Barcelona has planned to increase its tourism tax on 1 April 2023, and then again in 2024.
Picture: Unsplash
Spain’s top city for tourism is adding ‘its own surcharge on top of a general tourist tax charged per night,’ reports the Independent.
All guests pay a base municipal tourist tax of R30 per night. However, on 1 April they will have to pay R50. By 2024, tourists will be expected to pay a base tourist tax of R60.
According to Travel News, tourist tax depends on the type of accommodation a tourist chooses to stay in. If they stay in a regulated tourist rental apartment, they currently pay R40 in municipal tax per night, while someone staying in a 5-star hotel will pay R60 per night.
Apart from the pandemic years, Barcelona sees over 32 million tourists each year and was exposed in 2019 by Responsible Travel for having the most polluted port in Europe. The mayor hopes to ‘attract quality tourism over big numbers,’ as ‘tourist demand for accommodation (is) driving up rents and forcing locals out of town.’
The money will be used to improve and maintain the city’s infrastructure.
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