fee, including children under 6, guests of Venetian residents and visiting relatives of people held in city jails. The city’s residents, people who work in Venice, students enrolled in city schools and property owners (as long as they’ve paid their taxes) are among those who won’t have to register or pay at all.

But even those who are exempt will have to show proof that they have a right to be in the city. Officials said the verification could come by way of a QR code that reveals whether someone deserves an exemption.

Tourists sleeping in the city won’t pay the daily fee directly because a fee is already tacked onto their hotel stay.

People will be stopped on the streets to make sure that they’ve paid up or have a right to an exemption. Ten to 15 “controllers” will be deployed daily to enforce the rules, said Michele Zuin, the city councilor responsible for the budget and taxes

“Naturally, their attitude won’t be that of a police state — they will be cordial, polite,” Mr. Zuin said. “But there will be controls, just as there will be sanctions for those caught without having made the payment.”

Violators will face hefty fines, ranging from €50 to €300, plus the €10 entry fee. And if someone is found to have lied — claiming, say, that they were visiting a resident in order to avoid a fee — they could face criminal penalties, Mr. Venturini said.

City officials are still fine-tuning some details, like daily pricing and the daily cap on the number of people. They hope that higher costs during high season will encourage people to come at slower times. “But the city of Venice will remain open,” Mr. Zuin said.

The city’s costs for implementing and managing the system are expected to be considerable, so the city doesn’t foresee that the fees will do much more than recover its investment. Should anything be left over, it would be used to offset taxes and service fees for residents.

Mr. Venturini said the new reservation system complements a monitoring system that the Venice City Council introduced last year to track people via phone location data, a system some critics have likened to Big Brother .

Mr. Venturini claimed Venice would be the first city in the world to use such a complex monitoring system. Bumps in the road could be expected, he said.

“It would be foolish, ambitious, arrogant to think that everything will work perfectly, with a snap of our fingers,” he said. “It won’t” he added. “It will be a course that can certainly be improved and we will work constantly.”

A picture caption with an earlier version of this article misidentified the canal and bridge in the photograph. It is a view onto a side canal, not a view from the Rialto Bridge onto the Grand Canal.

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Elisabetta Povoledo has been writing about Italy for nearly three decades, and has been working for The Times and its affiliates since 1992. More about Elisabetta Povoledo

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Travel | venice tests a 5-euro entry fee for day-trippers as the city grapples with overtourism.

Tourists arrive outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Tourist information boards are seen outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Porters wait for tourists outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Workers prepare the tourist tax cashier desks outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Tourists arrive at the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Marco Bettini, director of Venis Informatics System, gestures as he explains the Venice density to reporters at the police Venice control room in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Workers prepare banner explaining how to pay the tourist tax in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Venice councillor Simone Venturini speaks with reporters in front of a tourist tax totem in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Marco Bettini, director of Venis Informatics System, gestures as he talks to reporters at the police Venice control room, in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

People stand in front of an information board explaining how to pay the tourist tax in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Tourists ride on a ferry boat in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Tourists take pictures at the St. Mark square in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

VENICE, Italy (AP) — Under the gaze of the world’s media, the fragile lagoon city of Venice launched a pilot program Thursday to charge day-trippers a 5-euro (around $5.35) entry fee that authorities hope will discourage visitors from arriving on peak days and make the city more livable for its dwindling residents.

Visitors arriving at Venice’s main train station were greeted with large signs listing the 29 dates through July of the plan’s test phase that also designated separate entrances for tourists, and residents, students and workers.

“We need to find a new balance between the tourists and residents,’’ said Simone Venturini, the city’s top tourism official. “We need to safeguard the spaces of the residents, of course, and we need to discourage the arrival of day-trippers on some particular days.”

Not all residents, however, are persuaded of the efficacy of the new system in dissuading mass tourism , insisting that only a resurgence in the population will restore balance to a city where narrow alleyways and water buses are often clogged with tourists.

Hundreds of Venetians protested against the program, marching festively though the city’s main bus terminal behind banners reading “No to Tickets, Yes to Services and Housing.” Protesters scuffled briefly with police with riot gear who blocked them from entering the city, before changing course and entering over another bridge escorted by plainclothes police. The demonstration wrapped up peacefully in a piazza.

Tourists arriving at the main station encountered almost as many journalists as stewards on hand to politely guide anyone unaware of the new requirements through the process of downloading the QR code to pay the fee.

Arianna Cecilia, a tourist from Rome visiting Venice for the first time, said she thought it was “strange” to have to pay to enter a city in her native country, and be funneled through separate entrance ways for tourists. She and her boyfriend were staying in nearby Treviso, and so downloaded the QR code as required, but she was still caught off-guard while soaking in her first view ever of Venice’s canals by the sight of the entrance signs and her boyfriend telling her to get out the ticket.

