| json_metadata | "{"app":"musing/1.1","appTags":["tourism","Italy"],"appCategory":"tourism","appTitle":"Is it right to tax tourists for visiting a city?","appBody":"<p>I think it is OK to tax tourists for visiting a city, as long as the taxes are fair and will be spent in a way that makes sense for the city and all tourism stakeholders. In your case, is it $11 per visit or $11 per night? If the $11 tax is for the entire visit, then I don't mind. But, if it's for a daily/nightly rate, then it is too much and is unfair.</p>\n<p>I understand why some cities would impose them as a means to raise funds and control the number of tourists visiting a city. Tourist cities, for example, could benefit from the funds collected through the taxes to help improve the city's infrastructure, maintain public tourism sites, and improve facilities tourists use like public toilets and parking. In this respect, I wouldn't mind a few additional dollars or euros tacked on my hotel bill every night, if that means I can enjoy better facilities and visit more beautiful and better maintained public sites during my vacation.</p>\n<p>However, what I am against is imposing a tourist tax for the sole purpose of deterring tourist arrivals. A policy like this feels like such an artificial solution to curb tourist arrivals. </p>\n<p>On one hand, we have to question how effective this will be as a deterrent because if we consider how travelers tend to save money for a vacation, would an additional £14 per person for a 7-night stay in the UK (based on the proposed £2 daily charge) or the extra $24 US visitors pay to enter New Zealand really stop anyone who really wants to visit these places? I think not. On the other hand, if the costs do become a deterrent, then the tourist tax becomes inequitable because the only people it will deter are those who are not affluent. In this respect, the tax will essentially undemocratize travel, which I find unfair. </p>\n<p>So, if a country or city really wants to curb tourist arrivals, it would be better off finding a different solution--one that's not unfair and effective. </p>\n<p><strong>TL;DR:</strong> Personally, I don't mind paying for a tourist tax if the taxes are reasonable and if they will be spent on ways that will help improve the cities I'm visiting and make my experience as a tourist even better. What I am against are tourist taxes whose sole purpose is to prevent others from visiting. I find taxes like these to be undemocratic and ineffective. So, I don't mind paying an $11 tax to visit a city, but not $11 to every day I stay in a city.</p>\n<p>Hope this helps.</p>\n<p>Sources:</p>\n<ol>\n <li>New Zealand Is Introducing a New Tourism Tax. https://thepointsguy.com/news/new-zealand-new-tourist-tax/</li>\n <li>Sky Views: Mass tourism bad but don't tax visitors. https://news.sky.com/story/sky-views-mass-tourism-bad-but-dont-tax-visitors-11524740</li>\n</ol>","appDepth":2,"appParentPermlink":"fk35ww2yq","appParentAuthor":"erikah","musingAppId":"aU2p3C3a8N","musingAppVersion":"1.1","musingPostType":"answer"}" |
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