Travel
Tourist taxes: All of the countries you will have to pay to enter in 2023 or 2024
From the Algarve to Thailand, these are all the places bringing in new fees to combat overtourism.
Travel has well and truly bounced back since the pandemic, buoying tourist destinations that were crippled by restrictions and closures.
But some popular destinations are once again reeling under the strain of overtourism.
As a result, some resorted to implementing a ‘tourist tax’ last year and others have followed suit in 2023.
Many places already have tourist taxes in place and if you’ve travelled abroad, you’ve likely paid one before. You may have never noticed it – as it’s sometimes worked into airline tickets or the taxes you pay at your hotel.
We’ve done all the research for you: here is everything you need to know about the countries you have to pay to enter.
Barcelona is increasing its tourist tax in 2023
Barcelona’s tourist tax will be increased over the next two years, city authorities have announced.
Since 2012, visitors to the Catalan capital have had to pay both the regional tourist tax and an extra city-wide surcharge.
On 1 April, city authorities increased the municipal fee to €2.75.
A second increase will happen next year on 1 April 2024, when the fee will rise to €3.25.
The tax applies to visitors staying in official tourist accommodation.
The council said the proceeds would be used to fund the city’s infrastructure, including improvements to roads, bus services and escalators.
Valencia will impose a tourist tax in 2024
Valencia has announced it will introduce a tourist tax for travellers staying in all types of accommodation in the region, including hotels, hostels, apartments and campsites.
It will come into effect at the end of 2023 or early 2024.
Visitors will have to pay between 50 cents and €2 per night depending on their chosen accommodation, for up to seven nights.
Authorities say the fee will go towards the sustainable development of the region’s tourism sector. Proceeds will also be used to provide more affordable housing for locals in tourism hotspots.
Olhão, Portugal, introduced a tourist tax in 2023
Olhão, a Portuguese fishing town popular with tourists, has started charging visitors €2 a night between April and October.
The tax will be reduced to €1 between November and March. It will not apply to children under the age of 16 and it will be capped at five nights – so a maximum of €10 – per trip.
The fee is being used to minimise the impact of tourism in the Algarve town, including improving cleanliness and security, according to local authorities.
Two of the Algarve’s 16 municipalities already charged a tourist tax: Faro (€1.5 per night up to seven nights between March and October) and Vila Real de Santo António (€1 per day up to seven days).
Thailand is introducing a tourist fee in 2023
Thailand is introducing a tourist fee of 300 Baht (€8). It was initially expected to come into force at the end of 2022 but a lack of clarity on how it would be implemented has led to delays.
It now looks to have been delayed from June to September 2023, after airlines flagged further concerns.
The governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand told Reuters last year that part of the fee will “be used to take care of tourists” as there have been times when health insurance didn’t cover them.
It will also help finance further developments of tourist attractions, such as the Grand Palace in Bangkok.
Venice will introduce a tourist fee in 2024
Venice will begin charging tourists who visit for the day from 2024.
The fee has been delayed multiple times, but a 30-day trial finally looks set to happen over spring and summer weekends next year. Exact dates are yet to be confirmed.
The imminent tourist tax is “not a tool for making cash,” the city said in a statement.
Proceeds from the entry fees will go towards services that help the residents of the city, including through maintenance, cleaning and reducing living costs.
EU implements a tourist visa in 2024
Starting in 2024, non-EU citizens, including Americans, Australians, Brits and other travellers from outside the Schengen zone, will need to fill out a €7 application to get in.
Those under 18 or over 70 will not have to pay the fee.
The scheme was supposed to be enforced by November 2023 but has faced delays relating to the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES).
These are all the countries where you already have to pay a tourist fee to get in
Many countries already have a tourist fee in place, for a variety of reasons.
For some, it’s to do with trying to curb the number of tourists and to prevent overtourism.
For others it’s almost like a sustainability tax on each visitor. The money from these taxes goes towards maintaining tourism facilities and protecting natural resources.
Austria
In Austria you pay an overnight accommodation tax, which varies depending on which province you’re in. In Vienna or Salzburg, you’ll pay an extra 3.02 per cent on the hotel bill per person.