On the other side of the entrance ways, workers in yellow vests carried out random checks at the train station. Transgressors face fines of 50 to 300 euros ($53 to $320), but officials said “common sense” was being applied for the launch.

The requirement applies only for people arriving between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Outside of those hours, access is free and unchecked.

Venice has long suffered under the pressure of overtourism, and officials hope that the pilot project can help provide more exact figures to better manage the phenomenon.

The city can track the number of hotel visitors, which last year numbered 4.6 million and is down 16% from pre-pandemic highs. But the number of day visitors, which make up the majority of the crowds in Venice, could only be estimated until recently.

A Smart Control Room set up during the pandemic has been tracking arrivals from cellphone data, roughly confirming pre-pandemic estimates of 25 million to 30 million arrivals a year, said Michele Zuin, the city’s top economic official. That includes both day-trippers and overnight guests.

But Zuin said the data is incomplete.

“It’s clear we will get more reliable data from the contribution” being paid by day-trippers, he said.

Venturini said the city is strained when the number of day-trippers reaches 30,000 to 40,000. On peak days, local police set up one-way traffic for pedestrians to keep the crowds moving.

Residents opposing the day-tripper tax insist that the solution to Venice’s woes are to boost the resident population and the services they need, limiting short-term rentals to make available more housing and attract families back from the mainland.

Last year, Venice passed a telling milestone when the number of tourist beds exceeded for the first time the number of official residents, which is now below 50,000 in the historic center with its picturesque canals.

“Putting a ticket to enter a city will not decrease not even by one single unit the number of visitors that are coming,’’ said Tommaso Cacciari, an activist who organized a protest Thursday against the measure.

“You pay a ticket to take the metro, to go to a museum, an amusement park. You don’t pay a ticket to enter a city. This is the last symbolic step of a project of an idea of this municipal administration to kick residents out of Venice,” he said.

Venice officials expected paid day-tripper arrivals Thursday to reach about 10,000. More than 70,000 others had downloaded a QR code denoting an exemption, including to work in Venice or as a resident of the Veneto region. Hotels in Venice, including in mainland districts like Marghera or Mestre, should provide a QR code attesting to their stay, which includes a hotel tax.

Venturini, the tourist official, said that interest in Venice’s pilot program has been keen from other places suffering from mass tourism, including other Italian art cities, and municipalities abroad such as Barcelona, Spain, and Amsterdam.

But Marina Rodino, who has lived in Venice for 30 years, doesn’t see the fee as the cure-all. Neighboring apartments in her residential building near the famed Rialto Bridge once inhabited by families are now short-term apartment rentals.

The corner butcher shop closed. Yet she noted that the new entrance fee requirement will still allow young people to flood the city in the evening for the traditional aperitivo, which can grow rowdy.

She was passing out mock European Union passports for “Venice, Open City,” underlining the irony of the new system, and challenging its legal standing with citations from the Italian Constitution guaranteeing its citizens the right to “move or reside freely in any part of the national territory.”

“This is not a natural oasis. This is not a museum. It is not Pompeii. It is a city, where we need to fight so the houses are inhabited by families, and stores reopen. That is what would counter this wild tourism,’’ Rodino said.

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‘Are we joking?’: Venice residents protest as city starts charging visitors to enter

Day trippers will have to pay €5 to visit Italian city under scheme designed to protect it from excess tourism

Authorities in Venice have been accused of transforming the famous lagoon city into a “theme park” as a long-mooted entrance fee for day trippers comes into force.

Venice is the first major city in the world to enact such a scheme. The €5 (£4.30) charge, which comes into force today, is aimed at protecting the Unesco world heritage site from the effects of excessive tourism by deterring day trippers and, according to the mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, making the city “livable” again.

But several residents’ committees and associations have planned protests for Thursday, arguing that the fee will do nothing to resolve the issue.

“I can tell you that almost the entire city is against it,” claimed Matteo Secchi, who leads Venessia.com, a residents’ activist group. “You can’t impose an entrance fee to a city; all they’re doing is transforming it into a theme park. This is a bad image for Venice … I mean, are we joking?”

Once the heart of a powerful maritime republic, Venice’s main island has lost more than 120,000 residents since the early 1950s, driven away by a number of issues but predominantly a focus on mass tourism that has caused the population to be dwarfed by the thousands of visitors who crowd its squares, bridges and narrow walkways at the busiest times of the year.

The entrance fee, which is required only for access to Venice’s historic centre, is bookable online and will apply on 29 peak days, mostly weekends, from Thursday until 14 July as part of its trial phase.

