These Destinations Will Be More Expensive To Visit in 2024

by Laurie Baratti
Last updated: 8:00 AM ET, Mon January 8, 2024

Both to bolster their local economies and as a means of combatting overtourism, an increasing number of global destinations are charging tourists taxes or fees just for visiting. You’ll frequently find them tacked onto your hotel bill, but sometimes they’re collected immediately upon arrival.

Now that the pandemic is over and tourism numbers have rebounded around the world—sometimes exceeding pre-Covid norms thanks to the “revenge travel” phenomenon—tourism sustainability is top of mind for many destinations that traditionally struggle with overtourism, and the industry’s negative impact on its residents’ quality of life.

Guy Bigwood, who co-wrote the 2020 report ‘Tourism Taxes by Design’ told Lonely Planet that the supplemental revenue from levying fees on visitors is quite often being used to fund destinations’ sustainability initiatives. “Tourism taxes, and especially assessments or levies, can help with this,” he said.

Overtourism also impacts the sustainability of tourism in general in many locations, leading multiple destinations to leverage fees on foreigners as a means of managing visitor volumes. “Tourism taxes and assessments are being considered as a tool to control numbers,” Bigwood added. Because charging visitors lessens the tax burden on locals, it also helps improve residents’ quality of life and soften the blow of tourism’s ill effects.

Whereas some places are introducing such tourist taxes for the very first time this year, others are planning on hiking up the price. Below, we’ve laid out the details about several popular international destinations that will be charging new or higher visitor fees in 2024.

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Amsterdam, already home to Europe's highest tourism tax, plans to raise its hotel room tax from 7 percent to 12.5 percent in 2024. In addition, cruise-ship passengers will see their daily tariff fee climb from €8 to roughly €11 per person.

Bali, Indonesia

Starting February 14, non-Indonesian visitors will face a fee of 150,000 IDR (roughly $10) per person, generating funds that will be dedicated to cultural and environmental conservation. Travelers will be required to pay upon arrival at one of five dedicated counters at Bali’s international airport.

Barcelona and Valencia, Spain

Barcelona's existing municipal tourism tax will rise in April 2024, a move that will affect travelers staying in government-regulated accommodations in the city. The fee, which is currently assessed at €2.75 per night (US$3.01), will increase to €3.25 (US$3.56) per person, per night. But can vary based on the value of a rental property. Visitors will only be charged this tax for the first seven consecutive days of their stay.

Aerial view of Old Town in Valencia, Spain

Meanwhile, the Spanish region of Valencia is also reportedly readying to enact its own tourism tax, which will range anywhere from 50 cents to €2 (US$2.19) per person, per night, based on the accommodation (hotel, rental property, B&B or campsite). Note that the fee will be assessed on those staying anywhere in the region, not just in the city proper.

Greece

The Greek government just announced a new tax on tourists for 2024, which it will use to help pay for last year’s forest fires and flooding damage. This new fee for visiting foreigners will partially replace Greece’s previous “bed tax” and the amount charged will fluctuate according to the season. It will also depend upon the level and rating of the hotel in which guests are staying, or, alternatively, the short-term rental property.

Iceland

While the exact amount of this upcoming fee has yet to be announced, it is set to be implemented sometime this year. Still, Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir assures travelers that the tax won’t be too high and that the funds will be used to support sustainability initiatives.

Venice, Italy

As it has been threatening to do for several years now, the port city of Venice will start charging day-trippers €5 (US$5.40) to enter the famous Floating City’s historic center. This won’t apply every day, though. Instead, the fee will be assessed on high-volume days—30 non-consecutive days, to be exact—of the year. These will likely fall within such peak periods as spring break and the summer holidays. The purpose of this particular tax is, in large part, to help control visitor numbers, as Venice is among the global cities facing the worst overtourism challenges.

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