The tourism levy is also known as Tourismusgesetz and Berherbergungsbeiträge.
Belgium
The tourist tax in Belgium is also applied to accommodation, for every night you stay there.
The fee is sometimes included in the room rate of the hotel but some separate the cost out and make it a supplemental charge, so you need to check your bill carefully.
Antwerp and Bruges charge a rate per room. The rate in Brussels varies depending on the hotel’s size and rating.
In general it’s around €7.50.
Bhutan
While most countries’ tourist fees are below around €20, Bhutan’s tax is sky high in comparison.
The minimum daily fee for most foreigners is: $250 (€228) per person per day during high season and slightly less in low season.
But it covers a lot, including accommodation, transportation in the country, a guide, food, and entry fees.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria applies a tourist fee on overnight stays.
It’s very low and varies depending on area and hotel classification – up to around €1.50.
Caribbean Islands
Most Caribbean islands have tourist taxes added to the hotel cost or a departure fee.
Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, and the US Virgin Islands all have some form of fee for visitors.
Fees range from €13 in the Bahamas to €45 in Antigua and Barbuda.
Croatia
Croatia raised its tourist tax in 2019. The increased rate only applies during peak season in the summer though.
Visitors pay around 10 kuna (€1.33) per person per night.
Czech Republic
You only need to pay a tourist fee in the Czech Republic when visiting the capital city, Prague.
It is very small (under €1) and paid per person, per night, up to 60 nights. The tax does not apply to children under 18.
France
There is a “taxe de séjour” to pay in France. It is added to your hotel bill and varies depending on which city you are in.
The rates range from €0.20 to around €4 per person, per night.
Tourist hotspots like Paris and Lyon use the money to maintain tourism infrastructure.
Germany
Germany has what they call a “culture tax” (a kulturförderabgabe), and also a “bed tax” (a bettensteuer), in cities such as Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Berlin.
The fee is around 5 per cent of your hotel bill.
Greece
The tourist tax in Greece is based on the number of hotel stars or number of rooms you’re renting. It can be anything up to €4 per room.
It was introduced by the Greek Ministry of Tourism to help cut the country’s debt.
Hungary
Tourist fees in Hungary only apply in Budapest.
Travellers have to pay an extra 4 per cent every night based on the price of their room.
Indonesia
Tourist taxes in Indonesia only apply in Bali.
In 2019, a new law states that overseas visitors to the Indonesian island must pay a fee in the region of €9.
Revenue from the tax reportedly goes towards programmes that help to preserve the environment and Balinese culture.
Italy
Tourist taxes in Italy depend on where you are. Venice may introduce its own tax in the summer of 2022.
Meanwhile, Rome’s fee ranges from €3 to €7 per night depending on the type of room, but some smaller cities charge more.
Japan
In Japan it comes in the form of a departure tax. Visitors to Japan pay 1,000 yen (around €8) as they leave the country.
The official tourism website claims this small tax makes “a significant difference” to the economy.
Malaysia
Malaysia’s tourist tax is a flat rate and applied per night you stay.
It’s not much more than around €4 a night.
New Zealand
Many tourists, people on working holidays, and some students and workers coming to New Zealand must pay an International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL) when they arrive.
But people from Australia are exempt.
It’s $35 New Zealand dollars which is around €21.
The Netherlands
The Netherlands has a land tourist tax and a water tourist tax.
In Amsterdam, this amounts to 7 per cent of the cost of a hotel room. It’s called toeristenbelasting.
Portugal
Portugal’s low tourist tax is paid per night per person and is only applicable to guests who are 13 and over.
It’s around €2 and currently applies in 13 of Portugal’s 308 municipalities, including the cities of Porto, Lisbon and Faro.
You only have to pay it on the first seven days of your stay.
Slovenia
The tourist tax in Slovenia varies based on location and hotel rating.
It’s slightly higher in larger cities and resort towns, including Ljubljana and Bled – around €3.
Spain
If you’re heading to Ibiza or Majorca, you’ll have to pay a tourist tax.
The Sustainable Tourist Tax, which applies to holiday accommodation on Spain’s Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, Formentera), also applies to each holidaymaker aged 16 or over.
