:Fixed Point

Francisca Kellet writes in the Daily Telegraph about Venice’s proposal to introduce a tourist tax. Given the enormous year-round overcrowding in Venice, I have a better solution: introduce an entry fee to stay on the lagoon. After all, is Venice any different from Disneyland? Like Disneyland, it’s an enclosed space with a range of accomodation and eateries and of course plenty of sights.

Is this really such a non-starter? The current system of rationing, for example through higher hotel prices during major festivals such as La Biennale transfers income to the hoteliers. Of course this could be recovered through a tax, but wouldn’t an entry fee be more efficient?