Venice is introducing travel passes for 2024 in an effort to ease crowding

In an effort to combat overtourism, Venice declared that it would start charging day visitors to enter the congested historic center on 29 days of the following year.

During April 25 to May 5, when tourism is at its height, day visitors must pay five euros (P300) to enter the city center between 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

In addition, the first two weekends of July and the remaining weekends in May and June will be subject to the fee.

Without taking any significant action, authorities have been debating for years how best to control the millions of tourists that flock to the well-known watery city, eager to see attractions like St. Mark’s Square, the Rialto Bridge, and its endless picturesque canals.

Due to worries that the ticketing plan will negatively impact tourism revenue and jeopardize freedom of movement, it has been repeatedly delayed.

However, after UNESCO threatened to list the city as an at-risk world heritage site, local authorities ultimately made the decision to move forward with the experiment earlier this year.

“Venice is the first city in the world to introduce such a system, which could serve as a model for other fragile and delicate cities that must be protected,” In a statement, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro stated.

Nonetheless, he described it as a “first step” as opposed to a “revolution” and stated that the government is prepared to make adjustments to make sure it is successful.