Latest news with #touristtax
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Fears anti-tourism protests will spread to Paris as iconic neighbourhood feels the strain
Residents of Paris 's picturesque Montmartre are sounding the alarm over escalating overtourism, fearing their hilltop neighbourhood could become the next Barcelona or Venice. This concern follows a spike in tourist numbers after last year's Olympic Games. While Paris has largely avoided the widespread anti-tourism protests seen in Spain and Italy, partly due to stringent housing regulations and its sheer size, some iconic areas are now feeling the strain. Locals on Montmartre's famed cobbled streets are urgently calling for change. Anne Renaudie, who has lived in the area for 29 years and heads the Vivre à Montmartre association, said the historic quarter made famous by the 2001 film "Amelie" now resembles a theme park. "People come for three hours, have fun, buy a beret or a crepe, and leave, as if they were in an amusement park," she told Reuters. Meanwhile, essential food shops for residents are vanishing, replaced by snack stands and souvenir stalls. "We're down to two or three butchers, two cheese shops. They're disappearing one after the other," she said. "Now it's a lot of ice cream, crepes, taco places." Her association has proposed measures to the town hall similar to those in other European tourist hotspots: limiting tour groups to 25 people, banning loudspeakers, and raising the tourist tax. Tourism in the Paris region reached 48.7 million visitors in 2024, with about 11 million visiting Montmartre annually, largely to see the photogenic Sacre-Coeur basilica. The narrow streets have become clogged with tour groups, leaving locals frustrated. "Sometimes I have to really raise my voice and say, 'Sorry, I want to pass'," said Anthea Quenel, 44, a mother of two and local resident. And things may only get busier. Paris officials say 2025 is shaping up to be a bumper tourist year, with a 20% rise in January bookings over the same month last year. Eric Lejoindre, mayor of the 18th arrondissement, which includes Montmartre, said rising housing prices could drive residents out. "For me, the big issue is housing. That means fighting against Airbnb and rental platforms," he said. Real estate prices in Montmartre have risen 19% over the past decade, according to website A 40-square-metre apartment near Place du Tertre can now fetch around 500,000 euros ($572,000). To address this, Paris has tightened short-term rental rules, reducing the annual limit on renting out a primary residence from 120 to 90 days. Even small things, like the cost of a scoop of ice cream - which can set you back 5 euros, reflect the shift from neighbourhood to tourist zone. "It's like Disneyland," Quenel lamented.
Telegraph
19 hours ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Labour's ‘toxic' tax will demolish the ‘Reynolds effect', warns Wrexham
Labour's plans to roll out a 'toxic' tourist tax on Welsh towns will discourage visitors as well as putting local jobs at risk, councillors have warned. It comes as Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, backs proposals to allow councils to charge similar levies to boost their budgets. Wrexham city's head of tourism said the tax would deter those who travel from as far as America and Australia following the success of the Welcome to Wrexham TV series about the town's local football club. Tourism in the city has soared since Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds' takeover of Wrexham FC in 2020, and a tax on entry would be 'detrimental' to the local economy, the councillor said. Wrexham council's Cllr Nigel Williams said: 'As lead member with responsibility for tourism, I would currently not be in favour of introducing the tax. 'Any decision on tourism tax would need to be taken by the council's executive board, but over the year I've been out speaking with businesses in the hospitality and tourism sector, and currently none of those I've spoken to would welcome the new tax. They feel it would be detrimental to the sector.' Ms Rayner is said to be lobbying Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, to give councils more of a say in how their budgets are decided, and has previously called for a 'devolution revolution'. Welsh Labour's proposals would impose a £1.30 surcharge per person, meaning a family of four staying in a hotel or Airbnb for a two-week stay would pay £72.80 in tourism tax to the local authority. Visitors staying in caravan sites or hostels would pay a reduced rate of 75p per night – an extra £42 on the family holiday. The earliest the levy – which is expected to raise £33m a year – could be introduced is in 2027. However, it is at the discretion of local authorities whether they choose to implement it or not. Sam Rowlands, the chair of the Senedd's Cross-Party Group on Tourism, said local businesses were 'extremely worried' about the levy. He said: 'I really couldn't believe it when this toxic tax was passed earlier this month, as in this current climate, the last thing we should be doing is discouraging people from visiting North Wales. 