Venice is to introduce a tax on tourists from next summer, the city’s authorities have announced.

The tax, which Venice council is calling “a contribution for access” to the World Heritage site, will begin on July 1.

The charge has been discussed for more than a year but its introduction has been delayed several times as Venice worked out how best to levy it.

The aim of the controversial tax is to make the millions of day-trippers who descend on La Serenissima each year contribute to the upkeep of the lagoon city.

“The aim is to improve the quality of life of residents,” Luigi Brugnaro, Venice’s mayor, said earlier this year. “We’re not in it to make money.”

When the system is launched, tourists will pay €3 during the low season, €8 during high season and €10 during “critical” periods, such as summer weekends, when visitor numbers reach excessive levels.