Overview
- The Villasimìus council has enacted an ordinance that forbids umbrellas for people aged 10 to 65 while allowing one umbrella for families with children under 10 and for those aged 65 and over.
- The package of rules is active now and will run through 31 October unless extended, and it exempts disabled people and their companions from the €10 per-person online access charge.
- Local authorities also set strict capacity controls including 70 parking spaces per day, limits on the number of people on dunes and on boat arrivals, one-hour boat stays, fixed opening hours, and nightly mandatory evacuation.
- The council says the measures respond to a July 2025 wildfire that burned vehicles and forced people to be evacuated by boat, and officials argue dense umbrella placement had impeded land evacuations.
- The rules have prompted sharp public criticism over heat and skin-cancer risks, fairness and tourist access, and they echo a broader Italian trend of tighter beach management to protect coasts and control overcrowding.