Italy Moves Toward Nationwide Ban on Horse-Drawn Tourist Carriages

The proposal, backed by the Democratic Party (PD), Action – European Sovereignty (Avs) and the Five Star Movement (M5S), seeks a complete prohibition of horse-drawn carriages—known locally as “botticelle”—for public hire, non-scheduled transport, tourist, recreational and ceremonial uses in Rome and other major tourist cities.

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The botticelle trade, one of Rome’s oldest tourist services, has faced criticism from environmental and animal-rights groups for years. The association Amore A Quattro Zampe and other NGOs argue that urban streets, especially during the scorching summer heat, are unsuitable for horses, whose welfare is compromised by hot asphalt and traffic congestion. An awareness campaign titled “A piedi è più bello” (Walking Is More Beautiful) will run throughout August in the city’s main tourist zones, promoting pedestrian travel over animal-drawn transport.

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Patrizia Prestipino, PD MP and animal-welfare guarantor for Roma Capitale, emphasized that municipal ordinances limiting botticelle hours are insufficient and called for a national law to end the practice. Rocco Ferraro, councillor for the Environment, Ecological Transition, Protected Areas and Animal Protection in Rome, expressed support for the legislation, urging Parliament to seize the “historic opportunity” to eliminate horse-drawn tourist transport, describing the practice as belonging to the past.

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“Individual municipal ordinances that restrict the hours and activities of the botticelle are not enough. We need to move towards a national law that abolishes botticelle and animal-drawn carriages in cities,” — PD MP Patrizia Prestipino

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If enacted, the law would remove a long-standing tourist attraction from Rome’s streets, reshaping the city’s cultural landscape and potentially redirecting tourism revenue toward alternative, animal-free experiences. The ban could also set a precedent for other Italian art cities, prompting a broader shift in how historic urban spaces accommodate modern animal-welfare standards.

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