March 27th 2024.
If you're planning on taking a trip to Barcelona this summer, you should be aware that your vacation expenses are about to increase. The popular Spanish city has recently announced the implementation of new charges for tourists. This tourist tax was first introduced in 2012 and will be rising once again in just a few days.
So, how much is this tourist tax in Barcelona? Well, visitors are required to pay both the tourist tax and a surcharge set by the city. These are daily fees that vary depending on the type of accommodation you stay in. Currently, the city's surcharge is €2.75 per day until the end of March 2024. For example, if you're staying in a four-star hotel, you can expect to pay €1.70 in tourist tax. For rentals like Airbnb, the tax will be €2.25, and for luxury locations and five-star hotels, the tax is €3.50.
However, it's not just the accommodation prices that will be affected. Cruise ship passengers who spend less than 12 hours in the city are required to pay a fee of €3. For those staying for more than 12 hours, the fee is €2. But starting from April 2024, the city will be increasing its surcharge for a maximum seven-night stay.
This surcharge has already been raised in the past year, from €1.75 to €2.75 for all types of stays in April 2023. With the new change, visitors will now have to pay €3.25. The Spanish government has also approved plans to increase the tax to up to €4, so there may be another increase next year.
These changes in tourist tax prices will have a knock-on effect on accommodation prices. For example, a stay in a five-star hotel will now cost €6.75 per night, factoring in the new surcharge and the accommodation-specific tax. This adds up to €47.25 per person for a week-long stay in Barcelona. These fees are paid to Barcelona's Generalitat and the city council.
The mayor's office announced in January 2023 that these tax hikes are meant to encourage "quality" tourism instead of focusing on sheer numbers. Barcelona is just one of the European cities that have become victims of their own success. Overtourism is a major concern for the future, with 12 million holidaymakers visiting the city last year, according to the Tourism Observatory of Barcelona via Catalan News.
The fees collected from the tourist tax will be used to improve the city's infrastructure, such as adding more buses, upgrading roads, and installing new escalators and elevators. Barcelona is Spain's most visited city, and the increase in tourist tax is a result of the city's popularity.
This increase in tax is not limited to Barcelona. Other popular tourist destinations are also implementing charges to protect their sites and manage the influx of visitors. Seville, another popular city in Spain, has announced plans to charge tourists for visiting one of its most famous attractions, the Plaza de Espana.
This picturesque plaza, surrounded by a moat, attracts thousands of tourists every day. However, starting soon, tourists will be charged for crossing one of its four bridges. The mayor of Seville, José Luis Sanz, announced the fee in X, stating that the money collected will go towards maintaining the safety and conservation of the Plaza.
Many other must-see tourist locations have already introduced charges, like Venice's Venice Access Fee of €5 for day visitors starting from April 25. This is to protect the historic city from damage caused by tourism. In Bali, visitors are now required to pay a tax of 150,000 rupiah as an effort to preserve the island's culture and environment. This comes after incidents of tourists disrespecting the ancient island, such as a woman who was deported for posing nude next to a sacred tree at Bali's Tabanan temple in April 2023.
If you have a similar story to share, you can get in touch by emailing email. As more and more popular tourist destinations struggle to manage the influx of visitors, it's essential for tourists to be aware of these fees and contribute towards preserving these beautiful places for future generations to enjoy.
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