Forbidden to walk around town in swimsuits: municipalities punish boorish tourists

Vacationing by the sea but clothed. Yes, there are several seaside resorts whose mayor invoking ’more decorum’ has signed an ordinance to prohibit walking around in bathing suits, complete with hefty fines of up to 500 euros (five hundred) for offenders caught in the act of sweating in plain sight or with their buttocks out.

We begin the roundup of municipalities that have enacted this type of measure with the renowned Apulian town of Gallipoli: forbidden to walk around downtown in a bathing suit or shirtless until September 20, otherwise fine of up to 150 euros for violators. Mayor Stefano Minerva bans “unbecoming” clothing outside establishments, away from the seafront or beaches, in the historic center including Corso Roma, and, as reported by the Quotidiano di Puglia, the ordinance contemplates a ban on entering the building and municipal offices in “unbecoming clothing, wearing only a swimsuit, or bare-chested, in shorts and a tank top.” The mayor reportedly matured the decision after reports received from citizens and tourists in previous years as well.

Favignana is also asking for ’decorum’: the mayor of the largest island of the Egadi Islands justifies himself by saying that “what we are asking for,” as Skytg24 reports, “is a minimum of respect for public spaces. Where is the scandal? After all, in Rome are you allowed to walk in the center or enter museums shirtless? ”. And in fact, the ordinance that Francesco Forgione signed, in addition to the ban on the streets of the historic center, also includes it for the municipal palace and historical tourist hotspots such as the Palazzo dei Florio and their former tonnara. “It is unthinkable, after all, to enter historical places such as the Florio palace or the former tuna factory in a bathing suit and without a shirt. There are other places, such as beaches and creeks, where you can stay and sunbathe, but among the stores, at the City Hall and in historic sites we cannot allow anyone to do so.” the ban remains until September 30 and the administrative fine varies between 25 and 150 euros.

Moving up the boot we see that in Camogli the fine is heavier: until October 31 (yes, all of October included) fines between 25 and 500 euros for those caught circulating, or stopping, around the town shirtless, in a bathing suit or “without footwear” in the center and in the marina area. The ordinance signed by Mayor Giovanni Anelli, as reported by Genova Today, states that “with the beginning of the tourist season there is an exponential increase in population with a high presence of tourists in the municipal area” and this would therefore lead to “situations and conduct that are felt by the generality of people as contrary to the decorum and decency typical of normal civil coexistence and that compromise the decorum, image and livability of the municipality.” Clothing represents an “objective parameter of negative evaluation for the qualitative level of good living in the territory with consequent repercussions on the image and the proposed tourist offer.”

Let’s go up again and see that the mayor’s ordinance against ’boorish’ tourism is also in force in the municipality of Eraclea: no shirtless walks or with the buttocks in full view and bikinis on the city streets. As reported by the Gazzettino, the mayor of the Venetian coastal town Nadia Zanchin says, “This is a measure that stems from the requests of merchants who reported to us certain situations related mainly to the lack of education. The measure has proven to work because last year these phenomena were reduced, which is why the ordinance will continue to remain in force.” A common problem for all seaside towns, there is perception of the phenomenon and different “tolerances” among both merchants and residents and vacationers themselves. In Eraclea, reports have pointed to the annoyance of having to walk or enter premises with those who have just arrived from the beach, perhaps in thongs or in the center of town. Before entering the premises, people are asked to cover up, just a T-shirt and a sarong.

Also in San Felice Circeo, as Fanpage reports, fines of up to 500 euros (the level of seriousness is judged by the municipal police officer who commits the penalty and sets the amount of the fine) if you walk shirtless, in a bathing suit and without shoes in the center of town. Mayor Monia Di Cosimo also banned hanging out clothes in public areas. The expressed motivation for the measure, in effect until Sept. 30, lies in the “safeguarding and protection of the territory and image of the Municipality of San Felice Circeo, an internationally renowned tourist destination.” It is intended to avoid behavior “contrary to the decorum and decency typical of normal civil coexistence. Among these behaviors, which are, moreover, the subject of numerous complaints from residents and tourists, the circulation in the territory in bathing suits, bare-chested or barefoot, as well as the placement of clothes hanging on public areas, including balconies overlooking the public street, are particularly highlighted.”

Fines of up to 500 euros also in Praia a Mare, as reported by the Cosenza Channel website, Mayor Antonino De Lorenzo called the ban necessary because “recently on the municipal territory there have been behaviors that are felt by the generality of people as contrary to the decorum and decency typical of civil coexistence.” “The continuation of such a situation, in addition to constituting an element of discomfort and discomfort for the resident population and visiting tourists, could constitute an objective parameter of negative evaluation of the qualitative level of good living in the municipal territory with consequent repercussions on the image and tourist offer that is proposed.” Photocopy reasons even in the choice of vocabulary and terminology, they seem to have passed the word around, especially the “objective parameter of negative evaluation” liked a lot. The same ordinance also prohibits the “installation on the free beach of shade systems other than umbrellas with a maximum diameter of 1.50 meters; begging on the entire municipal territory; abandoning any kind of garbage on public areas; transiting with electric-powered bicycles in areas other than roadways; conducting dogs throughout the municipal territory without the use of a leash as well as without custody; abandoning in public spaces, used for pedestrian passage or in areas of public green spaces equipped as gardens the excrement deposited by dogs during their walks.”

Similar measures against bare-chestedness have been taken in past years by municipalities such as Jesolo, Sorrento, Tropea, Baia Domizia in Campania, Margherita di Savoia, Rapallo, Milano Marittima, Riccione, Vietri sul mare

Below, depiction of two tourists walking around the city in swimsuits. Image generated with artificial intelligence

Forbidden to walk around town in swimsuits: municipalities punish boorish tourists

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