These popular beaches in Italy are enforcing strict daily visitor limits
If you’re going on a trip to the coast of Italy this summer, it might not be as easy to secure a spot on some of its gorgeous beaches.
Sicily and Sardinia — the country’s two largest islands known for their beautiful cliffside coves and bright blue water — are expecting a massive influx of tourists.
Years of overcrowding on these beaches have come at a cost to the environment, so local authorities in Italy have decided to do something about it.
This summer some of the most popular beaches on the islands will be enforcing strict daily visitor limits, some even requiring a daily entrance fee, reported CNN.
Here’s what you should know before you put on your swimsuit.
Some of the beaches in Italy enforcing a visitors cap
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Some of the beaches in Sardinia implementing daily visitor limits include:
- Cala dei Gabbiani: 300 visitors
- Cala Biriala: 300 visitors
- Cala Goloritze: 250 visitors
- Cala Mariolu: 700 visitors
In addition to the cap, you’ll also need to reserve a spot on the sand through an app called Cuore di Sardegna (or Heart of Sardinia) at least 72 hours before your visit.
In Sicily, Isola dei Conigli has a visitor limit of 350 beachgoers in the morning and 350 in the afternoon, a local councillor Totò Martello told CNN.
“Bookings are made online through a local authorized website,” he said.
Beaches in Italy with an entrance fee
In Sardinia, you’ll need to pay a six-euro entrance fee if you want to lounge at Cala Goloritze. You can pay online or in cash at the beach entrance.
The fee is supposed to help fund surveillance, parking, and maintenance of the paths and washrooms, local authorities told CNN.
In Sicily, Isola dei Conigli has an entrance fee of two euros paid online.