Re: Is Tourism Killing Venice?
Bravo, Italia!
I thoroughly agree, having been on a ship that berthed just a block down from St. Marks Square for two days, I worried about the ship's impact on the piers, pilings, and buildings. Mooring there is totally unnecessary. Should I go back, I would certainly be willing to take additional transportation if it negatively affects any world heritage or important site.
Although I am guilty of You aren't in traffic, you
are traffic," and I understand the desire to bring tourism to a location, there has to be a happy medium when it comes to the number of ships allow to moor in one place. I cancelled a cruise this summer when I discovered on a ship schedule that there were going to be SEVEN ships moored in Santorini and Mykonos on the day of our arrival in those ports. That's an onslaught of 20,000 people on those two small island! That crush of that much humanity just has to be too impactful on the hardscape, landscape, and locals.
Tips for cruising popular destinations:
1. Look for cruises with late departures or double night stays in places like Venice that are overrun during the day.
2. Check port schedules for the places you love most and chose cruises that will have few ships moored on departure days.
3. Tender early and tender late, which usually means exploring on your own or skipping the cruise line's excursions (which tend to be more expensive, anyway). Consider going back to the ship for a siesta and lunch when the crowds are at their max. D
4. If you possibly can, see the popular attractions at night. It's not just that the crowds are lighter; the ambiance is simply lovelier.