Summertime is vacation time, and anyone who travels to the sea in Italy can be happy there in two ways: Some love community, comfort and service and crowd together on the loungers in the public bathing beach, which is subject to a fee. Cabins, a restaurant and possibly a playground are not far away. 15 to 30 euros for two loungers with an umbrella are common, but the price scale is open depending on the level of luxury.
The others are looking for individual freedom on an spiaggia libera, a freely accessible – and free of charge! – Beach section. Bring drinks and umbrellas with you, as well as the hope of being a little to yourself, but you often have to be content with a narrow, poorly maintained and overcrowded strip. Continuity is possible in both cases, some have been coming to the same watering hole for ages, and alas, something has changed since last year. But it will now, those who are fond of habits have to fear, one way or the other.
The holidaymaker does not yet get the harbingers of change on site, unless the lido operator pours out his heart. The fierce struggle between the government in Rome and the EU bodies in Brussels is still taking place behind the scenes. For a whopping 17 years, since 2006, the EU has been demanding competition here, as it has elsewhere in European economic life. The concessions for the beach sections are to be re-advertised and freely awarded, and applicants from all over the EU could then have a chance.
The concessions are inexpensive, the proceeds are many times higher
Many of the ten thousand stabilimenti balneari but have been in the hands of the same families for as long as anyone can remember, and they want it to stay that way. We are Italy, say their stakeholders, referring to the gastronomy in the holiday resorts, which in some places falls into foreign hands. Besides, the whole thing is an extremely lucrative business: the concessions are inexpensive, the proceeds are many times that. An operating license is available from 2700 euros a year, on average it is estimated at 8200 euros. This is offset by an average annual income of 260,000 euros per lido.
The power of the operator is great, the topic is emotionally charged. So far, every government, regardless of orientation, has managed to ensure that everything stays the way it is. But the existing licenses will expire at the end of 2023, and the current operators will then have to apply for an operating license against other interested parties, which the European Court of Justice has just confirmed again. Now the government has decided – quite late – to measure the beaches again, after all you have to know what you are arguing about.
You can interpret this as playing for time, but one thing is clear: the moment of truth is approaching and there will be victims. Many a guest may lose their traditional operator family. The prices will probably also change, whether it will be cheaper or even more expensive is still the question.
Thinking the other way around: once the space that is still available has been defined, there will be a great temptation to approve new bathrooms. You could give them to the competition so as not to have to torment the old licensees too much. That would then affect the lovers of free beaches as well as possibly nature conservation. Too bad actually.