Apologies to any cruise enthusiasts, but any dreams you may have had of sailing right past Piazza San Marco in Venice are about to be dashed. Starting August 1, cruise ships will officially be banned from sailing in Venetian waters.
While the Italian government has debated the issue for years (even going so far as implementing a ban and then taking it back earlier this year), this final, swift-acting ban was made just in time to avoid being placed on the World Heritage in Danger blacklist, established by UNESCO. The United Nations culture body has been warning the government against the dangers caused by a constant stream of cruise ships since 2019, and the Venice lagoon would have been listed among the Everglades in Florida and the historic center of Vienna as 'threatened by serious and specific dangers.'
In addition to banning cruise ships, the Italian government also declared the lagoon a national monument in order to protect the fragile ecosystem from mass tourism.