Fines in Europe: Don’t Get in Trouble!

Many American vacationers arrive in cities like Rome and Portofino with their luggage in tow, ready to sightsee straight from the airport or train station. What most don’t realize is that doing so could actually be illegal.

Italy has introduced some of the strictest tourist behavior laws in Europe, and luggage is right at the center of them. In Rome, dragging a wheeled suitcase down the Spanish Steps is banned under the city’s urban decorum laws, with fines starting at €250 (approx. $270) and rising to €400 ($430) or more if damage is caused.

In Portofino, a municipal regulation explicitly bans tourists from lingering in congested areas with suitcases, with fines reaching up to €500 ($540).

Jacob Wedderburn-Day, a travel expert and CEO of the luggage storage network Stasher, says the laws are catching ordinary Americans abroad off guard. “These rules punish people for doing what feels completely normal when arriving in a new city: bags in hand, heading straight to iconic landmarks,” he says.

“The problem is that marble staircases that have stood for centuries can’t handle millions of suitcase wheels grinding across them each year. Even the vibration from bouncing luggage down steps causes microscopic damage that accumulates over time.”

Spring is one of the busiest travel periods of the year for European city getaways, and enforcement of decorum laws tends to intensify during peak tourist seasons. Police in Rome actively patrol hotspots throughout the day and respond quickly.

“Never treat your arrival day as a sightseeing day if you still have your bags with you. Head straight to your hotel, or use a luggage storage service first. Getting hit with a fine by local police before your vacation has even started is not the kind of experience anyone wants,” Wedderburn-Day adds.

What Americans Need to Know Before They Go

While the Italian and Spanish laws covered below aren’t brand new, awareness among US travelers remains incredibly low. Wedderburn-Day highlights four other European rules that regularly catch tourists by surprise:

No high heels (Acropolis, Greece)

“Greece has banned sharp-heeled footwear at ancient sites, including the Acropolis and the Epidaurus Theatre. The fine for ignoring it can reach up to €900 (nearly $1,000). On surfaces that are thousands of years old, a single step causes micro-fractures. This is one of the most expensive unknown fines in European tourism.”

Driving in flip-flops (Spain)

“Spain’s traffic authority (DGT) has confirmed that officers can fine drivers up to €200 ($215) if they judge that your footwear is affecting your ability to control a rental car safely. Guardia Civil officers have on-the-spot discretion.”

Swimwear other than at the beach (Spain and Italy)

“Barcelona has had a swimwear ban in place since 2011, with fines up to €300 ($325) for wearing bikinis or swim trunks on city streets away from the beach. In Majorca and the Balearic Islands, the fine rises to €600 ($650), and Sorrento in Italy carries fines of up to €500 ($540). The rules apply to men as well as women. No wandering into a restaurant shirtless, either.”

No feeding the pigeons (Venice)

“Feeding pigeons anywhere in Venice has been illegal since 2008, with fines up to €500 ($540). Pigeon droppings and pecking cause serious damage to Venice’s fragile marble facades, and the clean-up bill runs into hundreds of euros per resident every year. Local authorities take it very seriously.”

Wedderburn-Day concludes: “The common thread running through all of these laws is that Europe’s most beloved destinations are under more pressure from tourism than ever before, and local authorities are responding with strict enforcement rather than education.

“The fines are real, they are being actively issued, and they catch people off guard precisely because the behaviors involved feel completely harmless. Do a quick check of the local rules before you travel and sort your bags out before you start exploring.”