Venice's day-trip fee marks the world's overtourism tipping point.

• Last year, Venice had more tourist beds than residents, with 20 million travelers visiting the city, which has a population of approximately 50,000 people.
• The recent addition of a five euro day-trip fee to combat "overtourism" sparked backlash, resulting in demonstrations and doubts about its effectiveness and long-term benefits to the city.
• Venice protest leader stated that imposing an entrance fee to a city is not the solution, as it only turns it into a theme park.

Venice is not only sinking but also shrinking. In the 1970s, Centro Storico, the main island and historic center of Venice, had about 175,000 residents. However, as of last year, the number of residents had decreased to below 50,000. The reason for this decline is the steady growth of tourism, which has been pushing out residents due to economic and quality-of-life pressure. In fact, there are now more tourist beds in Venice than there are residents. Last year, 20 million people visited, wandering through its two square miles.

Venice implemented a 5€ fee for day trippers to access the city last week, as stated by Mayor Luigi Brugnaro in a press conference. The objective is to prevent the city from becoming overwhelmed, but not to shut it down entirely.

On April 25, the program was launched, which coincided with Italy's Liberation Day and the feast day of St. Mark, the city's patron saint. Despite the mayor's intentions, the program's launch led to a gathering of roughly a thousand protestors in Piazzale Roma, who opposed the measure and eventually clashed with police in riot gear.

Despite being intended to improve their city's livability, residents expressed various concerns about the measure. Some opposed the idea of living in a closed city, while others argued that ticket sales reduced their city to an amusement park. Critics also pointed out the irony of a government that was simultaneously considering ways to increase tourism, such as allowing cruise ships to return to the lagoon and relaxing Airbnb restrictions.

The city, a once-in-a-lifetime destination for many travelers from around the world, may be criticized for its high cost, but it is unlikely to deter anyone from visiting.

"Matteo Secchi, leader of a residents' activist group, stated to the Guardian that almost the entire city is against the entrance fee. He argued that it transforms the city into a theme park and questioned the seriousness of the situation."

According to the mayor's office, 113,000 people registered on the first day of implementation, and out of those, 16,000 paid the fee. The rest were exempt due to reasons such as hotel stays, commuting, being a student, or visiting family and friends.

The day fee implemented by Venice's government is a significant step towards addressing the global issue of overtourism, which has become a major problem since the pandemic. Antonio Paolo Russo, a professor of urban geography at Rovira i Virgili University in Tarragona, Spain, commended this administration for being the first in 30 years to take action on tourism growth.

Russo, speaking on behalf of many experts, stated that the measure is unlikely to be effective and appears to be motivated by political gains and profit. He added that the large demand for tourist destinations will not be impacted by the 5€ increase.

Venice is the first city to charge an entrance fee, making it the attraction itself, and legal challenges may arise under laws protecting freedom of movement in public spaces. Similar programs exist in other popular tourist destinations, such as Barcelona's Park Guell, which only apply to attractions within the city.

Tourist taxes have been successful worldwide, but only when there is a clear indication of how the funds will be used, such as environmental preservation, and when the revenue is kept separate from the general government budget. Belize's Protected Area Conservation Trust was a pioneering movement 25 years ago that met these criteria, and similar programs are on the rise. Bali recently introduced a tourist tax to protect its environment, nature, and culture. Barcelona recently increased its tourist tax, while Amsterdam recently raised its tourist tax to the highest rate in Europe. The various taxation schemes being applied to tourists are likely to continue to grow around the world.

The small size, historic nature, beauty, and symbolic impact of Venice make it a unique destination, and the new fee for visiting it adds to the stakes.

Venice's overtourism program has raised concerns among experts due to the lack of prior studies evaluating its effects on visitation behavior.

More taxes, more marketing, more tourists

Megan Epler Wood, managing director of Cornell's Sustainable Tourism Asset Management Program, stated that one of the biggest concerns is how money is used and protected. In the case of Venice, the fee won't deter visitors, but Epler Wood said that does not mean it isn't necessary. However, the majority of tourism taxes goes into tourism marketing, and the more taxes go into marketing, the more tourists come, raising more taxes to pump back into marketing, leading to more tourists still. Epler Wood said that the longer this cycle goes on, the harder it becomes to manage those numbers, as seen in Venice.

To effectively address the issue of over-tourism in Venice, it is crucial to have accurate data on the impact of tourists on the city's infrastructure and resources. This can only be achieved by tracking the cost of each tourist's visit and the pressure they put on the city's infrastructure.

Venice's new fee for managing utilities is a guess, as no one accounts for the associated costs, and this is part of the invisible burden of tourism, according to Epler Wood.

To reduce the number of visitors, a centralized booking system can be implemented, similar to airlines and theme parks, which utilizes supply/demand algorithms during high seasons and popular destinations. This would lead to a decrease in demand for the rest of the places and attractions, as stated by Max Starkov, a hospitality and technology consultant.

"Starkov stated that overtourism is becoming the norm, with travel being considered a basic human need after fulfilling physiological requirements such as food, shelter, clothing, and sleep. He added that health, family, and other pursuits come next."

The Venice day-trip fee may become a symbol of overtourism rather than a solution to it, as a result of the compounded effects of the pandemic and the phenomenon of revenge travel.

According to Joseph Cheer, professor of sustainable tourism at Western Sydney University, Australia, and co-chair of World Economic Forum Global Future Council on Future of Sustainable Tourism, overtourism is not just about too much tourism, but it's also a result of government policy failure and an inability to regulate and control the way tourism is practiced.

Venice's fee, according to Cheer, was the culmination of a difficult process, rather than being introduced to regulate it. He argued that taxes and fees are a blunt tool that assumes tourists are price-sensitive, which is problematic when applied to unique destinations like Venice.