Article Town in Puglia charges tourist entry fee

[Pauline]

Polignano a Mare, Italy: Clifftop village angers tourists by charging to enter its historic centre
http://www.traveller.com.au/polignano-a-mare-italy-clifftop-village-angers-tourists-by-charging-to-enter-its-historic-centre-h18e5n

 

[joe]

There are some contradictory statements in the article, that sort of reflect on the fact that the reasons for the tax are not completely clear or agreed upon.

You have the heritage groups saying that there should be no tax on places that the public has a right to - but shouldn't they be worrying about the negative aspects of tourist overload?
You have the mayor saying that he supports a high tax, because "the entry fee used to be just €1.50 but the more expensive it becomes, the greater number of tourists visit", and he's for encouraging tourism.
You have the business people saying that this is detrimental to the character of the place - are they anxious about losing customers?
And of course you have the standard reason for a tourist tax : helping the local administration fund the extra burden placed on budgets because of increased tourism.

I think that these symbolic tourist taxes - and really, five euros is a drop in the bucket compared to the total costs of a travel holiday - should indeed be imposed when needed, as long as there is some sort of transparency towards both locals and tourists as to how this money is being used. Of course it would be nice if the local population would also be able to reach some kind of consensus regarding if and how things like this should be done - local support is a good cement for any decision like this. It might be a good idea if there was also some sort of professional overseeing of the use of funds, maybe in accordance with guidelines set up by a national body that has special expertise on the subject of tourism-heritage management.

This is an issue that places all over the world are dealing with, and appropriate solutions could be replicated where needed.

 

[Valerie]

An article I read in Italian paper was that it would be a charge during the holiday season when there would be special events and exhibits in the old town. But need to dig deeper to see what's up...but making truly "tourist attraction" bleeds out the local life to a big extent. But...what's the solution? The over-tourism dilemma is a hot topic around the country.

My personal view on the "tourist tax" is that they're taxing those who stay in hotels/B&Bs, which is the preferred tourism you want (those who stay, rather than day-trip ). But entry fees makes it too much like an amusement park. I think there needs to be higher fees on tour buses and cruise ships- which swarms in people who don't leave a lot in the economy and put a lot of stress on the infrastructure. But...long term solutions? Boh!