A popular fishing town on the Italian Riviera is putting in place a new rule to try to keep tourists from making the village too crowded.

The Italian town of Portofino, which is just south of Genoa, will fine tourists for staying too long in new “red” zones, according to the Corriere della Sera newspaper. People who break the rules could be fined €68 to €275, which is $74 to $300. From 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., the controlled zones will be in place until at least October 15. According to the paper, the rules say that visitors can’t stop and stay for a long time “in points of aggregation and meeting places for groups and cruise passengers waiting to be boarding on boats or other things.” In the past, that staying has caused “serious obstacles and potential danger.”

Mayor Matteo Viacava of Portofino told Corriere della Sera that the new rules “ensure that all tourists who come to Portofino can enjoy the village while also keeping the square safe.”

The Independent says that Portofino has just over 500 people, but that number tends to rise to thousands during busy visitor seasons. The town is known for its bright homes that line a beautiful bay. 

Portofino isn’t the only town in Italy with rules to keep people from getting too crowded. In Naples, a famous holiday street lined with nativity scenes had one-way foot traffic rules put in place last year to make things less crowded. To stop too many tourists, Venice started keeping track of guests in 2021 using its large network of CCTV cameras and mobile phone tracking system.

Aside from Italy, popular French places like Marseille and Corsica began limiting the number of people they allowed last year to keep tourism in check.

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