In the past several years, many places around the world have begun charging what’s sometimes known as a “tourist tax.” It’s any revenue-generating measure targeted at tourists and is usually (but not always) tacked on to visitors’ hotel charges. Among other reasons, it’s a means of combating overtourism.
Most hotels in the U.S. are required to pay an occupancy tax, which will vary according to city and state law. Internationally, places such as Austria, Belgium, Bhutan, Bulgaria, Caribbean Islands, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland all charge some sort of tax to visitors, just for visiting.
Some cities already charge their own tourist tax, strongly consider it, or have solid plans to do so within the following year. Some of those include Barcelona, Valencia and Venice, among others.
It’s not an April Fools’ joke, but as of April 1st, you can add Manchester, England to the list.
This will be the first city in the UK to charge tourists for visiting, and visitors staying in city center hotels can expect to be charged £1 per night, per room.
City officials are hopeful the plan will raise about £3 million per year. The money is slated towards the new Manchester Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID), which aims to “support future growth of the visitor economy” over the next five years.
The Manchester ABID website explains: “The Manchester Accommodation BID is a ground-breaking new initiative led by the city’s hotel and serviced apartment providers to help create new events and additional activities that will attract more people to visit and stay in Manchester and Salford.
“It will also contribute to the enhancement of overall guest experience and help to expand the city’s visitor economy by:
- amplifying marketing campaigns that drive overnight stays;
- securing large-scale events, conferences, and festivals in low-season months;
- improving guest welcome and street cleanliness.
“The statutory Charge will be collected from all paid accommodation establishments that fall into the Manchester Accommodation BID zone and will be applicable to all bookings from 1 April 2023.”
According to Anne Brown, the chairperson of ABID, other cities in the UK are also considering adding a tourist tax.
“I think it’s widely known we have an ever-increasing number of hotels opening, so it’s ever-more-important that we’re self-sustaining that growth,” said Brown.
So Manchester might be the first, but don’t suspect it to be the only city in the UK to charge a tax for visiting.
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