Italy to ban mammoth cruise ships from Venice

[BVILady]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/italy-to-ban-mammoth-cruise-ships-from-venice-as-of-aug-1/ar-AAM710K?ocid=winp-sf

 

I know it has come up before and there is no docking facility for cruise ships currently close to Venice. Wondering where the ships will be moved to, especially since I have my air-tickets into VCE already.

[Stefan_Varong]

41 minutes ago, BVILady said:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/italy-to-ban-mammoth-cruise-ships-from-venice-as-of-aug-1/ar-AAM710K?ocid=winp-sf

 

I know it has come up before and there is no docking facility for cruise ships currently close to Venice. Wondering where the ships will be moved to, especially since I have my air-tickets into VCE already.

 

Italian news agency ANSA said that a facility will be available in the port of Marghera https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2021/07/14/unesco-hails-venice-cruise-ship-ban_5246d467-3986-4f3b-9cff-16f369a94e62.html.
 
Marghera is part of Venice on the mainland, even closer to the historical city centre than the airport Marco Polo. Since it is within the lagoon the watertaxis will be able to go there, I suppose that the private owned waterbus company Alilaguna will also send their boats there when cruise ships are in town, could become a very good business for them.
 
Last month the tenders were published to change a container port into a cruise terminal. Of course this ban now is taken way too fast and needed a special permission, since Italian safety laws forbid mixing freight and passengers in one part of a port, not to forget the temporary facilities until 2023, when the new terminal should be ready (well, probably much later, it’s Italy).
 
I really can understand that all huge ships are banned from crossing the historical centre through the Guidecca Canal, although a highlight of course. But why no longer docking in a port situated on an artificial island with everything needed (including the people mover, a practical new shuttle train, connecting the parking island, the port and the Piazzala Roma, the gateway to the old centre)? The lagoon has three passages to the Adriatic Sea, the northern has been used up to now, but now it will be the central one as far as I heard.

 

[BVILady]

Thank you Stefan. Will that dock have taxi-access also  since it is on the Mainland? Really don't want to drag all my luggage on a boat, that is why I have booked Hotel Santa Chiara in Venice. We will see and hopefully we will actually sail.

[Stefan_Varong]

Yes, of course they have road access, so taking a taxi will be a possibility for sure. There are not too many hotels with street access in Venice city centre, that's why I thought about water transport only. I will only take one suitcase onto my flight and into my hotel close to the Rialto Bridge, the rest I'll send with bag express. So no trouble with boarding a water taxi.

[Tom O.]

I understand the ban only applies to the largest cruise ships. Does anyone know what size ships will be affected? 

[Stefan_Varong]

8 hours ago, Tom O. said:

I understand the ban only applies to the largest cruise ships. Does anyone know what size ships will be affected? 

 

Practically all. The limits are for example 180 m length and 25,000 tons plus a height limit I don't remember exactly. And it's not only about cruise ships, but about all ships.

[Stefan_Varong]

Since these are the Costa pages: since the Mediterranea is / will be transferred to another line the smallest ships are Deliziosa and Luminosa. Both are about 115 m too long and the tonnage nearly four times larger than allowed. The smallest Costa I ever sailed was 40 m too long and more than twice the allowed tonnage. BTW the picture in the msn article of BVI Lady could well be either Deliziosa or Luminosa (seen the two small extra chimneys).

[kremerlorraine]

Marghera is very close to Mestre, which is a short train ride from Venice Santa Lucia station (and that is just across the bridge from the Santa Chiara). But it would be easy to get a taxi from your hotel to Marghera. Some news reports I've seen suggest that Marghera won't be ready for cruise ships until 2022 (when in 2022 is the question!) We have an MSC cruise from Venice to Dubai booked for October, and I'm waiting to see what alternative port they plan to depart from (probably Trieste) and whether they will provide transportation from Venice. Luckily we haven't booked flights or hotels yet.

[Stefan_Varong]

4 hours ago, kremerlorraine said:

Marghera is very close to Mestre, which is a short train ride from Venice Santa Lucia station (and that is just across the bridge from the Santa Chiara). But it would be easy to get a taxi from your hotel to Marghera. Some news reports I've seen suggest that Marghera won't be ready for cruise ships until 2022 (when in 2022 is the question!) We have an MSC cruise from Venice to Dubai booked for October, and I'm waiting to see what alternative port they plan to depart from (probably Trieste) and whether they will provide transportation from Venice. Luckily we haven't booked flights or hotels yet.

 

Please forget 2022 for a cruise terminal! The tenders dating from June are for completing in 2023… Since the time limit is now just a fortnight we should expect some tents and in best case zero comfort.  Marghera will make cruising from Venice less attractive, but flights and hotels won’t be affected at all. The place for staying in Venice is and always will be the centro storico and the distance to the airport is even a bit less.

[deadzone1003]

Think the only cruiselines with 2 or more ocean going ships that have ships that are qualified to visit Venice under the new rules are Windstar, Sea Dream, Phoenix Reisen, and Star Clippers.  I'm not sure if any of them have sailings from Venice.  The ban is pretty much 100% at this moment.  Even Seabourn who have the smallest ships in the luxury segment have ships that are all too big for Venice (they had sold all their older smaller ships to Windstar back in 2015.) 

[Stefan_Varong]

Phoenix has only one ship, the Deutschland, fitting into the new rules, the measurements are already very close to the limits, and the rest of their admittedly small vessels are already too big. The others you name will be able to call and are actually planning to cruise to Venice at least next year. A few others as for example Crystal Esprit may go to the historical centre, but we mustn’t forget that there are also river cruises that are calling Venice and these vessels are also small enough. Up to now the smallest ships were not even forced docking in the port, but were admitted to  San Basilio pier in the historic quarter of Dorsoduro. I am not aware whether this will change or not.

[Stefan_Varong]

The alternative cruise facility in the industrial port of Marghera is now available, roughly 17 km by car from Piazzale Roma in the historical centre or 5 km by taxi boat.
 
https://www.adriaports.com/en/cruises/venice-cruises-start-again-but-from-porto-marghera/