August has always been the month in which you earn the most in Ostia. In the “Tibidabo”, one of the ancient and beautiful bathing establishments on the city beach of Rome, inaugurated in 1935, often in the morning they put up the sign “Ombrelloni esauriti” at the ticket office: no more umbrellas available, everything sold out until the evening. In Italy These days it is advisable to be at the seaside early in the morning, at nine. It is possible, however, that this Friday will not work either.
In the middle of the high season, the tenants of many of the country’s 7,200 beach resorts, the bathing establishments, want to strike for the first time: initially for only two and a half hours in the morning. But if the government of right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni does not act, the spas will remain closed for half a day on August 15, again during the Christmas holidays, and finally for a whole day at the end of the month. The backdrop is an EU directive that Italy has avoided implementing for almost 20 years.
This is the purpose of the “Umbrella Protest”.
For the millions of holidaymakers who travel the more than 7,500 kilometers of the Mediterranean coast, such a strike would not necessarily amount to a catastrophe. But it would be painful for many. The beach chair and the beach umbrella are, so to speak, national cultural assets.
People here like to look down on foreigners who simply throw a towel on the grains or rocks on the beach, even if only from a height of 20 centimeters.
However, the most convenient location comes at a price. According to the National Bathing Observatory, which exists, last year the average national daily rent for two sunbeds and an umbrella was 30 euros. There are almost no upper limits to the rates: in the bathing establishments in Tuscany or on the Amalfi Coast you pay several hundred euros. Many families have become very rich with their establishments.
The beaches actually belong to the state
The Italian coast actually belongs to the State, that is, to everyone. However, more than half of the beaches are rented to private individuals, often for decades, often secretly and often at ridiculous prices. Some call it nepotism, others call it mafia structures.
On average, a tenant pays about 8,200 euros per year for the concession. The income is many times higher. The center for European The Policy (CEP), based on data from 2016 to 2020, recently established an average annual turnover of 260,000 euros per beach. Other estimates go much higher, especially since part of the money for the beach is probably channeled outside of taxes.
Most Italians have come to terms with the fact that they have to pay a lot for time spent at the beach. “I don’t know it any differently,” says Giulia Toninelli, a public employee from Rome, on her deckchair at “Tibidabo.” “I was here with my parents, now with my children. This has its price.”
But there are also those who no longer agree with the traditional system. Writer Manuela Salvi complains about “beaches like battery cages where even the chickens have to pay for their stay.” So far, however, the protests have been limited.
Tenant families want to protect their benefits from EU directives
The status quo is also endangered in another way: through an EU directive, whose implementation was supposed to begin in 2006. As a result, state concessions for stretches of beach must be regularly renewed because they are public land, but this has been postponed several times by various governments in Rome.
One of the arguments: We must prevent foreign multinationals from replacing Italian families on the beach in the future, as in the Gulf of Trieste, where the multinational energy drink company Red Bull secured the contract for 120,000 square meters two years ago. The tenders will now begin nationwide in January 2025.
Disappointment with Prime Minister Meloni
One of the biggest critics of the EU directive when she was still in opposition was the current Prime Minister Meloni. The disappointment among beach operators is now even deeper. The president of the Italian Beach Union, Antonio Capacchione, complains: “The government has done nothing for two years. We have sent eight letters to request a meeting, with no response. Apart from the strike, what else can we do?”
Hence the first “beach umbrella strike” in Italian history, although some things are still unclear. What is certain is that the ticket offices are not actually supposed to open until late morning. However, regular guests may be allowed to open their sunbeds and umbrellas themselves. Others will probably fill the waiting time with an espresso. On this occasion: Despite the strike, the price of sunbeds and umbrellas will not change. The usual daily rate applies.
German holidaymakers need to know this
Overall, the strike will not have a major impact on holidays in Italy, but it could cause some inconvenience. Regular guests, who are used to taking their place early in the morning, could be particularly affected by the strikes. Holidaymakers should prepare for this and, if necessary, look for alternatives to be able to continue enjoying their day at the beach.
First of all: on strike days, beaches remain closed for two and a half hours in the morning. This could lead to increased demand and perhaps longer waiting times for the reopening of beach resorts.