Edinburgh to introduce tourist tax
Edinburgh, Scotland, is fast on its way to introducing tourist tax, becoming the latest European destination to charge visitors for the good of the local economy. The Scottish capital is one of the first British cities to roll out such a levy.
Proposals for the Scottish city’s introduction of the tax first materialised in 2019, with the actual plans for its rollout approved by the City of Edinburgh Council in late 2022. Earlier this month, local councillors supported plans to launch a consultation.
The charge will be called the Transient Visitor Levy (TVL), making the city the first in Scotland to bring in such a measure. The current plan proposes a 5 per cent charge per night of accommodation, capped at seven consecutive nights. This autumn, there will be a 12-week consultation period, during which locals will be asked whether the charge should be increased or decreased.
The charge brings Edinburgh in line with the likes of Amsterdam and Berlin, and it is hoped it will raise £50 million per year to be reinvested back into the city, to help local businesses and communities.
Council leader Cammy Day told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland: “I can’t see a few pounds putting somebody off visiting the city. If you can afford to spend hundreds of pounds on a hotel room, you can afford a few pounds to support the city that you are visiting.”
What is a tourist tax?
Tourism taxes are not new and exist in many of Europe’s most popular destinations and worldwide. They are typically small fees levied through accommodation providers or holiday companies, usually paid by overnight visitors.
While there has been some kickback against them recently, the overarching idea is that the funds can help cities and salve some of the effects of mass tourism, such as noise, pressure on public services and higher rent and prices. On the continent, it seems to be a microcosm of the growing backlash against unfettered tourism.
There’s even more reason to introduce a tourist tax in the post-pandemic world, with Covid-19 causing immense losses across the travel industry, closing hotels, restaurants and other hospitality venues that relied on high tourist footfall for their livelihoods.
The sting of this blow was heightened by governments also facing depleted coffers. As a result, politicians and businesses are still trying to regain what was lost over that period.
What European cities have a tourist tax?
Barcelona is perhaps the most famous and popular destination to currently use a tourist tax, which is €4 a day, with the nearby Balearic Islands charging €1. In France, tourist tax is based on municipal rates, which typically range between 20p and £4.30 a night. Elsewhere, in Berlin, the tourist tax is 5 per cent of the accommodation price.
Tourist tax is not just on the continent, either. It has recently crept into the UK, for the same reasons listed above. It’s already been successfully trialled in Manchester, with Cambridge planning to do the same. There are even calls for the seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare to be next.
In 2023, Manchester became the first place in the UK to trial the tourist tax, charging £1 per night per room in selected hotels. It has been a resounding success. In just a year, it has raised nearly £2.8 million, which will go towards street cleaning, new events to attract more visitors, and even training more security staff. A spokesperson for the city, Kumar Mishra, has maintained that it’s also positively impacted the hospitality sector and helped the recovery from Covid-19 and the cost of living crisis.
In other Manchester tourism news, the Maldron Hotel in the city has been accused of cancelling hotel rooms by fans planning to attend the hotly anticipated Oasis reunion shows at Heaton Park in the summer of 2025.
