Tourist tax, a solution for cities suffocated by guests

Residents in more and more cities (Barcelona, Rome, Paris, Venice, Prague...) complain that tourism is turning their lives upside down. Authorities have begun to look for solutions. Officials in Venice have announced the extension of the access tax for one-day tourists, a measure that will almost double the number of days in which it will be applied in the peak season of 2025, from 29 to 54 days, between April and July. The tax, implemented in a world premiere in April 2024, will remain 5 euros for reservations made in advance, but will increase to 10 euros for last-minute arrivals, booked less than four days in advance. The aim of the tax is to reduce tourist pressure on the city, known for the negative effects of overcrowding.

Officials stressed that the measure is still in the experimental phase. Other tourist destinations such as Kyoto and Formentera have shown interest in the initiative. Simone Venturini, the councillor responsible for tourism, said that Venice is among the first cities in the world to take proactive measures in the face of overtourism. Although the impact on tourist flows is not clear, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro believes that it is too early to draw definitive conclusions, but stresses that the objective is not to reduce the number of visitors, but to promote a more balanced distribution of stays. In 2025, for the first time, fines will be applied to tourists without an access permit, a measure initially announced for 2024 but not implemented. This year, the amount collected from access fees was 2.25 million euros, covering only part of the administrative costs of the system. The mayor stressed that the tax measure does not aim to generate revenue, but to manage tourist pressure more effectively in order to protect the city and its inhabitants from the negative effects of excessive crowding.

• Street demonstrations

This month, thousands of people demonstrated in the resorts of the Canary Islands, against excessive tourism that they say is pushing locals out of the property market, Reuters reports. Under the slogan "The Canary Islands have a limit," residents demonstrated simultaneously in Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Palma, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and El Hierro and demanded a change in the tourism model for the islands. In Playa de las Americas in Tenerife, protesters appeared on the beach as tourists were sunbathing and chanted "This beach is ours." Activists argued that the arrival of millions of visitors each year was depleting limited natural resources, such as water, and damaging the environment. At least 8,000 people took part in the protest, according to the Spanish government. Between January and September, 9.9 million tourists visited the Canary Islands, according to Spain's National Institute of Statistics, up 10.3 percent from the same period in 2023. The islands' population was 2.2 million last year. "We need a change in the tourism model so that it leaves wealth here, a change so that it capitalizes on what this land has because it is beautiful," Sara Lopez, 32, told Reuters on Sunday in Gran Canaria. Spain, a country dependent on tourism, has seen a series of protests this year against overtourism in Barcelona and other popular holiday destinations such as Mallorca and Malaga. The Canary Islands' regional government has drafted a bill that is expected to be passed this year to tighten rules on short-term rentals, following complaints from locals who have been excluded from the property market.

Newly built properties will be excluded from the short-term rental market, and owners who hold a permit will have five years to comply with requirements that include giving neighbors the right to object to such permits.