During the high season, the tax can reach up to €4 per night.
Switzerland
The tourist tax in Switzerland varies depending on the location. The cost is per night and per person and is around €2.20.
Quotes for accommodation usually do not include the tourist tax – it is specified as a separate amount, so it’s easier to keep track of.
And it only applies to stays under 40 days.
USA
A hotel tax or lodging tax for travellers renting accommodation is charged in most of the United States. It’s also called an occupancy tax.
The fees apply at hotels, motels and inns. The highest rate is reportedly paid in Houston, with a 17 per cent tax on your hotel bill.
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Travel
A 4-year cruise or a €1 house in Italy: Inside the schemes helping Americans skip Trump’s presidency
Searches by Americans for moving abroad soared in the 24 hours after the first polls closed, according to Google data.
Following the recent US election result, Google searches for ‘how to move to Europe’ increased by more than 1,000 per cent in some countries.
Searches by Americans for moving to Canada and Australia soared by 1,270 and 820 per cent respectively in the 24 hours after the first polls closed, according to Google data.
The interest in leaving the States has not gone unnoticed by marketing firms.
A residential cruise ship is now offering Americans a four-year ‘escape’ trip while a Sardinian village has relaunched its €1 house scheme.
Cruise company offers four-year escape from Trump
Cruise firm Villa Vie Residences is marketing a four-year round the world trip to Americans looking to skip Donald Trump’s second term as president.
The Tour La Vie programme offers passengers a stay of up to four years onboard while visiting 140 countries – which doesn’t include the US.
The irreverently named packages include a one-year ‘Escape from Reality’ cruise, a two-year ‘Mid-Term Selection’ option, a three-year ‘Everywhere but Home’ cruise, and the four-year ‘Skip Forward’ trip.
Guests would join the Villa Vie Odyssey, a residential cruise ship which set sail from Belfast in September, several months into its voyage.
“We came up with this marketing campaign before we even knew who would win. Regardless of who would have won, you would have half of the population upset,” CEO Mikael Petterson told US news site Newsweek.
“Quite frankly, we don’t have a political view one way or the other. We just wanted to give people who feel threatened to have a way to get out.”
Prices start at a little under $40,000 (€38,000) a year. For those opting for the full four-year escape, single-occupancy cabins start at $256,000 (€243,000) while double-occupancy costs up to $320,000 (€303,000).
The price includes all food and drinks (alcohol only at dinner), WiFi, medical visits, weekly housekeeping service and bi-weekly laundry.
Sardinian village relaunches €1 house scheme for Americans
In rural Sardinia, the village of Ollolai has revived its €1 house scheme, now targeting Americans exhausted by the election.
The homes-for-the-price-of-an-espresso offer has been relaunched for US citizens “worned [sic] out by global politics” and “looking to embrace a more balanced lifestyle”, local authorities write on the village’s website.
“Of course, we can’t specifically mention the name of one US president who just got elected, but we all know that he’s the one from whom many Americans want to get away from now and leave the country,” village mayor Francesco Columbo told US news site CNN.
“We have specifically created this website now to meet US post-elections relocation needs.”
Those needs include slowing down and recharging with Ollolai’s dreamy Mediterranean lifestyle.
“Nestled in pristine nature, surrounded by incredible cuisine, and immersed in a community with ancient traditions in the rare Earth’s Blue Zone, Ollolai is the perfect destination to reconnect, recharge and embrace a new way of life,” the website claims.
Available properties will soon be listed online with prices ranging from €1 for houses needing substantial renovations to €100,000 for those that are ready to live in.
This is not the first time the village in Sardinia has put houses for a pittance on the market. In a bid to halt a steep population decline, Ollolai began selling off abandoned homes in 2018 to people willing to carry out $25,000 (€24,000) of renovations within a three-year timespan.
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Catalonia has said they want to rid Barcelona of its 10,000 holiday lets in the next 5 years.
Catalonia’s recent ban on Airbnb-style holiday rentals breaches EU law, according to a complaint filed with the European Commission by an industry group.
The European Holiday Home Association claims that the ban, introduced by Catalonia in June this year, breaches the provision of services directive.