'One of the biggest employers in my region is the tourism sector, which supports around 46,000 jobs and, in normal times, generates over £3.5bn annually to the local economy. We should be supporting our hospitality industry – not hindering its growth.' Wrexham's tourism boom It comes as businesses battle a soaring tax burden after the Chancellor's decision to increase employers' National Insurance contributions. Official figures show that since Welcome to Wrexham first aired, North Wales's tourism revenue has risen 20pc year on year and almost 50pc in five years. Internet searches for trips to North Wales have also soared as Wrexham AFC has gone from strength to strength, securing three back-to-back promotions. Last month, more than 300,000 people in the US alone searched for Wrexham content on Reddit. Mark Pritchard, the council leader, said he would not support a tax 'as we want to welcome people to Wrexham without charging them additional taxes on their visit'. He added: 'The current visitor and tourism economy within Wrexham is growing as a result of many factors, including the increased profile we enjoy from the football club as well as ongoing local and multi-agency work promoting Wrexham and Wales as a destination. 'We want to encourage tourists to visit and spend their hard-earned money here. Putting an additional levy or tax on their visit could mean they choose to visit somewhere else and spend their money elsewhere.'
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Venice should charge visitors £87 a DAY to reduce 'tide' of tourists who 'don't even know what culture is', local business leader demands
Venice has made five million Euro (£4.7million) with a daily five Euro (£4.35) tourist tax this summer, but some businesses want it raised to clamp down on 'unclassy' visitors. The charge was introduced in April as part of a trial run following one last year and was payable over 54 selected days until last Sunday by day trippers who visited the iconic Italian lagoon city. Officials said that the charge, payable by visitors who arrived for the day between 8.30am and 4pm, was paid by 720,000 compared to 485,000 last year. However, Setrak Tokatzian, president of the Venice's historic Piazza San Marco Association of small businesses, has urged council chiefs to up the tax to an eye-watering 100 Euro (£87). Mr Tokatzian, who runs a jewellery shop in the heart of Venice, said it would be worth it because many of the 30million people who visit the city each year are lowering the tone of the city. In what might be considered a rather snobby interview with the local Corriere del Veneto, he said: 'Every day I see rivers of people coming to the city, but without a goal. 'They move from side to side, often guided by tour operators, climb gondolas, and I'm sorry to say but this sort of tourism is obscene. 'There is a total over explosion of tourists, these people wander around and don't even bother going into any of the shops, they don't even know where they are going. 'No one goes into any of the designer stores and bus branded goods, they just buy fake goods from the street sellers. 'But it's not just that. I have also heard from hoteliers who tell me there has been a drop in overnight guests and the restaurants tell me the same thing. 'I myself have seen people, when they do stop to eat something, divide up a plate of pasta or share a drink. People line up at fountains to get water instead of buying bottles from a shop. 'Where are the classy people, the ones interested in the city and who really bring something to it?' Earlier his year Venice was the venue for billionaire Amazon boss Jeff Bezos's wedding to Lauren Sanchez. And Mr Tokatzian was one of many including the mayor, who hit out at critics of the event. He added of over tourism: 'I think it is a widespread phenomena throughout Italy, from what I have head from counterparts in Milan and other cities, it's all the same. 'In St Mark's Square no one stops to look in the shop windows, a tide of people just arrive from the mainland in the morning on boats and then go home in the afternoon, without even appreciating where they have been. 'I personally believe we need to put some sort of threshold on this over tourism, and charge these people 100 Euro. 'There are tides of people coming in from the campsites nearby every day with wrist bands on and they don't even know what culture is, and you can see it in them when they arrive. 'And then what's worse is that they leave without buying a thing, except from the street hawkers who in my eyes make money illegally, and this is a daily battle for us.' He went on: 'The tourists come; they don't buy anything but they are happy for someone to take their picture feeding grains to the pigeons in in St Mark's Square.' The idea was dismissed by consumer group, Assoutenti, with spokesman Gabriele Melluso saying it was 'madness and unworkable'. He said: 'The truth, and the businesses all know it, is that tourists don't buy in Venice because the prices are too high. 'To have a bite to eat in a cafe or restaurant in the city of Venice, in one of the tourist areas, is to pay some of the highest prices in Italy and that's why when people do visit, they try and save money. 'To combat over tourism in Venice and Italy, we don't need unrealistic taxes that transform the beauty of our country into something just for the rich but a well booking system and better PR.' No one from Venice City Council was immediately available to discuss the idea.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- The Guardian
