Where tourist tax money goes
Tourist taxes are sold as a small payment towards what visitors use: clean streets, transport, heritage, parks. Where the money actually goes depends on the law behind each one: some must be spent on tourism, others go into general budgets.
UK: ring-fenced by law
- Scotland: under the Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024, councils must spend levy money on the objectives of their scheme: developing and supporting facilities and services used by visitors (explanatory notes). Edinburgh expects up to about £50 million a year and has set out more than £90 million over three years for city operations and infrastructure, culture, heritage and festivals, and visitor management.
- Wales: Cardiff expects about £3.5 million a year, spent through a Visitor Levy Partnership Forum with local businesses.
- England: mayors must publish spending plans; the government expects them by March 2028 (details). The hotel-run charges in Manchester and Liverpool pay for marketing, events and conferences, and street cleaning.
Elsewhere
- Paris: about three-fifths of each night's tax (for example €3.40 of a 3-star hotel's €5.53) is a 200% surcharge for Île-de-France Mobilités, the region's public transport authority. Paris rates.
- Hawaii: the 2026 rise to 11% is the "Green Fee" for climate and environmental projects. Hawaii.
- Bhutan: the Sustainable Development Fee, as its name says, is charged for the country's sustainable development; it is by far the biggest nightly charge anywhere. Bhutan.
- New Zealand: the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy is, as its name says, for conservation and tourism infrastructure. New Zealand.
- Galápagos: the entry fee is charged for entering the islands' protected natural areas. Galápagos.
We only report what the body charging the tax says it spends the money on. Each place's page links to its sources.