Positive

1. The most outstanding economic impact of tourism in Venice is economic. Tourism brings over €2.3 Billion in revenue per year to the city’s economy making tourism the city’s main source of revenue

2. The city only spends around €75 Million per year on tourism infrastructure and services. Therefore, as a result of tourism the local administration is able to raise significant amount of revenue to rejuvenate the city and improve conditions for the local population.

3. The local culture receives a major boost from tourism and revenue collected is used to improve the cultural infrastructure of Venice. In 2018, the state museums earned €3.4 Million. This also indicates impressive positive impact on culture

4. Tourism places the city of Venice on the global map and gives it a more prominent position than any other city when it comes to global events. The Venice Film Festival, for instance, receives over 550 thousand visitors thanks to the city’s famous tourist attractions and massive numbers arriving every year.

5. Overall, tourism in Venice has had a tremendous impact on the cultural resources of the city resulting in the city’s positive image at the global stage.

The 77th Venice Film Festival

Negative impacts

Tourism is not an all rosy business for La Serenissima. As highlighted below, tourism, especially mass tourism has had significant negative impacts on the city of Venice for the last few decades;

1. The city has become unlivable for most residents as millions of tourists descend on it leaving little space for those who live there. The result has been mass migration by locals.

2. Too many tourists in a small space has led to increased pollution

3. Because the city is built on water, the constant passage of heavy ships and cruise vessels gradually erodes the foundations of the City’s structures

4. Frustrated locals who can no longer enjoy their city because of tourists leading to increased conflict between locals and tourists, as well as locals and local government

5. Over-reliance on tourism for revenue means that when a pandemic like Covid-19 hit the city’s financial state became very vulnerable

The graph below shows a continuous downward trajectory of local Venetians left in the port city as mass emigration from Venice increases

References

November 8, 2019, 10 Negative Effects Of Tourism You Should Know About Retrieved December 01, 2020, from  https://awareimpact.com/negative-effects-of-tourism/

Andereck, K.L., Valentine, K.M., Knopf, R.C. and Vogt, C.A. (2005), “Residents’ perceptions of community tourism impacts”, Annals of Tourism Research, Vol. 32 No. 4, pp. 1056-76.

Ateljevic, I. (2000), “Circuits of tourism: stepping beyond the ‘production/consumption’ dichotomy”, Tourism Geographies, Vol. 2 No. 4, pp. 369-88.