I’ve been writing for several months about No Grande Navi – a protest group in Venice that did successfully get law passed to limit the size of ships allowed through the canal. While the new law is a great first step, the citizens are still protesting the ships docking anywhere in the lagoon.
The fight continues in other major ports. Key West requested to widen the cruise channel to allow access for larger ships – residents said no! Preservationists in Charleston, S.C. are trying to block plans for the downtown terminal. Cities from around the world are trying to work together internationally to send a combined message to the cruise industry: your ships are too big! Tourism is important, and the ports understand the need for ships to visit their towns. But there’s a difference between a ship that brings in a thousand passengers at once, and a ship that dumps 5,400 passengers for a couple hours. And if your port is full of a dozen ships that tower over the city, are you really seeing Venice?
Read more about the continued fight against the big ships here.