Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Tourists fined £854 for making coffee on steps of Venice bridge

German backpackers ordered to leave city over ‘rude’ behaviour

Peter Stubley
Saturday 20 July 2019 18:25 BST
Comments
The man and woman were reported to police by a local resident
The man and woman were reported to police by a local resident (Comune di Venezia)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Two tourists have been fined €950 (£854) and ordered to leave Venice for making coffee next to the Rialto bridge.

The backpackers, a man and a woman in their 30s, were arrested by local police after a resident spotted them sitting on the steps using a camping stove.

City officials said the German pair from Berlin offended “the rules of public decorum and respect”.

Photographs issued by the city showed the two tourists sat with their bags on canal steps at the foot of the bridge before the arrival of police on Friday morning.

The male tourist was fined €650 (£584) and the woman was fined €300 (£270).

Both tourists were issued with a “Daspo” behaviour order – similar to that used against football supporters – and asked to leave the city.

The laws public decorum laws were introduced after residents complained about the bad behaviour of tourists at the Unesco world heritage site, including picnicking, diving into canals, washing in fountains or walking around bare-chested or in bikinis.

“Venice must be respected and those rude who think they come to the city and do what they want must understand that, thanks to the girls and boys of the local police, they will be taken, sanctioned and removed,” said Luigi Brugnaro, the mayor.

“From now on furthermore, we will also report them to the embassies and consulates of their countries of origin.

“Our city will always be open and welcoming to all those who want to come and visit it, at the same time we will be intransigent with those who think they will come and do what they want.”

Earlier this year Venice said it was introducing a booking system and an entry fee of up to €10.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in