The Italian city has become the first in the world to introduce a payment system for tourists in an effort to thin the crowds that throng the canals during the peak holiday season. Signs warning day-trippers about the new 5-euro, or just over five dollar ($5.35) charge were set up outside the train station and near an entry footbridge.

Venice

Venice has begun to charge tourists a fee to enter the city during its peak holiday season, marking a first globally. This initiative is designed to manage the overwhelming number of visitors that flock to the city, particularly seen in the density of crowds around its famed canals. Notices about the new 5 euro (approximately $5.35) charge for day-trippers have been strategically placed at key points, including outside the city's train station and near an entry footbridge.

The city introduced this payment system to specifically target and reduce the influx of day-trippers during 29 identified peak days throughout the year. According to Venice's official responsible for tourism and social cohesion, Simon Venturini, this move aims not only to curb the number of tourists on these days but also to gain a better understanding of the expected visitor numbers. The introduction of this charge coincided with a national holiday in Italy, indicating a significant day for the commencement of this new policy.

The charge exempts several groups, including tourists with hotel reservations, visitors under 14 years of age, residents, students, and workers, although it requires even exempted visitors to register online prior to their arrival. The city is in an experimental phase of implementing this policy, as noted by Venturini, suggesting potential modifications in the future, including an adjustment in the charges depending on the season.

Discontent among visitors has already emerged, with tourists like Cristian Di Achille expressing concerns over the fairness of this additional cost on top of the existing expenses involved in visiting the city. Meanwhile, the city has prepared for enforcement by not installing turnstiles at entry points but instead conducting random inspections, with fines ranging from 50 to 300 euros for non-compliance.

Last year, Venice attracted around 20 million visitors, a figure that significantly overshadows its resident population of 49,000. These numbers present a substantial challenge, contributing to UNESCO's concerns about the potential risks mass tourism poses to the city's ecosystem. In response to these challenges, Venice has not only introduced the tourist fee but has also implemented other measures to protect its environment, including banning large cruise ships from entering the Venetian lagoon and setting new limits on the size of tourist groups.



Venice introduces first payment charge for tourists

In an effort to thin the huge crowds visiting in peak holiday season, Venice became the first city in the world to introduce a payment system for tourists on Thursday. Signs warning day-trippers about the new 5 euro or just over 5 dollar charge were set up outside the train station and near an entry footbridge. Simon Venturini is responsible for tourism and social cohesion in Venice. So we are just trying to discourage the arriving of day-trippers in 29 particular days and finding a new way to know in advance how many people will arrive in Venice the day after. April 25th is a national holiday in Italy. It's also the first of the 29 days this year when people must buy a ticket if they want to access the lagoon city from 8.30am to 4.30pm. People with hotel reservations and visitors aged under 14 do not need to pay the entry fee but still need to register online beforehand. Residents, students and workers are exempt. Cristian Di Achille is a tourist visiting from Padua in Italy. I don't think it's fair. I mean you are already paying for a lot of stuff, a museum, to go around, to eat, to sleep, hotels, anything to enter inside the city. I don't think it's fair. Ticketing this year is in an experimental phase Venturini says and prices to visit could increase at certain times of the year. Reservations should be made online but there is also a booth for those without smartphones. There are no turnstiles at the city gateways though inspectors will carry on random checks. Fines of between 50 and 300 euros will be issued to anyone who has failed to register. Some 20 million people visited Venice last year, a city official said. The influx dwarfs the resident population, currently put at 49,000. Venice narrowly escaped being placed on UNESCO's World Heritage in Danger list last year. That, in part, was because the UN body concluded the city was addressing concerns that its delicate ecosystem risks being overwhelmed by mass tourism. Besides introducing the entry charge, the city has also banned large cruise ships from sailing into the Venetian lagoon and announced new limits on the size of tourist groups.

The death toll from rains in Brazil's southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul rose to 57, local authorities said on Saturday (May 4) afternoon, while dozens still have not been accounted for.

State of Rio Grande do Sul

Dozens missing amid record-breaking Brazil flooding

There are renewed hopes for a ceasefire in Gaza after a Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo to continue talks amid reports of a proposal agreed to by Israel to halt fighting for an initial 40 days in exchange for the release of hostages.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

Israel-Gaza War

Hopes rise for Gaza ceasefire amid Hamas talks

Students showing support for Palestinians have set up camp outside the University College London. They say they'll continue their protest until the university divests from Israeli institutions that 'profit from the war in Gaza'.

London

Pro-Palestine university protests spread to London

Dozens of Palestinians have held a demonstration in the West Bank, to condemn the killing of five Palestinian fighters. Crowds rallied hours after Israeli troops attacked the fighters in the village of Deir al Ghoson.

Jerusalem

Five Palestinian fighters killed during West Bank raid

Dozens of people in two rubber dinghies have reached the southern coast of England, the latest among thousands of asylum-seeking migrants to make the risky sea crossing from France this year.

Dover

Asylum seekers arrive in England despite Rwanda threat

A former immigration detainee has been bailed after allegedly threatening police with a knife in Melbourne. It follows the recent violent home invasion allegedly committed by another released detainee in Western Australia Pressure is mounting on Federal Immigration Minister Andrew Giles to be held to account.

