Grenada’s government will institute a five dollar tax on overnight visitors to the country, with the funds going to promote Grenada in international markets, said Dr. Keith Mitchell, the country’s prime minister, in an address this week.

“The funds collected will be used exclusively for marketing Grenada and channeled to the Grenada Tourism Authority for the sole purpose of marketing Grenada,” said Mitchell.

The new fee has drawn criticism from Grenada tourism stakeholders including Grenada Hotel and Tourism Association (GHTA) officials.

"We are not happy and our board of directors will be meeting to discuss the implementations and impact this fee can have on the hotel sector,” said Pancy Cross, GHTA’s executive director, in a local press account. Cross said GHTA first learned of the levy through a newspaper article and added, “This levy was never discussed with us previously.”