Take it from a former Parisian waitress: there are ways to avoid the unofficial ‘tourist tax' in cafes and bars
When an investigation into the tricks of Parisian waiters found that foreign tourists were being ripped off, all I could think was, 'Quelle surprise!' Anyone who has stared in shock at a bill for a citron pressé and an espresso near the Boulevard St Germain – as I did on one of my recent visits – will no doubt join me in a feeling of vindication. Undercover journalists for Le Parisien, posing as cafe punters around the Champ de Mars, have discovered that foreign tourists are being charged as much as 50% more than French customers, using a variety of tricks including only offering bottled water or more expensive drinks, being told service isn't included when it is, and swapping the wine ordered for the cheapest on the menu. As a former waitress in the French capital, I'm someone who has been on both sides of this conflict. Before I left home, at 18, to move there, my mother warned me of the 'tourist tax', having visited with my father in the mid-1980s and noted the suspicious fiver that seemed to appear on all their bills. As a result, I was slightly on guard whenever I was en terrasse, always making sure to ask for tap water and quibbling anything that didn't look right. Then I became a waitress myself. Despite dodgy French and a lack of experience, for some reason a small crêperie on the Left Bank hired me (actually, I know why: I agreed to go on a date with one of its former chefs). Working there was a baptism of fire, as I discovered the minute a table of French people ordered a perroquet, a kir and a menthe a l'eau. What were these strange, exotic drinks, and how the hell did I make them? The French customers were exacting in their requirements. The tourists, meanwhile, especially the Americans, were charmed by the quaintness and novelty of the place, friendly but slightly unnerved by the brisk, perfunctory service, and easily impressed and influenced. (This difference is borne out by recent TripAdvisor reviews – appalling on the French website, glowing on the English.) I never ripped off tourists. In fact, they used to greet me with relief because I not only spoke English but, being aware of the longstanding reputation for rudeness on the part of Parisian serving staff, would work hard to charm them – with one eye on the tip tray, naturally (French customers never tipped). What I did do, though, was a lot of upselling. 'Ordering two cups of Breton cider? Why not have the bottle?' – that sort of thing, which is par for the course in hospitality. I did, however, know waiting staff who had less honest tactics. And then, 10 years ago, a group of us diners were subject to an outrageous scam at a Left Bank brasserie. Enticed into a place on the promise of a deal on a cheap charcuterie board, much merriment was had until the bill came, whereupon we discovered that the board had trebled in price and we were being charged for a far more expensive bottle of picpoul than the one we had ordered. My quibble with the bill quickly descended into an argument with the waiter, who flatly denied that we had ever been promised the deal, saying, in possibly the most French manner possible: 'In Paris, you would pay more for oeufs mayonnaise.' This has since become a catchphrase in our house whenever the cost of anything is brought up. (Our other family catchphrase, done in an 'Allo 'Allo! accent, is deployed when we are eating parsnips, in honour of the ex-boyfriend who came for Sunday lunch: 'In France, we feed zees to the pigs!') Look, I love France and the French. I have French family and friends, and part of my heart will always be living in Paris, 18, chain-smoking at the bar with a book in my hand (the best thing about being a waitress in France is being allowed to read and not being told to smile). Ripping off tourists, however, is never on, even in this era of Instagram travel and overtourism. I'm not averse to a tourist tax, provided it's a legal one. My advice for not getting ripped off in Paris is as follows: avoid places with touts outside; say bonjour when you walk in, and please and thank you when ordering. Learn the French for tap water. Be aware that bread should be free. Look around you to observe the size of the drinks the locals are having, and if necessary point to them when ordering. If you're offered a side or a different type of wine, ask how much it is. Read the bill when it arrives and don't be afraid to question it. Ask if service is included or not and check the amount on the card machine before you pay. And – the ouefs mayonnaise rule – if an offer looks too good to be true, then it probably is. Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett is a Guardian columnist
