Venice Without Cruise Ships: Hard Facts or Fake News?

Abstract

For over a decade, social movements campaigning for the safeguarding of Venice and its lagoon have pointed out the many risks and negative impacts of cruise tourism, which include the potential collision with the historic city, water contamination, air pollution, underwater noise, erosion and the ‘touristification’ of the city space and local identity. Although several solutions have been proposed over the years, ranging from infrastructure projects to legal proceedings, in practice, ‘big cruises’ transited across Venice uninterruptedly. While, for some, cruise tourism meant economic growth and job creation, for others, the ‘big cruises’ were symbols of excessive consumption and environmental destruction. After the Covid-19 pandemic forced the industry to an unexpected impasse, resistance against cruises has gone global, and strong social movements have emerged in Mexico, United States, Canada, The Bahamas and Spain. In Italy, a new decree has banned the transit of ‘big cruises’ across the San Marco and Giudecca canals since August 1st, 2021. This essay reviews the events that led to this ban and examines the challenges that Venice still faces in relation to both mass tourism and cruise tourism.