Top Italian destination plans tourist tax to reduce visitor numbers

Lake Como, one of Italy’s top holiday destinations, plans to introduce a tourist tax to reduce visitor numbers.

Alessandro Rapinese, mayor of Como, has said he is planning a Venice-style tourist tax to protect the city.

He told The Times: “We are already discussing the idea (of a tourist tax). Revolutions begin with concrete measures and we are ready for this long journey.”

The tax would apply to people who want to visit Como for the day but the mayor didn’t explain how much it would cost or when it might come into effect.

Lake Como attracts about 1.4 million tourists every year and is a popular film location, featuring as the backdrop in Casino Royale and House of Gucci.

George Clooney famously has a property on the shores of the lake and his home often features on boat trips.

Rapinsese told the paper: “It’s difficult to be mayor when you are fighting tourism”.

Daily visitors would be asked to pay a fee if the plan goes ahead but it might only be enforced on public holidays.

Venice and Como aren’t the only European cities with tourist tax plans. Paris has raised its tourist tax ahead of the Summer Olympics.

Amsterdam now has Europe’s highest tourist tax after it raised the fee earlier this year in a bid to combat tourism.

But it still pales in comparison to the world’s highest tourist tax. Bhutan charges tourists a whopping $100 (£80) a day to visit.