Amsterdam Tourist Tax
City tourist tax
Amsterdam tourist tax is basically a means to earn money from visitors to the city outside of what they spend whilst there.
Many cities across the world have grappled with how to balance the benefits of tourism with the issue of having too many tourists visit. Amsterdam in particular has recently focussed on the quality of the tourist.
It will be no suprise that the Red Light District is a big attraction to younger and perhaps more budget travellers, which can impact this area with large volumes of people. There have even been plans muted to move the RLD completely outside the city centre to counter this. Amsterdam has also often used advertising to try and attract or put off specific visitor profiles.
The Amsterdam tourist tax is another means of perhaps trying to reduce the influx of tourists or at least make more money from them when they come.
How much is the Amsterdam Tourist Tax
In 2024, the Amsterdam tourist tax will increase significantly to 12.5% for overnight visitors. It used to be 7%. This means Amsterdam will be charging the highest tourist tax throughout Europe.
Amsterdam has some huge events upcoming in 2025, such as Sail Amsterdam and it’s 750th anniversary, so there is going to be an expectation that even more visitors will be coming to Amsterdam in the very near future. Amsterdam is already one of the most visited European cities, so it remains to be seen if charging the highest tourist tax around will make any difference to visitor numbers or income to the city. And indeed where that additional income will be used.
How is the Amsterdam Tourist Tax collected
As a visitor, you won’t really notice the tax as it will be rolled into the cost of your room for the night. You will probably see it itemised in the receipt for your bill and perhaps notice that hotel room prices have gone up from a previous visit.
Accommodation venues (hotels, hostels, airbnb, b&b, campsites etc) will charge the tax to you, the visitor, and then they will be responsible for paying the tax to the municipality. The 12.5% tax is charged exclusive of VAT on the accommodation cost.
Cruise passengers Amsterdam
Cruise passengers and river cruise passengers have been charged a tourist tax for some time now. Large cruise liners drop off thousands of people each day, who then spend a day in Amsterdam and return to their ship for the onward journey.
This tax was €8 per day and has now risen to €14 per day. Commonly known as a day tripper tax. The cruise company pay this tax for their passengers and usually add it to the cost of the cruise.
If you live in Amsterdam or start/end your cruise in Amsterdam, then the tax does not apply. It only applies if you are getting off your ship and then returning to it for an onward journey.
Tourist Tax Amsterdam
How much could you pay?
With the increase to 12.5% the costs of staying longer or in more luxury will see a noticeable increase.
The question of will this new tourist tax in 2024 deter budget travellers is debateable to us. If you found a room in 2023 for £70 or $90 and with the 2024 Amsterdam tourist tax going up by 5.5%, it now costs £73.85 or $94.95, is that really enough to put you off?
If you are travelling in luxury and your 2023 room cost £250 or $315 per night, you will pay an extra £13.75 or $17.32 per night in 2024. That could add up if you stay for a few nights.
We are not experts here, but in our opinion a sliding scale would perhaps have been a better solution, with the tax reducing the longer you stay. This would tax the stag and hen style visitor who is in Amsterdam for a very short hedonistic style one night break and reward visitors who are in the city longer to experience much more of Amsterdam.
Another option would be to adjust the tourist tax based on how people arrive in the city, with the more environmentally friendly methods of travel being rewarded.
But we just want people to enjoy Amsterdam as much as we do, so will leave that to the politicians who have been grappling with these issues for many years now.
Either way, visiting Amsterdam and staying overnight or longer has become 5.5% more expensive in 2024. But then visiting nearly every other Capital city has become more expensive, so it is probably all relative in the current climate.
