According to the citywhich passed the bill on Tuesday, Amsterdam will increase the tourist tax to 12.5 percent in 2024. Travelers staying overnight or arriving on cruise ships are subject to this.
“Visitors will thus contribute to the city’s performance of its tasks. This allows us to tackle the consequences of overtourism and deploy additional resources to keep the streets clean and solve acute problems in neighborhoods and neighborhoods,” said Deputy Mayor for Finance Hester van Buren in a statement.
With an average nightly rate of € 175 According to city data, guests pay an average of €21.80 per night. Previously, the average tax was €15.25 per night. In addition, the daily rate for cruise passengers will increase from €8 ($8.41) to €11 ($11.56) per person.
“The tourist tax will be further increased to cover the additional expenses, so that visitors make a greater contribution to the city,” the city wrote in a statement. “This also helps to combat overtourism and ensures that the financial burden for Amsterdam residents and Weespers does not increase.”
The decision to increase the tourist tax was part of an effort “to relieve the pressure on residents as much as possible in these financially challenging times” and not increase property taxes or parking fees.
DutchNews reports that the new increase will make Amsterdam the EU city with the highest tourist tax. Van Buren told the site it is also the fourth tallest in the world.
However, other cities charge higher rates. Honolulu, for example imposes a city surcharge of 3.5%, in addition to a Hawaiian “Transient Accommodation Tax” of 10.25.
But Amsterdam is not the only city that relies on tourism to generate income. To advance the country’s sustainability and climate goals, Iceland plans to introduce a new tourist tax, and Venice plans to impose a fee on day visitors from 2024. in addition to the one that already charges overnight visitors.
