United Kingdom
United States
Asia Pacific
Cruise ships delayed by paddling protestors
Protestors delayed cruise ships by over an hour as they padded in the canal in central Venice.
The protest, backed by 1,000 supporters, was timed to coincide with a busy day, with 12 cruise ships heading past St Mark’s Square due to a scheduling quirk – well above the daily average of two ships.
"The demonstration was a great success and we now hope the government will take advantage of this momentum and kick the cruise ships out of the Venice lagoon," Silvio Testa, a spokesman for the protesters told the Telegraph.
Politicians looked closer to tackling the big ships coming into central Venice at the weekend.
Andrea Orlando, the environment minister, said he would propose next month the gradual switching of ships to Marghera, a mainland port in the lagoon, even before an alternative route was decided on.
The Italian government issued a decree in March last year banning ships of more than 40,000 tons from within two nautical miles of sites such as the centre of Venice.
But the ban is only to come into effect when alternative routes to the port of Venice have been found, possibly along newly dredged channels across the Venice lagoon – a solution that would take years to implement.
"The time for decisions has arrived, the big ships must go as soon as possible," said Giorgio Orsoni, mayor of Venice.
Protesters are concerned about the ecological impact of the big cruise ships and the pollution they cause.
But the cruise lines account for as much as a fifth of the city’s tourism earnings.
Diane
Mark Jaronski of Explore Georgia on FIFA World Cup 2026
Connecting Small Businesses to Global Tourism Markets: Nate Huff of Tourism Exchange
North Carolina’s Resilience: Wit Tuttell on Recovery and Tourism
Kittipong Prapattong’s Plan for Thailand’s Tourism Growth: Taxes, Visas, and Campaigns
James Jin: Didatravel’s Journey from China to Global Reach and the Impact of AI on Travel
Darien Schaefer on Pensacola’s Evolution: From Small Town to Global Destination
Florida Tourism’s Next Frontier: Dana Young on Expanding Beyond the Classics
Patrick Harrison on Tampa Bay Tourism’s Resilience and Marketing Strategy
Bubba O’Keefe on Clarksdale’s Vibrant Music Scene
Commemorating Elvis and Embracing Tupelo’s Culture with Jennie Bradford Curlee
Craig Ray and the Expansion of the Blues Trail
Presenting Mississippi’s Cultural Trails with Katie Coats
Dozens fall ill in P&O Cruises ship outbreak
BA suspending all Heathrow to Abu Dhabi flights
Turkish Airlines flight in emergency landing after pilot dies
Unexpected wave rocks cruise ship
Woman dies after going overboard in English Channel