FROM beautiful islands and incredible beaches, Italy has everything you need for a summer holiday – which is why it welcomes around 70million tourists in peak season.
Now, it’s cracking down on overtourism and is putting in place new rules that could affect your next break, from day trip fees to a lack of outdoor dining.
Tourist taxes
Plenty of Brits will flock to Venice this summer to see its incredible waterways.
For anyone taking a day trip to the city from other Italian hotspots, you will have to pay a tourist charge.
In 2026, day trippers will have to pay a fee if they visit from Friday to Sunday in April, May, June, and July.
The day trip access fee is €5 (£4.36) per person for anyone over age 14, if booked in advance.
If a trip is booked less than four days in advance this increases to €10 (£8.72) – visitors can ‘reserve’ a day in Venice here.
You don’t have to pay the day trip tax if you’ve booked an overnight stay.
Another spot that has introduced tourist tax is the lower area of the Trevi Fountain in Rome.
The fountain in the heart of the city is known to be a beloved influencer spot, and to combat overcrowding, it’s introduced a Rome a €2 (£1.75) charge.
This charge applies daily from 9AM to 10PM (or 9PM depending on official updates) for access to the steps nearest the water.
But if you head to the upper piazza, viewing the fountain remains free.
Outdoor dining bans
While you can still enjoy eating outside in the sunshine, Florence has seriously cut down on the amount of outdoor dining.
In streets around Ponte Vecchio like Piazzale degli Uffizi and Via Roma, you won’t find any outdoor dining spaces whatsoever.
And around 73 other surrounding streets, there’s a restriction on the number of seats on the pathways in an effort to combat congestion.
While some restaurateurs aren’t happy with the new rules, locals have said the new rules are needed as the narrow streets can’t cope with the outdoor terraces.
Some said it had made roads unliveable, and like an “obstacle course”.
From April 1, 2026, Florence will also ban rental e-scooters in the city center.
For more summer breaks – here are our favourite TUI holidays…
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Globales Montemar, Ibiza
This hotel sits on a quieter side of Ibiza, so you can soak up the island’s natural beauty away from the party crowds. This family-friendly option has a large pool that curves around the resort, surrounded by plenty of sunbeds, plus a kids zone. Here you’re just a 10-minute stroll from a horseshoe-shaped bay with clear waters.
Hotel Club Jandia Princess, Fuerteventura
This resort is set up like a small village, with low-rise buildings set among palm trees and six different swimming pools. Entertainment spans from DJ nights to bingo and live sports screenings, plus sports on offer include water polo, rifle shooting and shuffleboard.
Gavimar Cala Gran Costa Del Sur, Majorca
This hotel sits on Majorca‘s Cala Gran Beach, a beautiful cove just a short drive away from the coastal town centre, with its trinket shops and relaxed bars. The hotel itself has all the activities and entertainment you’d expect, including bingo and live music – as well as some unique extras like mini golf and archery. Week-long breaks start from £478pp.
Riu Baobab, Senegal
The Riu Baobab is the only TUI hotel in the country, situated on the Pointe Sarane coastline. There are the four huge pools overlooking the beach, swim up pool bars and a copious amount of sunloungers to choose from. The sushi at the Asian Dorayaki and the pasta dishes at Veneto are the highlight meals of this standout hotel. Week-long breaks start from £883pp.
Tourist caps
The island of Capri is incredibly busy during the summer, seeing as many as 50,000 visitors each day during July and August.
To minimise disruption to locals, it’s introducing some new rules.
In order not to block the narrow streets on the island, etiquette similar to travelling on the tube has been requested for large groups – stay on the right on the way up and left on the way down.
When it comes to tour groups, each must be a maximum of 40 people in an attempt to control overcrowding.
And tour guides that lead more than 20 tourists at a time use wireless earpieces rather than loudspeakers.
It’s not just Capri cracking down on the amount of tourists visiting at one time.
In the Dolomites, a ski resort called Madonna di Campiglio, has been limiting daily passes to 15,000 – rather than the usual 23,000.
In other places, a time slot is must be booked before entry, like the Via dell’Amore hiking path at Cinque Terre in the Liguria region.
Here’s more on Italy from one Sun Writer that visited one of Italy’s busiest towns off season.
And here are the insider tips from one writer who lives in Europe’s biggest tourist-trap cities.