Has Venice Banned Cruise Ships?

Despite the existing cruise ship ban in legislation, the reality of the situation is not so simple. Only months after being barred, a 92,000 tonne ship MSC Orchestra docked in Venice’s port due to the city authorities not building a suitable cruise ship hub outside the lagoon. The absence of cruise ships has been credited with improving water quality in the lagoons.

Venice has long been controversial due to coronavirus restrictions, and the Italian government issued a decree banning them from the lagoon in March 2021. Locals are now banning large cruise ships from entering Venice’s waters and declaring the city’s lagoon a national monument. The country’s culture minister announced that the decision was made on Wednesday. However, the ships will remain in the lagoon for the protests against cruise ships in Venice.

The Italian government has banned all but the smallest cruise ships from central Venice. Many large ships now arrive and depart at Marghera (an industrial zone) or at St Marks. In 2021, Venice barred large cruise ships from anchoring in its historic center due to damage to the lagoon, which saw UNESCO threaten to put the city on its endangered list unless they prohibited the ships. Experts argue that these large boats cause pollution and erode the city’s foundations, which already suffer from regular flooding.

Now, cruise ships will be banned from sailing through the city center of Venice from August 1. Instead of declaring the lagoon a national monument, Italy’s cabinet declared the lagoon a national monument and banned large cruise ships from entering. A cruise company has circumvented a ban on its ships entering the Venice lagoon by shuttling passengers into the famous city center on small vessels.