Residents, commuters, students and children under the age of 14 are exempt, as are tourists who stay overnight.

Day trippers, however, will be required to buy their ticket online and will then be provided with a QR code. Those without one will be able to buy a ticket on arrival, with the help of local stewards, who will also carry out random checks at five main arrival points including Santa Lucia train station. Those without a ticket risk fines of between €50 and €300.

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Venice council said 5,500 people had booked a ticket for 25 April, a national holiday in Italy , bringing €27,500 to the city’s coffers on its first day. Although Brugnaro has denied it is a money-making initiative, he has promised to cut local taxes for residents if the scheme is successful.

Federica Toninello, who leads ASC, an association for housing, said: “They think this measure will solve the problem, but they haven’t really understood the consequences of mass tourism on a city like Venice.

“For a start, €5 will do nothing to deter people. But day trippers aren’t the issue; things like the shortage of affordable housing are … What we need are policies to help residents, for example, making rules to limit things like Airbnb.”

The local branch of Arci, a cultural and social rights association, said it would distribute “symbolic passports” to tourists on Thursday as a way of highlighting the “dubious constitutional legitimacy” of the measure in terms of restricting free movement. The fee, it added, would be “ineffective in containing mass tourism” while generating “unequal treatment between different categories of visitors”.

Others, however, have embraced the scheme. “It will serve to collect fundamental data and help regulate tourist flows, which during certain periods of the year risking damaging a fragile city like Venice,” Tommaso Sichero, the president of the association for Venice shop owners, told Avvenire newspaper.

Despite the criticism, the Venice tourism councillor Simone Venturini said the administration was feeling “very relaxed” about “the “adventure”. “For the first time since Venice affixed itself to mass tourism, we are trying to do something,” he said. “This is the most relevant point.”

While some have raised questions over privacy due to people having to feed their data into the booking system, Venturini said the tool would be useful in “providing more precise figures on visitor numbers”.

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Venice locals are angry about a $5 entry charge—accusing officials of turning the floating city into a ‘theme park’

For years, tourists have served as both the lifeblood and the thorn in the side of the Italian hotspot of Venice. An estimated 20 million annual visitors bump up the city’s GDP, but have also been ravaging its delicate landscape in the process.

Now Venice is fighting back, first by limiting group numbers and now by charging short-term visitors a fee to visit in the hopes that some will turn around.

But the latest move to reduce footfall and bump up the coffers of Venice’s public finances appears to be one too far for the city’s angry locals.

Venice fights back

Venice is facing a long-term crisis, but for years has done little to address the apparent source of many of its issues: soaring visitor numbers.

The city, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site , has experienced a population decline of 70,000 since the 1950s. In 2022, the number of tourist beds hit a milestone by outnumbering residents in the city for the first time.

Venice is also hoping to offset the ecological impacts of such huge visitor numbers. The city was almost put on UNESCO’s endangered list last year. In the long run, there are fears that rising water levels could flood significant parts of the city.

In an attempt to deter soaring visitor numbers, Venice has introduced a number of measures aimed at inconveniencing some travelers. 

The main source of their ire has been day-trippers, who typically don’t spend as much as longer-term visitors, who pay for accommodation. They also make up about 80% of the city’s visitors .

In December, the city announced it would be placing a 25-person cap on the size of congregating groups, coming into place on June 1. 

The city said the number was determined to align with the maximum group size in its museums. However, it was also calculated as about half the size of a classic tourist bus, potentially causing havoc for travel agents.

The latest move by the city will target tourists’ wallets. 

Starting Thursday, day-trippers to Venice will face a €5 charge ($5.36) if they enter the city. 

The charge, which was teased in September last year, won’t apply to longer-term visitors, and will only be applicable on 29 peak days between April 25 and July 14 as a trial phase.

But the charge, which mayor Luigi Brugnaro says is intended to make the city “livable” again, has been met with anger by Venice residents.

‘Are we joking?’

Venice is bracing for protests Thursday as residents react angrily to the introduction of charges against short-term visitors.

Some locals are merely concerned by the optics of an unusual move to charge people a fee to enter a city.

“I can tell you that almost the entire city is against it,” Matteo Secchi, who leads residents’ activist group Venessia.com, told the Guardian . “You can’t impose an entrance fee to a city, all they’re doing is transforming it into a theme park. This is a bad image for Venice… I mean, are we joking?”

But other negative soundings point to an underlying tension between locals and the Venetian government over what is being done to ensure residents can continue to live there.

“It needs to be clarified where all this income will go,” Venice resident Nicola Ussardi told Euronews . 

“They should repair the thousands of abandoned houses in this city. However, that’s unlikely to happen. Instead, residents keep leaving, the city is emptying out, and all we’re doing is boosting tourism,” he added.

