Do tourist taxes solve over-tourism?<\/a><\/p>\nFrom Wellington to Wales, more and more countries are taxing tourists. But will they stop travellers from coming?<\/p>\n
How would the tax work?<\/p>\n
Under the legislation as it stands, councils would be able to charge a flat fee or percentage of an overnight stay.<\/p>\n
The exact rate will vary by city.<\/p>\n
A mid-range London hotel typically costs around \u00a3175-\u00a3200 ($350-$400) a night, which means a 5 per cent levy could add roughly \u00a310 ($20) per night to a traveller’s bill.<\/p>\n
Hotels will be required to display any charge upfront once the levy is implemented.<\/p>\n
Proceeds may be used to “promote, develop and manage tourism”, support cultural and sporting activities, improve heritage sites and “enhance infrastructure”, according to parliamentary documents.<\/p>\n
London recorded 89 million overnight stays last year, putting pressure on councils to maintain public spaces, transport and services used heavily by tourists.<\/p>\n
A UK parliament research briefing found a 5 per cent levy could raise about \u00a3239\u202fmillion per year ($447 million).<\/p>\n
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The nightly “tourist tax” would apply to all accommodation across England, including campsites, hotels and bed and breakfasts. (Reuters: Mina Kim)<\/p>\n
London, Westminster Council and several other boroughs have already indicated they will introduce the tax.<\/p>\n
Westminster councillor Adam Hug, whose area takes in Big Ben and Buckingham Palace, said the levy was “something local government had campaigned for and would be welcome”, as many costs from tourism “fall directly on councils”.<\/p>\n
However, Kate Nicholls \u2014 chair of UKHospitality, which represents hotel chains including Accor, Hilton and IHG \u2014 said the bill could “put off” overseas visitors.<\/p>\n
“The idea that a tourist tax would fix the public finances is completely misguided and would only serve to inflict damage on the UK’s tourism and hospitality sectors,” Ms Nicholls said.<\/p>\n
Where else has a ‘tourist tax’?<\/p>\n
Similar schemes have already been approved elsewhere in the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n
In Scotland, Edinburgh is introducing a tourist tax of 5 per cent of the cost of a room per night from next July.<\/p>\n
In Wales, councils will be able to charge \u00a31.30 ($2.65) per person per night from April 2027.<\/p>\n
In Paris, travellers pay anywhere from \u20ac\u202f1.12-\u20ac\u202f8.41 per night ($2-$15) per night, depending on the hotel’s star rating. Mid-range hotels in Berlin cost \u20ac80-\u20ac150 ($142-$267) per night, plus a 7.5 per cent tax of \u20ac6-\u20ac11 ($11-$20).<\/p>\n
North America and Japan also charge an overnight fee, however, the UK already charges a 20 per cent tax on hotels through the government’s Value Add Tax (VAT), one of the highest taxes for accommodation in the world.<\/p>\n
When will the new tax start?<\/p>\n
Each city will go through a consultation period with local leaders and businesses.<\/p>\n
London is expected to move first in the spring of next year.<\/p>\n
Other English cities, including Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool, are expected to follow.<\/p>\n
Will it deter Australian travellers?<\/p>\n
In the last financial year, 635,000 Australians visited the UK, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.<\/p>\n
In September, 67,330 Australians returned from a UK trip, making it the country’s third-most visited overseas destination for that month.<\/p>\n
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Dean Long says Australians could look at alternative destinations to London if the tax becomes law. (Supplied: Australian Travel Industry Association\u00a0\u00a0)<\/p>\n
However, Mr Long warned higher costs could influence travellers’ choices.<\/p>\n
“The value being delivered at the price point is disproportionate in some cases,” Mr Long said.<\/p>\n
“Australians are very price sensitive and are willing to try new destinations if they feel they can get better value elsewhere.”<\/p>\n
Visiting the UK on a budget is possible<\/p>\n
Australians can still enjoy a UK trip without spending a fortune, even with the new tourist tax.<\/p>\n
Choose accommodation outside city centres, use public transport instead of taxis, and take advantage of free or low-cost attractions.<\/p>\n
UK introduces its ETA permit for Australian travellers<\/a><\/p>\nPlanning to head to the UK in 2025? Here’s what you need to know about a new digital travel permit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Timing your visit can also make a difference. Flights and accommodation are often cheaper in shoulder seasons, such as March to May or September to November, and travelling mid-week rather than on weekends can also reduce costs.<\/p>\n
Mr Long said Australians should check their accommodation’s terms and conditions.<\/p>\n
“A growing issue, especially in the US and increasingly in the EU and UK, is hidden fees, often called resort fees, which can add unexpected costs,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Many hotels charge extra on top of the listed price, so check carefully. As Australians, we’re not always used to having to do this because most pricing at home is all-inclusive.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australians heading to London could soon pay a new “tourist tax” on accommodation, as the British government moves…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":592100,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[2574,748,393,186397,2592,4884,257,1411,8949,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-592099","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-berlin","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-english-devolution-and-community-empowerment-bill","12":"tag-flights","13":"tag-great-britain","14":"tag-london","15":"tag-paris","16":"tag-tourist-tax","17":"tag-uk","18":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115608438313359134","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=592099"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592099\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/592100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=592099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=592099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=592099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}