The Italian government plans to pay more than 50 million euros in compensation to cruise companies affected by the closure of large planes visiting Venice. New rules banning access to the lagoon of large tourist vessels came into force in August, when Venice became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in danger of extinction.
A statement from the Ministry of Infrastructure states that around € 30 million has been allocated for 2021 for shipping companies that have incurred costs to “change the route schedule and reimburse passengers who have canceled flights”. Another € 27.5 million – five million this year and the remaining amount in 2022 will be allocated to the terminal operator and related companies.
At the same time, in the future cruise liners will not be banned from arriving in Venice in full, and only the San Marco Lagoon, the San Marco Canal or the Giudecca Canal will be a restricted area for them. Instead, they will be sent to the industrial port of Marguerite. At the same time, the port does not have sufficient cruise infrastructure.
Venice has been battling cruise liners for more than a decade. Locals say they contribute to the problems caused by “excessive tourism” and cause big waves that undermine the city’s foundations and damage the fragile ecosystem of its lagoon.
We will remind, earlier DIP reported that Italy forbade cruise liners to stop in Venice, details here.