Barcelona doubles tourism tax to one of the highest in Europe

Tourists in Barcelona can receive up to 15 euros per night, as the city increased its tourism fee to one of the highest in Europe on Wednesday.

This comes as part of efforts to contain the number of visitors and help finance affordable housing, reports Reuters, broadcast Klankosova.tv.

Authorities in Catalonia have faced increasingly vocal protests by residents for the excessive number of tourists, who they say are raising housing prices by boosting a rise in short-term holiday rents.

Catalonia's regional parliament adopted a law to double the tax on guests who rent apartments for vacation at a maximum of 12.5 euros per night, up from 6.25 euros, ahead of a already announced plan to ban all short-term accommodations by 2028.

Hotel guests will pay a maximum of 10 to 15 euros per night from April, up from 5 euros currently at 7.5 euros, depending on the hotel category.

A two-entity stand for a couple at one of four-star hotels that make up almost half of all hotels in Barcelona can now cost an additional 45.60 euros, as local authority can charge up to 11.4 euros per person per night.

Guests at five-star hotels can be loaded up to 15 euros per night, and Croatia passengers will continue to pay about 6 euros.

A quarter of the collected revenues will help address the city's housing crisis, according to the law text. Irene Verrazzo, a 33-year-old nurse from Italy, said Barcelona was already very expensive and suspected it would return.

I don't think this extra expense is right. They already earn money from tourists who spend in stores, visiting their monuments, etc. She said”

The highest tax was unlikely to solve the housing crisis, but the increase seemed reasonable, 21-year-old student and local resident Ivan Liu said.

Prior to tax hikes, Barcelona ranked 11th on the 2025nd Holidu vacation rental platform after Amsterdam, where tourists paid the most in Europe with 18.45 euros a day.