List of holiday destinations where you’ll have to pay tourist tax including EU countries

A number of popular holiday spots have a tourist tax in place - here's a list of countries where you will be asked to make that payment.

Tourists can often get caught out by unexpected fees at their holiday destination. It is usually a small fee that travellers pay when they stay overnight in another country that isn't their home.

The fee is put to good use, like improving the local area or limiting the impact of tourism on attractions, reports the Mirror. In addition to knowing the information below, it is worth adding tourist tax into your accommodation budget. Also, keep in mind that tourist tax may or may not be included in the price advertised - depending on the location, it may be added when you pay.

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Austria

Austria charges all visitors a nightly accommodation tax, which differs depending on the province you visit. For Vienna or Salzburg, you could pay up to 3.02% per person, on top of the hotel bill.

Belgium

Like Austria, Belgium has also introduced a nightly fee. But tourists need to be careful, as some hotels include this in the price of a room whereas others add it to your bill separately. Both Brussels and Antwerp charge per room, and in Brussels the fee will vary depending on the size and rating of your hotel. The fee is usually around €7.50 (£6.38).

Bhutan

For a long time, Bhutan has been known for its seemingly steep tourist taxes and charges. In 2024, the daily fee for the majority of visitors is $100 (£78.67), and this fee is scheduled to remain in place until the end of August 2027.

Bulgaria

In Bulgaria, a fee is applied to overnight stays but it reaches a maximum of €1.50 (£1.28).

Caribbean Islands

The Caribbean Islands charge a tourist tax between €13 and €45 (£11.05 and £38.26). The tax is usually tied to the cost of a hotel or a departure fee.

Croatia

Croatia only charges its visitors a fee of 10 kuna (£1.17) per night during peak season.

Czechia (Czech Republic)

Czechia only applies a fee to those travelling to the city of Prague. For those under the age of 18, it doesn't apply and is less than €1 (£0.85) per person, per night.

France

France’s ‘taxe de séjour’ varies depending on the city, and it is usually added to your hotel bill. It varies from €0.20 to €4 (£0.17 to £3.40) per person, per night.

In addition, Paris has increased its fee by up to 200% for those staying in hotels, Airbnbs, and campsites. It also plans to put the funds towards improving the city’s services and infrastructure. Something worth noting if you intend to see the summer Olympics in Paris this year.

Germany

Germany charges visitors a ‘culture tax’ (kulturförderabgabe) and a ‘bed tax’ (bettensteuer) in certain cities. The cities include Frankfurt, Hamburg and Berlin, and it tends to be around 5% of your hotel bill.

Greece

Greece’s tourist tax is based on numbers. Specifically, how many stars a hotel has, and the number of rooms you’re renting. It can be anything from €4 (£3.40) per room.

Hungary

The only tourist tax in Hungary applies in Budapest. Visitors will be charged 4% of the price of their room.

Iceland

Iceland is introducing a tourist tax to protect its ‘unspoilt nature’ this year. It is believed to cost between €4 to €7 (£3.40 to £5.95) per night.

Indonesia

In Indonesia, the only destination which charges a tourist tax is Bali. The fee is around $10 (£7.70) – but is a one-time entry fee, not a nightly tax. It apparently goes towards protecting the island’s ‘environment and culture.’

Italy

Much like in France, Italy’s tourist tax varies depending on your location. Rome’s fee is usually between €3 to €7 (£2.55 to £5.95) per night, but some smaller Italian towns charge more.

Venice is a city to be particularly aware of in regard to tourist tax. The €5 (£4.30) fee is applicable on various days during high season, and it runs from April to July 2024. It only applies to day-trippers rather than those staying overnight.

Japan

Japan has a departure tax of around 1,000 yen (£5.01).

Malaysia

Malaysia has a flat-rate tax, which applies to each night you stay. It is around €4 (£3.40) a night.

New Zealand

New Zealand’s tax comes in the form of an International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy of around €21 (£17.86), which must be paid upon arrival.

Netherlands

The Netherlands has both a land and water tax. Amsterdam is set to increase its fee by 12.5% in 2024, making it the highest tourist tax in the European Union.

Portugal

Portugal has a low tourist tax of €2 (£1.70), which applies to all those over the age of 13. It’s only applicable on the first seven nights of your visit and applies in 13 Portuguese municipalities, including Faro, Lisbon and Porto.

Olhão became the latest area to start charging the fee between April and October. Outside of this period, it gets reduced to €1 (£0.85) and is capped at five nights all year round. The money goes towards minimising the impact of tourism in the Algarve town.

Slovenia

Slovenia also bases its tax on location and hotel rating. In larger cities and resorts, such as Ljubljana and Bled, the fee is higher, but still only around €3 (£2.55) per night.

Spain

Spain applies its Sustainable Tourism Tax to holiday accommodation in the Balearic Islands to each visitor over the age of sixteen. Tourists can be charged up to €4 (£3.40) per night during high season.

Barcelona’s city authorities also announced they plan to increase the city’s tourist tax over the next two years – the fee rose to €3.25 (£2.76) on April 1, 2024. The council said the money would go towards improving infrastructure and services. This is in addition to regional Catalan tax.

Switzerland

Switzerland’s tax varies depending on location, but the per person, per night cost is around €2.20 (£1.87). It tends to be specified as a separate amount on your accommodation bill.

Thailand

Thailand introduced a tourist tax to the price of flights in April 2022, in a similar effort to the Balinese aim of moving away from its rep as a ‘cheap’ holiday destination. The fee for all international visitors is 300 baht (£6.60).

USA

The US has an ‘occupancy tax’ which applies across most of the country to travellers renting accommodation such as hotels, motels and inns. Houston in Texas is estimated to be the highest, where they charge you an extra 17% of your hotel bill.

Hawaii could be imposing a ‘green fee’ – initially set at $50 (£39.34) but since lowered to $25 (£19.67) – which would apply to every tourist over the age of 15. It still needs to be passed by lawmakers, but if approved, it will be introduced in 2025.