Italy imposes beach rules and selfie stop lights as tourist numbers hit peak levels
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Such huge numbers of tourists are expected to descend on Italy’s popular destinations around a major holiday, that special measures are being put in place to keep them in check.
Dream Roman Holidays may be more like a nightmare for anyone visiting Italy over the next few days.
Such huge numbers are expected to descend on the country’s popular destinations around a major holiday that special measures are being put in place to keep tourists in check.
Italy’s Tourism Ministry says 13 million Italians will be traveling within the country around August 15 as the country jointly celebrates Ferragosto, an ancient holiday first instituted by Roman Empire founder Augustus to give workers a break, and the Catholic Feast of the Assumption of Mary.
Add those to the millions of tourists visiting from outside the country and it’s a recipe for the kind of mayhem, bad behavior and unfortunate accidents which regularly make headlines both in Italy and across the world.
Which is why many places are invoking new rules and technology to try to control the chaos.
From the island of Sardinia to the heel of Italy’s boot in Puglia, access to many popular beaches is now only being granted by booking on an app in an effort to control crowd sizes. Meanwhile, plastics, smoking and in some cases even towels and chairs have been banned from the sand during the coming days, according to Italian media reports.
Some beaches on the island of Sardinia, which has seen a record number of tourists this summer, have banned the use of rocks to anchor beach umbrellas. The communities of Santa Teresa di Gallura and Sant’Antioco say anyone failing to comply will be fined 500 euros ($550), according to local media reports.
