OT: An Italy just for Italians?

[XXtwindad]

I read an interesting article in the NYT today. In the wake of the Pandemic, Venetians are attempting to reclaim their city: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nyt...rists.amp.html

“The coronavirus has laid bare the underlying weaknesses of the societies it has ravaged, whether economic or racial inequality, an overdependence on global production chains, or rickety health care systems. In Italy, all those problems have emerged, but the virus has also revealed that a country blessed with a stunning artistic patrimony has developed an addiction to tourism that has priced many residents out of historic centers and crowded out creativity, entrepreneurialism and authentic Italian life.”

I understand the desire to recalibrate toward a more “local centric” way of life. I also understand that short-term rentals can have a detrimental effect on long-term residents. But I think clamping down on tourism is a bit too utopian, especially for a hub like Venice. Then again, Italy will always be my favorite country to visit, so I’m not entirely objective.

[Ozz]

Ugh.....pulled the plug on a family trip to Italy about a month ago...we were supposed to be leaving in about 10 days.....sigh.

[Tickdoc]

Is their economy not tied too close to tourism to pull this feat off?

My guess is they will not be able to centralize their tourism. Makes me want to pursue an Italian Passport.

[colker]

Venetia was never a closed to foreigners nation like Japan. It has traditions of commerce. Any isolationism claims go against it´s nature. Having said that, tourism can be exhasperating and all societies could rethink their dependences after corona.

[colker]

Originally Posted by Tickdoc

Makes me want to pursue an Italian Passport.

Really? You could find 100 italians trading theirs for an US passport; now.

[Gsinill]

Originally Posted by colker

Really? You could find 100 italians trading theirs for an US passport; now.

100 out of 60,000,000? Sounds about right

[mtechnica]

That’s funny if they think tourism is why people are priced out of living in Venice. It’s expensive to live in literally every major/popular city in the Western world and hamstringing the economy probably isn’t the best way to fix it. Just IMO

[bicycletricycle]

I think that we have been in denial about the down side of "globalism". Not sure if it is possible to turn back, or if that is even a good idea. Italy should be for Italians, what that means as policy is obviously very contentious.

[bigbill]

I spent most of 2007 living in Sardinia and working with the Italian government on a daily basis. The regions of Italy are very independent and suspicious of the central government. The central government is often at odds with the regions, dictating policy that goes against the wishes of the citizens. Italy has a strong industrial base, we get most of our cabinet finishing equipment from Italy and we make 4400 cabinets a day. The technology is good, the applications are a little wonky at times but we figure them out. But the nation is in no way able to limit tourism and stay afloat financially.

My project in 2007 was to close the NATO base on Santo Stefano near LaMaddelena. The Sardi didn't want the base closed because of the year-round economy it provided in an otherwise summer tourism dependent region. The Italian central government wanted it closed because a base in the middle of the Garibaldi National Park was an issue. The "base" was a single pier with a repair ship. The Garibaldi Park could be compared to Mt Vernon in the US. We did all our due diligence and had two weeks of meetings with the various EPA-like agencies before we signed it over. The locals were protesting the closing, it was very surreal.

[Clean39T]

...

[johnmdesigner]

Well, ban Airbnb in the old city and restrict the number of tourists allowed on a daily basis.
Of course, getting everyone to agree to that in a country like Italy will be a challenge.

[tylercheung]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

A reduction in over-dependence does not mean installing a moat and filling it with sharks and lasers -- it means pulling back a bit and looking at the sustainability of your economic model, its weak points, and areas to add more resilience.

I think we are all going to be doing that to some extent in the coming years. And it isn't necessarily a bad thing.

One can develop a more local and sustainable economy without xenophobia or sinophobia - though it is going to take dramatically different leadership at the federal level in our case (if you can even posit we have such today..).

Besides, as the global recession pinches, and substantially less people are getting on planes, those reliant on tourist dollars from abroad are going to have to change anyway. The demand destruction isn't going to bounce back.

That said, once it's safe, I hope to be on a plane to Italy - there is no place I would rather vacation for cycling and food. With Belgium, France, Portugal, and Spain being a close second of course.

This is true - tbh, i suspect the local economies are reeling from the Berlusconi years etc. A lot of local textile/garment factories basically are dependent on Chinese money and investors.

A policy to help reduce housing costs and jumpstart local alternatives to tourism is not a bad idea.

Case in point, Vancouver took measures to reduce the hordes of overseas real estate investors/speculators, taxing vacant properties, etc.

[gomango]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

That said, once it's safe, I hope to be on a plane to Italy - there is no place I would rather vacation for cycling and food. With Belgium, France, Portugal, and Spain being a close second of course.

Can't say I blame you one bit.

My wife has family in northern Italy. We have been very fortunate to travel there six times in the last twenty years. We've always had an enjoyable time, but I must say the major cities like Florence, Bolzano and Milan have been over run with people just like us.

The last few years we have tried Slovenia, Croatia and even Bosnia. We'll continue to try other opportunities in Europe, but I think trips to Chile, Bolivia, Argentina and Peru also loom on the horizon after we retire.

[ultraman6970]

Read a few lines of this article, not the whole thing. Well... the issue is that italy in general depends on tourism, is not like they will able to survive w/o it. Is cool to see pictures of a clean venice but take the tourists out of the city and several bars, hotels and industry around tourism will die quite quick. For example that rents his van to move you around town, which in italy there's a lot of them.

[Velocipede]

Italy's population is 61 million. They get 60 million tourists yearly. How could they possibly pull back that much? I get the idea and everything but how?