Thinking of travelling to Venice in 2024?

Decision makers in the Italian canal city have rolled out a pilot program to charge day-trippers 5 euros ($5.45 U.S.) each to enter the fragile lagoon municipality on peak weekends next year.

They say the goal is to reduce crowds, encourage longer visits and improve the quality of life for residents who live in the city of gondolas.

The rollout of the so-called “tourist contribution” came after Venice narrowly escaped being placed on the UNESCO danger list earlier this year because of the threat that over-tourism was having on its delicate ecosystem.

Member states cited the proposed new entry fee in deciding to spare Venice from the list.

Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro says the contribution is a first-of-its-kind experiment in regulating tourist flows in one of the world’s most-visited places.