Earlier in April, Venice’s Social Assembly for Housing and the Solidarity Network for Housing swarmed the city’s council building , brandishing placards calling for more affordable housing.

The residents think housing should be a primary policy for the city’s policymakers, slamming the “paradoxical” phenomena that have left full-time Venetians homeless, as their salaries aren’t enough to afford rent.

Even the city’s former mayor, Massimo Cacciari, urged tourists not to pay the tax, arguing they were already overcharged for their food and transport, speaking to the Adnkronos news agency .

It’s clear Venice’s awkward relationship with its destructive, spendthrift visitors will continue to simmer for some time, but the city’s struggling residents are showing there is a limit to their patience on that indecision.

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Residents protest as Venice launches tourist entry fee

VENICE - Venice on April 25 began charging day trippers for entry, a world first aimed at tackling mass tourism but opposed by protesters objecting to treating the historic Italian city as a museum.

Under a trial scheme, visitors exploring Venice for the day have to buy a €5 (S$7.30) ticket, with inspectors carrying out spot checks at key entry points.

Considered one of the most beautiful cities on the planet, Venice is a top tourist destination – but is drowning under the weight of crowds .

Around 13,000 tickets had been sold by late morning, the mayor’s office said, either purchased online or at the new ticket office at the Santa Lucia train station.

The Venice Access Fee is initially being introduced on 29 busy days throughout 2024, mostly weekends from May to July.

There is no limit to the number of tickets available. Instead, the goal is to try to persuade day trippers to visit during quieter times.

“I think it’s good, because it will perhaps slow down the numbers of tourists in Venice,” said Mr Sylvain Pelerin, a French tourist who has been visiting for more than 50 years.

Overnight visitors, who already pay a tourist tax, minors under the age of 14 and others are exempt.

But some residents are strongly opposed to a measure they say curbs fundamental rights to freedom of movement.

Around 300 people protested near the station on the morning of April 25, holding up signs such as “Stick it to the ticket!” and “Venice is not for sale!”

“This is not a museum, it’s not a protected ecological area, you shouldn’t have to pay – it’s a city,” Ms Marina Dodino, from local residents’ association Arci, told AFP.

Mr Luigi Brugnaro, the mayor of Venice, has said the new scheme is “an experiment”, monitored with “very soft controls” and “without queues”.

There are no turnstiles or barriers, with inspectors instead carrying out checks at key entry points into the city.

They will be able to fine those without tickets, at amounts ranging from €50 to €300.

But an official told AFP that tickets were not expected on April 25, as the authorities sought to persuade rather than punish.

The scheme is being closely watched as destinations around the world grapple with huge numbers of tourists, who boost the local economy but risk overwhelming local communities and fragile sites.

Venice, spread over more than 100 small islands and islets in north-eastern Italy, was listed by Unesco as a World Heritage site in 1987. But the numbers of people seeking to experience what the UN cultural body calls an “extraordinary architectural masterpiece” have become overwhelming.

At peak times, 100,000 visitors stay overnight in the historic centre of Venice, double the resident population of just 50,000.

Tens of thousands more pour into the city’s narrow streets for the day, often from cruise ships, to see sights including St Mark’s Square and Rialto Bridge.

Unesco threatened in 2023 to put Venice on its list of heritage in danger, citing mass tourism as well as rising water levels in its lagoon attributed to climate change.

Venice escaped the ignominy only after the local authorities agreed to the new ticketing system.

The authorities had already imposed a ban in 2021 on massive cruise ships from which thousands of day trippers emerge daily, re-routing them to a more distant industrial port.

The ticket idea had long been debated but repeatedly postponed over concerns it would seriously dent tourist revenue and compromise freedom of movement.

“The aim is to find a new balance between tourism and the city of its residents,” said Mr Simone Venturini, the local councillor responsible for tourism.

He hopes the initiative will persuade Italians living in the region to avoid busy days such as April 25, a public holiday in Italy marking the liberation from the Nazis and fascism.

But Mr Ashish Thakkar, an American tourist visiting Venice with his wife, questioned how much of an effect the day pass would have.

“If I’m coming all the way from out of the country, €5 just to get access to the city – I wouldn’t mind paying it,” he told AFP.

Some residents complain that the measures fail to address another major issue – the expansion of short-term lets through websites such as Airbnb, which are squeezing out long-term tenants.

In Florence, which also suffers from mass tourism, the authorities have banned new short-term private holiday lets in the historic centre and offered tax breaks for landlords who switch back to ordinary leases.

“You have to start with the houses if you really want to solve the problem of tourism in Venice,” said Ms Federica Toninello, a local campaigner. AFP

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