Money and insurance
Tourist tax: what it is, where you pay it and why it wasn't in your booking
It turns up at check-in and throws you. How it works, who collects it, who is exempt and how to budget for it.
Nerea Aguilar 5 min Photo by Hasmik Ghazaryan Olson on Unsplash You book a hotel, pay in advance, and on arrival they ask for a few more per person per night. It isn't a mistake or an attempt to sneak something past you: it is a public tax the accommodation collects on behalf of the town or the region.
How it works
- It is set by a city, a region or a country, not by the hotel.
- It is usually charged per person per night, and sometimes varies with the category of the accommodation.
- It is almost always paid at the destination, at check-in or check-out.
- Many booking platforms leave it out of the price they show, and mention it in the small print.
Who is usually exempt
Children under a certain age are normally exempt or pay less, and there are often night limits beyond which it stops being charged. The details change from city to city, so the source is the town hall or regional website, not the hotel.
How to budget for it
On a single-city trip it is loose change. On a five-city route with two people and fourteen nights, it stops being loose change. The simple way is to add it to the nightly price when comparing places to stay, which is where it actually changes the decision.
The rest of the items people forget are in how to work out a trip budget.
And the places that don't charge it
If a place doesn't charge you, that doesn't make it cheaper: it may be included, or they may not be complying. In the first case they will tell you; in the second the problem isn't yours, but it is worth having the receipt.
Frequently asked questions
What is the tourist tax?
A local tax set by a city, region or country that the accommodation collects on its behalf, normally per person per night.
Why wasn't it in my booking?
Because many platforms leave it out of the displayed price: it is paid at the destination, at check-in or check-out.
Do children pay?
Children under a certain age are usually exempt or pay less, but it depends on each city.
Can it be avoided?
No: it is a tax. What you can do is budget for it from the start by adding it to the nightly price.
