It caused ripples of confusion among tourists and anger among locals, but the Venice entry fee for day-trippers is here to stay.
The city authorities announced on October 24 their plans for the scheme next year.
During 2025 there will be 54 days on which entry will be charged to those visiting for the day – up from 29 in 2024.
The fee structure will be changed, as well – from a flat 5 euro ($5.40) in 2024 to a two-tier system. Visitors who pay the fee more than four days ahead of their visit will pay the 5 euro fee. Anyone booking within the three days before arrival will see that doubled to 10 euros (nearly $11).
One thing that will stay the same is the application of the fee only for the city “center.” The outlying islands, including the beach resort Lido, and popular Murano and Burano, which can be accessed directly from the mainland, are not included in the charging area.
Those transiting at Piazzale Roma (bus station), Tronchetto or the port will also be exempt – as long as they don’t enter the city center.
The way of booking tickets will remain the same –- both those paying up and those claiming exemptions (for example overnight guests) must book via this website.
Any tourists over 14 years old visiting for the day must pay the charge, with the exemption of those going to compete in sports events, relations to the third degree of city-center residents, and those staying within the Venice municipality, which includes Mestre on the mainland. There’s even a special exemption for yachties attending the Salone Nautico boat show.
As before, there will be fines for any ticket evaders.
“Venice is at the forefront in tackling overtourism,” said Luigi Brugnaro, the mayor, as he announced the plans, adding that the system this year allowed them to collect data to inform the future.
“The objective is still the same: To define a new system for managing tourist flows and to discourage daytripper tourism in Venice during certain periods, in line with the delicacy and uniqueness of the city, to give it the full respect it deserves,” he added.
The council again said they were not trying to turn a profit from the scheme, and admitted it wasn’t enough to stop footfall.
Encouraging good behavior
The authorities also proposed plans for short-term rentals.
While other cities across Europe and beyond are cracking down on Airbnb, Venice is being more lenient, hoping to persuade tourists to behave better rather than imposing restrictions.
In what Brugnaro called a “pact between the council and landlords,” from 2025, any property rented out for more than 120 days per year must register with the authorities, agreeing to “good practice” as hosts. This means meeting guests in person on property, and giving them trash and recycling bags with codes unique to the property.
Although waste is collected six days a week from every home in Venice, tourists dumping bags of trash in the street or failing to recycle and use apartment bins correctly is a huge problem.
The council has not said how it plans to enforce tourists using the bags assigned to them, however.
Landlord must also give guests a 24-hour contact in case of need.
Landlords have 120 days to register their properties after the date on which the city council approves the plans, assuming that it does. If they fail to register, the window will close until December 31, 2026.
Brugnaro said the rules would encourage “virtuous behavior” that will “guarantee more compatibility with residents’ daily life.”
The measures are a far cry from those in other cities which have suffered from the explosion of short-term rentals.
New York City’s rules don’t allow any rentals of entire properties for under 30 days but do allow people to rent rooms of their house, as long as they too are in it.
In Europe, Paris caps rentals at 120 days per year, while Barcelona and Berlin have introduced hurdles to getting permits, as well as bringing in hefty fines for illegal rentals.
According to Inside Airbnb, there are 8,322 Airbnb listings in Venice, 77% of which are entire properties. Two thirds of hosts have multiple listings. Their data also shows that the average listing is booked for 98 nights per year – which would not even fall under the new ‘good behavior’ regulations.
Meanwhile the population of Venice has dipped below 50,000 for the first time in centuries. The lack of long-term rental properties and affordable housing is one of the main reasons for the exodus.
Around 30 million visitors flood the streets of Venice every year.
