Will Jennings

In June 2020, mid-pandemic, the canals of Venice were as clear as they’d ever been. There were far fewer boats. Pollution had fallen. Swarms of fish were unusually visible. Meanwhile, just to the south of the city, a human chain of Venetians lined the Zattere waterfront, holding banners including ‘VENEZIA NON SI MANGIA’ – ‘Venice is not to be eaten’. The protests were led by campaign group Comitato No Grandi Navi (the ‘No to Big Ships’ campaign group), whose main focus in recent years has been to force cruise ships as far away from the island as possible. Anyone who has visited Venice will have witnessed the incredible sight of decks towering over the fragile, sinking city. Though it may at first seem sublime, the reality is much more frightening; in 2019 the 13-deck MSC Opera hit a tourist boat and crashed into the docks. While the passengers’ views must be immense, so too is the amount of water displaced. Opponents argue cruises’ pull and push of lagoon sediment even undermines the very foundations the city is built upon. Photograph: Carlo Zambon Cruise ships have also come to symbolise the mass tourism many feel Venice cannot support for much longer. Beautiful though the city’s labyrinthine alleyways are, their mid-summer romance fades when clogged with queues of visitors jostling between sights. But then came the pandemic. We were in the city earlier this month, and the canals felt calmer, freer and much less hassly than ever before. There were no queues at ice-cream pa