Cruise ships not welcome here: Inside the European cities banning giant ships to curb overtourism

Roughly 4.8 million people take a cruise every year.

Before the pandemic that number was even higher, sitting at around 30 million passengers.

But, as the cruise industry recovers from the devastating consequences of COVID, many ports where these ships drop anchor are re-evaluating their presence. Some are even hoping to ban them altogether citing environmental, social and economic concerns.

So what’s going on in the cruise industry and why are some destinations saying goodbye to these giant floating hotels?

During the pandemic, European cities struggling with overtourism experienced what life could be like without cruises. For some, it triggered attempts to ban or limit the number of ships that call at these ports.

In 2021, Venice stopped large cruise ships from anchoring in its historic centre. Damage to the lagoon saw UNESCO threaten to put the city on its endangered list unless the ships were permanently banned.

They argue that the big ships cause pollution and erode the foundations of the city which already suffers from regular flooding. The ban means that large cruise and container vessels can no longer enter Venice’s Giudecca canal which leads to its famous St Mark’s Square.

There were attempts to stop the large ships before with previous legislation overturned. But pressure mounted when in 2019 a cruise liner crashed into a harbour in Venice, injuring five people.

And by the time of the 2021 ban, even cruise companies were on board. After it was announced, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) said it had “been supportive of a new approach for many years” calling it a “major step forward”.

Other cities could soon follow suit.

Ada Colau, the mayor of Barcelona, recently said that she would limit the number of