Canberra

Pressure mounts on Immigration Minister after latest detainee incident

Mexican authorities have reportedly discovered a fourth body near the cliff site where Perth brothers Jake and Callum Robinson disappeared, along with their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad. The Australian family of the brothers are en route to Mexico. The bodies are yet to be formally identified.

Ensenada

Fourth body discovered in Mexico search for Australian brothers

Ukraine is eagerly waiting for Western aid as Russia racks up more victories on the battlefield. Meanwhile, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron on a visit to Kyiv gave Ukraine the go-ahead to use British weapons to strike directly at Russia.

Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

U.K. allows its weapons to be used on Russian soil

Canadian police have charged three Indian men with the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar last year and said they were probing whether the men had ties to the Indian government.

Surrey

Canada police charge three with murder of Sikh leader

China has launched an uncrewed spacecraft on a nearly two-month mission to retrieve rocks and soil from the far side of the moon, the first country to make such an ambitious attempt.

Wenchang

China launches mission to far side of the moon

Britain's opposition Labour Party won a parliamentary seat in northern England on Friday (May 3) and control of several councils, inflicting heavy losses on the governing Conservatives to pile more pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

U.K.'s Labour claims big early win over Conservatives

Turkey has announced that it is halting trade with Israel, worth $7 billion a year, until a permanent ceasefire and humanitarian aid are secured in Gaza. Israel denounced the decision as breaking trade agreements.

Ankara

Turkey to stop trade with Israel until Gaza ceasefire

Media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders warned of declining government support for press freedom as it unveiled its annual world rankings on Friday, highlighting Argentina among the countries where the situation has deteriorated.

Paris

States doing less to support press freedom, says watchdog

Arizona's Democratic governor signed a bill overturning an 1864 law banning abortion, a month after the state's supreme court said the Civil War-era rule was valid.

Arizona

Arizona governor signs bill repealing 1864 abortion ban

U.S. President Joe Biden said that both freedom of speech and the rule of law must be respected in protests at college campuses over Israel's war in Gaza. In response to a reporter's question, Biden said that the campus protests had not forced him to reconsider his policies in the Middle East.

Washington

Biden breaks silence on protests at University Campuses

From suspensions to expulsions to criminal charges, college students across the U.S. involved in these pro-Palestinian protests could face life-changing consequences. Some are demanding amnesty for these protesters.

New York

More than 1,000 student protesters arrested across U.S.

English voters are heading to polling stations to pick mayors, councilors and a new lawmaker in the last electoral test for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak before a national vote later this year.

Voters head to polls in last test for U.K.'s Sunak

The US State Department accused Russia of having used a chemical weapon against Ukrainian forces in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, while also announcing fresh sanctions against Moscow. In addition to the chemical agent chloropicrin, Russia also used "riot control agents (tear gas) as a method of warfare in Ukraine, also in violation of the CWC," the department said in a factsheet.

Zaporizhzhia

U.S. accuses Russia of using chemical weapons in Ukraine

There are grave concerns for Perth brothers Jake and Callum Robinson who are missing on a surf trip in Mexico's Baja region. The pair have failed to arrive at their accommodation and are not responding to contact from their families.

Council of the City of Sydney

Grave fears for brothers missing on Mexico surf trip

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has kept open the prospect of tax incentives in the budget as business warned that changes to foreign investment laws. It comes amid criticism that budget spending could prompt further inflation and prompt rate rises.

Government hints at further tax incentives in Budget

Colombian President Gustavo Petro says his country will break diplomatic relations with Israel. He's criticised Israel's conduct since the start of the war on Gaza. Petro requested to join South Africa's case at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide.

Bogotá

Colombia ends diplomatic relations with Israel

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, pushing to get more aid into Gaza, while urging Hamas to accept a deal that would halt fighting and bring some hostages home from the enclave.

Blinken pushes for sustained aid into Gaza during Israel trip

Police in Georgia fired teargas and rubber bullets at protesters demonstrating against a bill that would require organizations – including media and NGOs – that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as agents "pursuing the interests of a foreign power." The bill has been dubbed the "Russian law" by its detractors.

Tbilisi

Thousands protest against Georgia's 'foreign influence' bill

A diplomatic push is underway to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, with the U.S. exerting pressure on Hamas to agree to Israel's terms. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to attack Rafah in southern Gaza, whether there's a ceasefire or not.

Netanyahu vows to invade Rafah 'with or without' ceasefire deal

Qantas has apologised to customers after its app exposed personal passenger data. The airline blames a technical disruption and says the data breach was not a cyber security incident.

Qantas app data breach exposes customer data

The International Court of Justice has ruled against issuing emergency measures over German arms sales to Israel as requested by Nicaragua, which had argued that there was a serious risk of genocide in Gaza amid Israel’s assault on the Palestinian territory.

The Hague

ICJ rejects measures over German arms exports to Israel

New York police have entered Columbia University and arrested protesters barricaded inside a building who have been calling on the New York school to divest itself from companies associated with Israel.