Since July 14, 2025, the online platform Airbnb is automatically collecting tourism taxes (Kurtaxen) for every booking made in the 22 municipalities of the Canton of St. Gallen that have a tourism tax regulation.

The new model brings greater transparency and reduces administrative burdens for tourism organizations — a significant step toward the sustainable financing of tourism in the region.

Until now, it was not guaranteed across the board that tourism taxes were properly collected for online bookings. That gap is now to be closed- at least for Airbnb reservations. The platform collects effectively the tourism tax automatically. And it forwards it to the respective municipalities.

All 22 municipalities with tourism tax regulations — Amden, Bad Ragaz, Degersheim, Ebnat-Kappel, Flums, Lütisburg, Mels, Mosnang, Neckertal, Nesslau, Pfäfers, Quarten, Rapperswil-Jona, Rorschach, Sargans, St. Gallen, Thal, Vilters-Wangs, Walenstadt, Wartau, Weesen, and Wildhaus-Alt St. Johann — benefit from fairer tax collection and increased revenue for tourism promotion.

Initiated by St. Gallen-Lake Constance Tourism and the Canton of St. Gallen

The project was initiated and driven forward by St. Gallen-Lake Constance Tourism in collaboration with the Office for Economy and Labor of the Canton of St. Gallen. St. Gallen-Lake Constance Tourism acts on behalf of all tourism organizations in the canton as the contractual partner of Airbnb and coordinates the implementation centrally.

This new agreement marks a major step forward in the digitalization and professionalization of tourism management. According to St. Gallen tourism authorities, it benefits guests, service providers, and the local population alike. Currently, Airbnb is the only booking platform that has such an agreement for the automatic collection of tourism levies.

Thomas Kirchhofer, Director of St. Gallen-Lake Constance Tourism, commented:  “The automated collection of tourism taxes in the Canton of St. Gallen through Airbnb brings transparency, administrative relief, and reliable processing for tourism organizations — an important step toward the modern implementation of legal requirements and targeted cooperation with Airbnb.”

St. Gallen is the largest city in Eastern Switzerland and a major tourist destination. The city with a population of 82,000 inhabitants, is well-known for its impressive baroque religious ensemble comprising a cathedral and an ancient cloister. The structure is on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1983.

The Canton of St. Gallen registered 1.1 million of overnights in 2024, of which 36% come from foreign travelers. Top inbound markets in 2024 were Germany, the USA, Austria, Italy and the UK.