The Spanish region announced that they wanted to rid Barcelona of its 10,000 tourist flat licences over the next five years. The city has not granted new licences since 2014 but this has not helped to stem a housing crisis, with locals saying they can not find places to live at affordable prices.
Why has Barcelona’s Airbnb ban been challenged?
“We are convinced that EU law has not been respected,” Viktorija Molnar, Secretary General of the European Holiday Home Association (EHHA), said in a statement released on Wednesday.
“By submitting the EU complaint, we hope that the European Commission will take a step further and open a formal infringement procedure against Spain,” added Molnar, whose group represents short-term rental platforms like Airbnb and Expedia’s Vrbo.
The move follows legal concerns raised by the European Commission itself that restrictions brought in by the Spanish region were disproportionate to the aim of tackling housing shortages.
EHHA argues that “unjustified, disproportionate and unsuitable” restrictions breach the EU’s Services Directive, which regulates a swathe of activities from hotels to legal advice. They also said that claims about the impact of Airbnb on housing affordability are “politically inflamed”.
The lobby group may have support from the European Commission itself, whose officials wrote to Spanish authorities to protest the law in February according to a document seen by Euronews Travel.
“The Commission services consider that the restrictions laid down in [Catalonia’s] Decree-law 3/2023 are not suitable to attain the objective of fighting housing shortage and are disproportionate to that objective,” the document said.
Spanish authorities could have also considered less swingeing restrictions and hadn’t offered evidence that short-term rentals were responsible for housing market tensions, it added – noting that there were three times as many empty dwellings as tourist rental properties in Catalonia.
Barcelona is just one European holiday destinations trying to find ways to tackle overtourism.
Cities like Venice have banned cruise ships from stopping on their shores, Athens regularly restricts visitor numbers at the famous Acropolis and Amsterdam is moving its red light district out of the city centre to try and clean up its image.
How the European Commission is taking on holiday rentals
Brussels has already taken action to bring the sharing economy within the regulatory fold, offering new rights to platform workers and hiking value-added tax on short-term lets and ridesharing apps such as Uber.
But the issue could prove totemic for Commission President Ursula von der Leyen – who has created the first-ever European Commissioner for Housing as part of her second mandate, set to take office within weeks.
She has told Denmark’s Dan Jørgensen to “tackle systemic issues with short-term accommodation rentals”, in a mission letter that handed him the housing brief alongside responsibility for energy policy.
A spokesperson for the Catalan government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
CORRECTION(20 November, 10:02): corrects spelling of Molnar’s name
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The move has been criticised by other tech companies who have branded Microsoft as being a “panic mode”.
In opening remarks to a company conference in the United States on Tuesday, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has set the stage for where the company is taking its artificial intelligence (AI) business.
AI developers are increasingly pitching the next wave of generative AI (GenAI) chatbots as AI “agents” that can do more useful things on people’s behalf.
But the cost of building and running AI tools is so high that more investors are questioning whether the technology’s promise is overblown.
Microsoft said last month that it’s preparing for a world where “every organisation will have a constellation of agents – ranging from simple prompt-and-response to fully autonomous”.
Microsoft elaborated in a blog post Tuesday that such autonomous agents “can operate around the clock to review and approve customer returns or go over shipping invoices to help businesses avoid costly supply-chain errors”.
Microsoft’s annual Ignite conference caters to its big business customers.
Microsoft criticised
The pivot toward so-called “agentic AI” comes as some users are seeing limits to the large language models behind chatbots like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini and Microsoft’s own Copilot.
Those systems work by predicting the most plausible next word in a sentence and are good at certain writing-based work tasks.
But tech companies have been working to build AI tools that are better at longer-range planning and reasoning so they can access the web or control computers and perform tasks on their own on a user’s behalf.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has criticized Microsoft’s pivot. Salesforce also has its “Agentforce” service that uses AI in sales, marketing, and other tasks.
“Microsoft rebranding Copilot as ‘agents’? That’s panic mode,” Benioff said in a social media post last month. He went on to claim that Microsoft’s flagship AI assistant, called Copilot, is “a flop” that is inaccurate and spills corporate data.
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