Fighting the key box: Florence bans key boxes

The city council passed the new regulation with a large majority. The aim is to prevent more rental apartments from falling victim to mass tourism in the capital of Tuscany with its 360,000 inhabitants. Other cities are considering following suit - elsewhere in Europe too.

In the historic center of Florence, with its cathedral, magnificent houses and many museums such as the Uffizi Gallery, it is now almost impossible to find an affordable apartment. Many owners prefer to rent for a few days via internet portals such as Airbnb. This brings in considerably more money. The key boxes hanging everywhere have become a symbol of this.

Residents: "We are a dying breed"

In some houses, there are hardly any tenants who live there permanently. Engineer Leonardo Lani, for example, is alone in his house surrounded by Airbnb apartments. "We are a dying breed," he told the daily newspaper La Repubblica. In protest against the short-term rentals, a citizens' initiative called "Salviamo Firenze" ("Save Florence") recently taped up hundreds of boxes with red tape.

The ban is now in force with immediate effect. However, owners of vacation apartments in Florence still have ten days to remove the key boxes. Then, if there is still a key box hanging near the apartment door, they will have to pay 400 euros. The boxes usually only cost around 35 euros.

Key boxes also in many German cities

In recent years, key boxes have also become popular in many other countries for short-term rentals. The principle is simple: overnight guests book online and are then sent a code with which they can open the combination lock and remove the keys. When they leave, they put the keys back in.

Italy is already taking action against such boxes. It is now mandatory throughout the country for owners and holidaymakers to meet even in the case of short-term rentals. The guests' personal details must then be reported to the police within 24 hours of arrival - which not everyone adheres to. There is also no general ban on keyboxes in Italy.

Owners criticize state coercion

The center-left mayor of Florence, Sara Funaro, called the decision the "beginning of a path of attention for more quality of life, decency and safety". The authorities also justify the ban by stating that criminals should not be able to find an anonymous hiding place.

The owners' association Aigad criticized it as state coercion. The head of the association, Marco Celani, referred to the approximately 15 percent vacancy rate in the historic centers of Italy's cities.

Apart from the increased rents, residents also criticize night-time noise, constant noise from trolleys in the streets and wear and tear in the stairwells due to the constant coming and going.

More than 4.5 million visitors per year

According to the city, more than 4.5 million tourists come to Florence every year. Many stay for several days. There are still 60,000 people living in the historic center.

Italy as a whole is one of the most visited countries in the world: last year, 450 million overnight stays by foreign guests were counted. Other cities such as Rome and Venice are now also trying to regulate short-term rentals.

Last year, the lagoon city on the Adriatic became the first city in the world to charge admission to short-term visitors. This year, from Easter onwards, visitors will have to pay up to ten euros on certain dates to be allowed to stroll along Venice's canals for a few hours. The volcano-covered city of Pompeii near Naples has even imposed a visitor limit: More than 20,000 tourists are no longer allowed in at the same time.