Dear Reader

EVERYONE agrees that over-tourism is a growing problem – but no one knows how to resolve it. Certainly not the bigwigs in Venice, who came up with the idea of charging daytrippers ¤5 (£4.30) to enter the historic centre of the city.

It came into effect on Thursday and seems to have gone down like a punctured gondola.

There were even clashes with the police as residents, whom you might think would be in favour of fewer tourists, took to the streets in protest. They say it won’t make any difference, and that the money will end up in the wrong pockets. Note that you don’t pay the entrance fee if you are staying overnight.

Our man Thomas W. Hodgkinson was there to witness events unfold, and his report on page 55 should be required reading for officials in other photogenic cities, where a similar policy is under review.

A year ago, the mayor of Portofino (pictured) announced that some parts of the town would become ‘red zones’, where lingering to take selfies and suchlike could result in a fine of up to £240.

And on Rome’s Spanish Steps you can be fined almost as much if you take a seat, while in Sorrento it’s against the law to wear a bikini in some parts of town.

There’s an unpleasantness to all this. In Tenerife, it’s become particularly nasty, with tourists being told to stay away and the deputy mayor suggesting that Britons looking for affordable all-inclusives should head to the Dominican Republic instead.

A colleague, who was on the Canary Island recently, says most of those up in arms are second home-owners keen to have the place to themselves — but if you’re a waiter on a minimal wage you want as many Britons as possible flocking to the island.

Let’s just hope the London mayor doesn’t add tourists to his roster of payers.