Suffering under the pressure of rampant tourism, Venice is trying to limit the number of visitors dropping in the city.
With 100,000 tourists and locals coming in to witness a fireworks show on Saturday evening, officials allowed only 60,000 on to the banks of the Giudecca canal, from where the views were best. The annual celebration marks the end of a plague that ravaged the city in 1577.
The crack down on visitors was a first step towards managing the 25 million annual visitors. Mass tourism is wrecking havoc to this beautiful and historic city, hence, the decision to curb the number of visitors. Venice was long struggling under the strain of massive visitor numbers. Following the local outcry, that included English-language signs reading, “Tourists Go Away!!! You Are Destroying This Area,” the local government has finally responded with preventive measures to limit tourist numbers at popular attractions and encourage them to explore less crowded areas of the ‘Floating City’.
The municipality of Venice is taking a cue from Barcelona, which is also struggling with cruise ship numbers, with plans to put a limit on the number of accommodations available to tourists.