The Guardian
5 days ago
- The Guardian
Take it from a former Parisian waitress: there are ways to avoid the unofficial ‘tourist tax' in cafes and bars
When an investigation into the tricks of Parisian waiters found that foreign tourists were being ripped off, all I could think was, 'Quelle surprise!' Anyone who has stared in shock at a bill for a citron pressé and an espresso near the Boulevard St Germain – as I did on one of my recent visits – will no doubt join me in a feeling of vindication. Undercover journalists for Le Parisien, posing as cafe punters around the Champ de Mars, have discovered that foreign tourists are being charged as much as 50% more than French customers, using a variety of tricks including only offering bottled water or more expensive drinks, being told service isn't included when it is, and swapping the wine ordered for the cheapest on the menu. As a former waitress in the French capital, I'm someone who has been on both sides of this conflict. Before I left home, at 18, to move there, my mother warned me of the 'tourist tax', having visited with my father in the mid-1980s and noted the suspicious fiver that seemed to appear on all their bills. As a result, I was slightly on guard whenever I was en terrasse, always making sure to ask for tap water and quibbling anything that didn't look right. Then I became a waitress myself. Despite dodgy French and a lack of experience, for some reason a small crêperie on the Left Bank hired me (actually, I know why: I agreed to go on a date with one of its former chefs). Working there was a baptism of fire, as I discovered the minute a table of French people ordered a perroquet, a kir and a menthe a l'eau. What were these strange, exotic drinks, and how the hell did I make them? The French customers were exacting in their requirements. The tourists, meanwhile, especially the Americans, were charmed by the quaintness and novelty of the place, friendly but slightly unnerved by the brisk, perfunctory service, and easily impressed and influenced. (This difference is borne out by recent TripAdvisor reviews – appalling on the French website, glowing on the English.) I never ripped off tourists. In fact, they used to greet me with relief because I not only spoke English but, being aware of the longstanding reputation for rudeness on the part of Parisian serving staff, would work hard to charm them – with one eye on the tip tray, naturally (French customers never tipped). What I did do, though, was a lot of upselling. 'Ordering two cups of Breton cider? Why not have the bottle?' – that sort of thing, which is par for the course in hospitality. I did, however, know waiting staff who had less honest tactics. And then, 10 years ago, a group of us diners were subject to an outrageous scam at a Left Bank brasserie. Enticed into a place on the promise of a deal on a cheap charcuterie board, much merriment was had until the bill came, whereupon we discovered that the board had trebled in price and we were being charged for a far more expensive bottle of picpoul than the one we had ordered. My quibble with the bill quickly descended into an argument with the waiter, who flatly denied that we had ever been promised the deal, saying, in possibly the most French manner possible: 'In Paris, you would pay more for oeufs mayonnaise.' This has since become a catchphrase in our house whenever the cost of anything is brought up. (Our other family catchphrase, done in an 'Allo 'Allo! accent, is deployed when we are eating parsnips, in honour of the ex-boyfriend who came for Sunday lunch: 'In France, we feed zees to the pigs!') Look, I love France and the French. I have French family and friends, and part of my heart will always be living in Paris, 18, chain-smoking at the bar with a book in my hand (the best thing about being a waitress in France is being allowed to read and not being told to smile). Ripping off tourists, however, is never on, even in this era of Instagram travel and overtourism. I'm not averse to a tourist tax, provided it's a legal one. My advice for not getting ripped off in Paris is as follows: avoid places with touts outside; say bonjour when you walk in, and please and thank you when ordering. Learn the French for tap water. Be aware that bread should be free. Look around you to observe the size of the drinks the locals are having, and if necessary point to them when ordering. If you're offered a side or a different type of wine, ask how much it is. Read the bill when it arrives and don't be afraid to question it. Ask if service is included or not and check the amount on the card machine before you pay. And – the ouefs mayonnaise rule – if an offer looks too good to be true, then it probably is. Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett is a Guardian columnist
