Salerno – A "Wild West" on the high seas, where tourist safety and legality are at risk. This is how Assomare Italia describes the nautical tourism landscape in Salerno, which is experiencing uncontrolled growth due to rampant illegal construction.
The association has launched a full-scale campaign to denounce the problem, calling for urgent action from institutions to protect a strategic sector and the city's image.
The alarm, raised on July 15th, has not gone unheard. In the ports of Salerno, the phenomenon of illegality has many faces, as Davide Di Stefano, president of Assomare Italia, explains: "We are witnessing a veritable Wild West where anyone can pretend to be a maritime entrepreneur, exploiting the lack of law enforcement personnel and the looseness of current regulations."
Among the unprofessional operators are the "sea pirates," who offer excursions at rock-bottom prices with no guarantee of safety. There are the "semi-illegal" operators who, despite having a registered business, employ untrained and often illegal personnel. Finally, there is the growing phenomenon of "occasional rental," with private individuals renting out their boats to cover operating costs, without the necessary insurance coverage and checks.
Tourist safety and Salerno's image are at risk.
The consequences of this anarchy are serious. The main critical points, highlighted by Assomare Italia, concern the safety of passengers, who rely on improvised skippers and uncertified vessels, and the region's image. Salerno aspires to become an "international hub for experiential and maritime tourism," but the chaos in its ports risks seriously compromising this ambition.
President Di Stefano emphasizes that the current regulations are "obsolete and harmful to the professional sector," which is why the association has launched a petition to be sent to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. The goal is to revise the rules, recognizing the role of professional rental operators and establishing an official register, similar to that for tour guides.
Over the past five years, nautical tourism in Salerno has seen significant growth, an opportunity that risks being undermined by the spread of illegal activities. Assomare Italia, which has worked in recent years to build an organized, high-quality system, is now calling for a "dialogue with the institutions" and the support of the relevant bodies. The complaint is not only a safeguard for honest operators, but a call to defend a sector that, if regulated, could be an extraordinary resource for the city's future tourism.
The article highlights serious problems for nautical tourism in Salerno, but I feel the proposed solutions aren't clear and specific enough. A more direct approach is needed to address the problem of illegal boating.