Venice’s ‘tourist tax,’ labeled a ‘miserable failure,’ might not break even this year

Venice street near St. Marks square (Credit: Michael Duva—Getty Images)

Faced with the threat of sinking and an economy that crowds out locals, Venice launched a measure last month that was as ambitious as it was contentious: a so-called tourist tax on day-trippers. But a few weeks in, the floating city has done little to prove it has found the solution to managing its love-hate relationship with 20 million annual visitors.

The northern Italian city has collected just under €1 million ($1.1 million) in fees in the first 11 days of charging visitors €5 ($5.36) to enter for the day, new data shows.