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Photos: Tourists steer clear of Venice over coronavirus fears
A UNESCO World Heritage site that is frequented by hordes of tourists during the festive season, Venice in the time of coronavirus is a shell of itself, with empty piazzas, shuttered basilicas and gondoliers idling their days away. When the virus hit, claiming its first Italian fatality, regional president closed Venice’s decadent Carnival celebrations with just two days to go. The city has remained quiet ever since.
Updated on: Mar 09, 2020 9:11 PM IST
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A gondola sails on an empty Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. A quarter of the Italian population was locked down on March 8 as the government took drastic steps to stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus that is sweeping the globe. Owing to the outbreak, the city is deserted even during the festive season. (Andrea Pattaro / AFP)
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A tourist wears a protective mask in Saint Mark's Square as the Italian government prepares to adopt new measures to contain the spread of coronavirus in Venice. When the virus hit, claiming its first Italian fatality in the Veneto region and some of the first positive cases in Venice’s historic centre, regional president closed Venice’s decadent Carnival celebrations with two days to go, forcing revelers to cancel their parties. (Manuel Silvestri / REUTERS)
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Tourists wearing protective masks pose for a photograph at the Rialto bridge as the sun sets in Venice. Venice has remained quiet ever since the first coronavirus casualty. Only residents and intrepid tourists wearing a different type of mask — surgical ones — remain to take advantage of a hauntingly beautiful jewel of a city that otherwise would be jammed. (Francisco Seco / AP)
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A shop assistant waits for customers at the Murano island in Venice. The head of Venice’s hotel association, Claudio Scarpa, estimated lost revenue had already reached 1 billion euros, local media reported. Nationwide, the Confturismo-Confcommercio tourist lobby estimated virus-related losses of 7.4 billion euros from March 1-May 31. (Francisco Seco / AP)
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Commuters and locals ride in a bus boat. The coronavirus outbreak has hit particularly hard in Italy, where travel and tourism generate 13% of economic activity, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council. (Francisco Seco / AP)
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A tourist wearing a protective face mask leaves the basilica of San Marco in Venice. The economic losses are piling up in a city already going under, given the more existential, long-term threat that Venice is sinking. (Andrea Pattaro / AFP)
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Empty restaurant tables are seen in St Mark's Square in Venice. The Veneto region surrounding Venice has been hard hit from the virus, counting 345 of Italy’s 3,089 positive cases. Veneto schools have been closed since the start of the outbreak, and the tiny town of Vo’Euganeo has been under quarantine for nearly two weeks. (Manuel Silvestri / REUTERS)
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A luggage porter waits for clients at a railway station in Venice. Veneto’s regional president Luca Zaia has been battling to preserve Venice’s tourism industry in the face of the contagion. On Wednesday, he posted a gauzy photo of the lagoon city on his Facebook page with the caption: “Venice ‘infects’ only with its beauty.” (Francesca Volpi / Bloomberg)
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