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What are the new rules for tourist groups visiting Venice?

The famed Italian city of Venice will restrict tour group sizes from summer 2024 in an effort to regulate crowds of tourists that throng the streets.

Published: 3 January 2024 11:16 CET

What are the new rules for tourist groups visiting Venice?

Rialto Bridge in Venice (Photo by Laurent EMMANUEL / AFP)

The Italian city of Venice announced on Saturday new regulations on the size of tourist groups to reduce the number of huge crowds and improve the lives of locals.

The measure will come into effect from June. The use of loudspeakers will also be banned as they “create confusion” the city said in a statement.

Elizabeth Pesce, the city’s security councillor said: “This is an important measure to improve the management of organized groups and promote sustainable tourism.”

The rule is an amendment to the police and urban security regulation dedicated to ‘regulating the methods of conducting visits for accompanied groups, with particular attention to the needs to protect residents and promoting pedestrian mobility’.

Simone Venturini, tourism councillor for the city added: “The measure is part of a broader framework of interventions aimed at ensuring a greater balance between the needs of those who live in the city and those who come to visit it.”

He concluded the introduction of the new rule on June 1st will give operators enough time to organise themselves.

The regulation was announced just five weeks after the city said it would introduce a fee of €5 for day trippers starting from April 25th to May 5th this year. The fee will also apply for the rest of the weekends in May and June as well as the first two weeks of July. Tickets will be sold via an online platform that’s expected to be up later this month.

Both the moves come after UNESCO warned it could list the city as an at-risk heritage site, partly due to the risk of over-tourism.

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8 essential tips to avoid falling victim to a holiday rental scam in Italy

As Italy’s summer holiday season gets underway, numerous vacationers are starting to book their accommodation – and online scammers are on the prowl.

While most official booking sites have mechanisms in place to minimise fraud, direct bookings with a property’s owner are more susceptible to scams.

Online fraud attempts grew by six percent in Italy between 2022 and 2023, according to Italy’s state police, while the amount of money stolen increased by as much as 20 percent, from €114 million to €137 million.

“In recent years, we have seen a steady increase in online financial crimes; in 2023 alone the Postal Police handled more than 16,000 cases, including those related to the booking of holiday homes, packages and travel tickets,” said Massimo Bruno, director of the Italian postal police force’s financial cybercrimes division.

“Although most of the scams take place outside of travel booking platforms, there is significant exposure in this area as well, especially during peak holiday planning periods.”

READ ALSO: Flights, hotels, beaches: How the cost of travel to Italy is rising this summer

With this in mind, Italy’s state police and holiday booking giant Airbnb have teamed up to release an eight-step guide to avoid falling victim to an Italian holiday rental scam.

1. Double check the website address

A common trick among scammers is to use a website address that looks very similar to the one used by well-known, reputable companies. If you receive a message out of the blue from what appears to be a legitimate sender, double check that the url is correct, and ideally only communicate through an official website or app.

2. Avoid clicking on unknown links

Similarly, if you receive an email or social media message that contains external links from what appears to be a well-known company, it’s advisable to avoid clicking and instead log in to your account through the official website or app to see if you’ve received the same message there.

3. Be wary of very cheap offers and deposit requests

If an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is. Check the listing carefully for any red flags; if the owner seems in a particular rush to get paid a large deposit, that’s probably a bad sign.

4. Never pay by bank transfer

Official booking sites will only allow you to pay via debit or credit card; but if you’re making a private arrangement with an individual owner, they may ask for a bank transfer.

READ ALSO: Why Italy’s beaches are getting harder (and more expensive) to access

“If you are asked to pay for a trip by bank transfer, cryptocurrency or gift cards, it is very likely a scam,” say police.

5. Book, pay and communicate via an official platform

Though it might be tempting to take a host up on their offer of a discount if you take a booking private, it’s safest to stick with the platform through which you initially made contact – at least on your first stay.

Official booking sites offer insurance and other guarantees that you’ll be able to take advantage of if things go south.

6. Check reviews

All holiday rental owners have to start somewhere, but if you want to play things safe, make sure a listing has at least a few (positive) reviews. Read these thoroughly to see what guests have said in the past.

7. Communicate clearly with the host

Make sure you’ve confirmed all the important practical arrangements with the host before you leave (ideally all through an official platform, so there’s a trail). If they suddenly go silent on you, contact the platform’s customer service team.

8. Report suspicious behaviour

If a listing on an official booking platform seems like a scam to you, flag it through the company’s official channels. If you’ve already made a payment off-platform, let their customer service team know asap.

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