THE Pompeii the archaeological park plans to limit the number of visitors to 20,000 per day and introduce tickets starting next week to try to deal with the sur-tourism and protect the world heritage site, officials said Friday.

The move comes after what authorities called a record summer, in which more than 4 million people visited the world-famous remains of the ancient Roman city, buried under ash and rock after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

Park director Gabriel Zuchtriegel said visitors to the main archaeological site now average more than 15,000 to 20,000 per day, and the new daily cap will prevent that number from increasing further.

“We are working on a series of projects aimed at reducing human pressure on the site, which could pose risks both to visitors and to the heritage (which is) so unique and fragile,” Zuchtriegel said.

Starting November 15, park tickets will be personalized to include visitors’ full names. A maximum of 20,000 tickets will go on sale each day, with different time slots during the peak summer season.

The park management is also trying to attract more tourists to other ancient sites connected to Pompeii by a free shuttle as part of the “Great Pompeii” project, including the sites of Stabia, Torre Annunziata and Boscoreale.

“Flow management and security measures as well as the personalization of tours are part of this strategy,” Zuchtriegel said.

“We are aiming for slow, sustainable, pleasant and non-mass tourism and above all widespread throughout the territory around the UNESCO site, which is full of cultural gems to discover,” he added.