Italy imposes strict new rules on UK tourists from '8.30am to 4pm'

Holidays in Italy are set to become more expensive from today as a popular city introduces a new tourist tax. Venice imposed a tourist tax that will affect holidaymakers visiting on certain days of the year in a blow to UK holidaymakers and tourists.

The tourist levy will affect travellers visiting the city on April 25-30, May 1-5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 25 and 26, June 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 29 and 30, and July 6, 7, 13 and 14 - just 29 days of this year. It will mostly affect travellers who are escaping to Italy over the weekends.

Visitors to the city between 8:30am and 4pm will be subject to the extra fee. It has been reported that those who do not pay the fee may face a fine of between €50 (£42.89) and €300 (£257.31) ahead of the spring and summer getaway season.

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Deputy mayor for tourism for Venice Simone Venturini told The Independent that the city hopes to find the "between the residents of the community space and the daytrippers", explaining that on some days of the year, visitors can be "overwhelming".

He said: "Our goal is to collect very, very low taxes because it means that we have less daytrippers." He said: "I think that humanity has one duty to preserve and safeguard Venice. If this system helps us to do that, I think that the system is good."

Venice mayor Luigi Brugnarothat explained that the tax aims to "regulate tourism in an extremely popular, busy place". He called it a "first-of-its-kind experiment". Day trippers pay €5 and get a QR code that will then be checked at spot controls at seven access points around the city, including at the main train station.

Visitors with hotel reservations enter their hotel information and also get a QR code to show. They don't have to pay, however, since their hotel bill will already include a lodging fee.