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In an effort to manage the influx of tourists and fund urban infrastructure, several European cities have introduced tourist taxes. Amsterdam, Netherlands, leads the way with the highest tourist tax on accommodation in Europe and worldwide.
Amsterdam charges an average of €18.45 per night, in addition to a 12.5% tax on the total value of accommodations. This move is part of the city's strategy to tackle overtourism and support public infrastructure [2][4].
Greek cities, including Athens, Heraklion, Rhodes, and Thessaloniki, share the second place in Europe. They apply a fixed "climate resilience tax" averaging around €8.17 per night to fund sustainable tourism and infrastructure upgrades. The rates vary by season and accommodation type [2].
Other European cities, such as Lisbon and Cascais in Portugal, Milan, Rome, Florence, and Bologna, have tourist taxes up to €10 per night for luxury accommodations as of 2025 [4]. Berlin, Germany, has a 7.5% tax on the net cost of accommodation, averaging about €7.38 per night, now also applied to business travelers [2][4].
Cities in Mexico, like Cabo San Lucas and La Paz, require a visitor tax of about 470 Mexican pesos (~ $27.75 USD) for anyone spending more than 24 hours [1]. US cities like New York City and Las Vegas apply tourist taxes as a percentage on top of hotel rates, with New York charging nearly 15% plus daily fees, and Las Vegas about 13.38%, but exact per-night amounts vary greatly depending on accommodation cost [1].
Thailand plans to introduce an entry tax for all foreign tourists by the end of 2025, set at 300 baht (around 7.50 euros) [5].
Venice has introduced a day-tripper tax, aimed at discouraging daily tourism, with rates between 3 to 10 euros per day [3]. Greek islands Santorini and Mykonos levy a €20 per passenger tax on cruise ship visitors during peak season [3].
Holidu has made an online calculator available to estimate tourist taxes in various destinations [6]. For an average accommodation of $260 per night in Los Angeles, an extra expenditure of over $40 per day is incurred due to the tourist tax [2].
Edinburgh plans to introduce an overnight stay tax in 2026, equivalent to 5% of the accommodation cost [7]. Washington D.C., Las Vegas, and Montreal complete the top 5 cities with high tourist taxes [1].
References: [1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2021/02/18/the-25-cities-with-the-highest-tourist-taxes-in-the-u-s/?sh=3a9a538f7a45 [2] https://www.euronews.com/travel/2022/04/19/amsterdam-tops-list-for-highest-tourist-taxes-in-europe [3] https://www.euronews.com/travel/2022/04/19/venice-to-introduce-day-tripper-tax-to-curb-overtourism [4] https://www.euronews.com/travel/2022/04/19/european-cities-introduce-tourist-taxes-to-fund-urban-infrastructure [5] https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailand-mulls-entry-fee-foreign-tourists-2022-04-18/ [6] https://www.holidu.com/blog/tourist-taxes-in-europe [7] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-61032277
- In contrast to Amsterdam's high tourist tax, Berlin applies a 7.5% tax on the net cost of accommodation, with an average expenditure of around €7.38 per night, even extending this tax to business travelers.
- For personal-finance management while traveling, it's essential to account for tourist taxes such as the €18.45 per night charged in Amsterdam or the €8.17 in Greek cities, as these taxes can significantly impact one's budgeting.
- Cities like Venice, Santorini, and Mykonos have introduced taxes aimed at managing tourism, with daily tripper taxes in Venice and per-passenger taxes on cruise ship visitors in Santorini and Mykonos, shedding light on the global trend of using tourist taxes to support urban infrastructure and lifestyle sustainability.
