Over five million tourists flock to Venice every year. Their presence was becoming a hazard; we opined at one point that the sheer mass of outsiders was “killing the city.”
But the growing concern over coronavirus — which has impacted Italy particularly hard — has had one interesting side effect: Venice is nearly empty.
As the Wall Street Journal (via DMarge) points out, “As Italy battles the coronavirus, tourists are shunning trips and Venice faces a big loss of business.” As well, the U.S. government has warned against non-essential travel to the entire country of Italy, a “final blow” to the tourism industry as the head of Italy’s hotel federation recently noted. And this loss of tourism arrives soon after the city experienced its worst flooding in 50 years.
Anecdotally, the streets of Venice seem quiet, and that’s wonderful for people who are visiting…though not so much for the shopkeepers.
Arrived in venice this morning, so glad we came, only 44 people.on the plane, weather is lovely, all bars, shops cafes open, walked for hours, very quiet, attractions that are closed are supposed to be opening sunday, no one seems to be worried about #coronavirus
— Paula Battaglia (@PaulaBattaglia5) February 28, 2020
These pictures out of Venice are so striking. St. Mark's has emptied out because of the coronavirus outbreak. @annamomi reports on what's going on in the city. https://t.co/B4j0nwxq6i pic.twitter.com/Io9TW16Udk
— Amy Virshup (@amyvirshup) February 27, 2020
If you do visit, you should follow advice from the World Health Organization and watch for symptoms. And maybe don’t shake hands while you’re on the road.
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