Italy is clamping down on overtourism by limiting the number of daily visitors to beaches in Sardinia.
The beaches of Cala dei Gabbiani and Cala Biriala both now have a daily cap of 300 visitors. Cala Goloritze has a limit of 250 per day, and Cala Mariolu caps daily visitors at 700.
Beachgoers wanting to visit Cala Goloritze will need to pay an entrance fee of €6 (R120) each, either online or at the entrance. At Cala Mariolu, each passenger on any boat docking there must also pay €1 (R20) each.
Stintino has capped visitors to La Pelosa beach to 1 500 per day along with an entrance fee of €3,50 (R70) per person and no entry is allowed without a booking.
Stefano Monni, Mayor of Baunei, tells CNN Italy can no longer afford thousands of daily visitors to these areas, where trash and theft remain challenges. “We must protect this paradise and its fragile ecosystem,” he adds.
Travellers must also book their visits to any of these beaches at least 72 hours before arrival via the Cuore di Sardegna app.
The Mayor says Baunei’s waters were rated as Italy’s most beautiful sea in 2022 by Legambiente, an Italian ecological lobby group. He says it’s also a site of European interest due to protected animals and bird species.
Monni has even requested that Sardinia enforces mandatory six sqm social distancing between beach visitors.
