Notre Dame admission fee debate... 'Overtourism' admission fee is the solution?

[Anchor]
Ahead of its reopening in December this year, there has been a proposal to charge admission to Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, which is divided between pros and cons.

It is known that the Italian Trevi Fountain is also considering paying for it.

As a solution to the so-called "overtourism," more attractions are expected to charge admission fees.

Reporter Park Young-jin reports.

[Reporter]
Notre Dame Cathedral, which is set to reopen in December through restoration work for five years after the Great Fire in 2019.

{입장}'Admission Fee' is a hot issue.French Culture Minister Rashida Datti
has proposed that visitors to Notre Dame receive a €5 admission fee and use it to protect religious heritage.

He explained that receiving admission fees will raise more than 100 billion won a year.

But Parisian dioceses and cultural heritage experts oppose it.

The cathedral and church are open to everyone, and free admission is the principle.

Tourists also have mixed pros and cons.

[Maria Belyakova / Greek tourist: 5 euros is not that much and I think it's okay because I think tourists from this country can afford it. I think it's okay to pay to see the beauty, and I'll pay if I need to rebuild more churches.]

[Eric LaLaga / Mexican Tourist: I don't think they should be charged. As it is a religious site, the principle is that religious sites should be accessible to people for free.

The Trevi Fountain, a tourist attraction in Rome, Italy, where you throw coins and make wishes, is also considering paying for it.

The authorities explain that to throw coins into Trevi Fountain, more people are expected to visit the place, where tourists usually flock, next year for the Catholic "Jubilee," so it is a way to reduce confusion.

Venice, which introduced the world's first city admission fee this year, says the system has been successful and plans to implement it next year.

Next year, the period will increase and the amount will increase, and tourists will have to pay fines if they are caught not paying admission fees.

Some say that this 'admission fee system' has failed to prevent so-called 'overtourism' and over-tourism.

However, in the absence of a clear alternative, more European attractions are expected to demand "expensive tourism" in the name of maintaining residents' daily lives.

I'm Park Youngjin of YTN.

Edit
video: Lim Hyun-chul