If you are planning a romantic getaway to Venice in the near future be aware in 2019 it will cost slightly more due to the new ‘tax’ on tourists being introduced to the city.

The charge to this Italian city was announced by the Major, Luigi Brugnaro. Tweeting at the end of December it read: “Now the landing contribution to #Venizia is law!” adding that it would “allow us to manage the city better and to keep it clean” and “allow Venetians to live with more decorum”.

Costing $11.50 to enter the World Heritage site, the costs will go towards the upkeep of its famous canals and river ways. They are not the first country to get stricter with tourists, Boracay in the Philippines and Maya Beach in Thailand both changed their regulations for tourists in a bid to curb damage to the land.

The exemptions to this tax include students, business travellers and regional residents. Tourists holidaying in Venice generate so much waste, the councils empty bins every half an hour. Already charging tourists the tax for hotel stays which brought in $38.6 million in 2017.

This tax is designed for day-trippers on cruises that make up half of the tourism that visits the city each year.

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