I visited Venice in June and took part in discussions about the threats Venice is facing from all sides.

The feedback I received was quite alarming namely:

• Water levels continue to rise meaning that Venetians and tourists all too frequently have to literally wade through the streets in waist-high water.
• Not only is the sea level rising at a faster rate than other parts of the world, certain parts of the City are sinking.
• Across Venetian society, there is growing concern that  annual visitor numbers of between 25 and 30 million are totally out of scale for such a fragile City and environment.
• Implementation of the massive underwater floodgate system called ‘MOSE’ is long overdue and beset by cost overruns.
• The sheer scale of new cruise ships is seen by many as threatening the appreciation of the character and architecture of the City.
• A leading hotelier explained to me that, whilst visitors come to our City because of its significance as a City of art/architecture, events/biennale/Carnevale di Venezia, there is real concern that Venice’s World Heritage Status is under threat.

Francesco da Mosto, author of Venice – The Dramatic History of the World’s Most Beautiful City (A book which I highly recommend!) concludes by saying:

“The future of Venice is uncertain. I hope that its remarkable history will be preserved along with its monuments, and that a balance can be found between opening up this city of wonders for modern visitors and restoring the integrity and vitality of the Venetian population”.