Venice is limiting numbers allowed on its famous gondola tours because of ''overweight'' tourists.
Gondola
The maximum number permitted on the boats, which offers tours of the city's iconic canals, has been reduced from six to five.
Andrea Balbi, president of Venice's gondoliers association, told the Guardian newspaper: ''It's true that compared to 10 or 15 years ago, tourists weigh a bit more.
''Unlike in a lift, where there's a message that says 'only six people or a maximum weight', we don't have scales to weigh people, and so we reduced the number of passengers.''
Heavy loads can cause water to enter gondolas and Balbi explained that they have only been designed for five people.
Balbi said: ''So the sixth person ends up sitting in a place without a cushion as the boat was only made for five.''