One of Europe’s cheapest cities to make it more expensive for tourists to visit

A CHEAP vacation spot in Europe is set to raise tourist tax – making it more expensive for holidaymakers to visit.

Porto, the second-largest city in Portugal, has announced a crackdown on over-tourism amid fresh waves of measures across Europe.

Tourists visiting Porto will now have to pay more to stay overnightCredit: Getty

The city council said it will raise the tourist tax to €3 (£2.50) per night for anyone visiting and staying in Porto.

Porto – along with Albufeira, Madeira and Setúbal – currently charges €2 (£1.65) a night for non-residents’ overnight stays.

But Rui Moreira, mayor of the city, believes it is not enough – and authorities should do more to maintain the city as a “sustainable tourist spot”.

He said: “[It is] imperative to maintain Porto as a sustainable tourist destination preventing degradation and excessive occupation, which implies adjustments in tourism management policies.”

Moreira’s council has justified the new tourist tax figure with last year’s tourism expenditure in areas such as culture, heritage, the environment, energy, quality of life, town planning, housing and transport, which he claims are “essential for providing a service to tourism”.

He added: “In addition to this expenditure, there are items for the Porto brand, promotion of tourism in the city, internationalisation of the Porto brand and upgrading of the tourism service.”

A “tourist tax” – also known as a “transient visitor levy” – is a fee applied to short-stay accommodation.

They are often imposed in cities with strong tourist economies, in countries such as Canada, Spain, Germany, Belgium and France.

A tourist tax normally takes the form of a charge per occupied bed or room per night, within short-term accommodation providers.

The charge can be set at a flat rate or a series of flat rates (for example, €2 per bed per night), or it can be set as a percentage of the price of the bed or room.

The Portugal village dubbed the ‘Hamptons of Europe’

Tourist taxes are sometimes set at different rates for different times of the year.

Some cities exempt, or give discounts for beds occupied by children or those travelling for medical reasons.

Others impose different rates on campsites, bed and breakfasts, non-serviced accommodations, or hotels with different star ratings.

Lisbon, another popular city famous with holidaymakers visiting the country, also recently announced it will hike its tourist tax.

And not just Portugal, such anti-tourism measures are being taken in top holiday spots across Europe.

Holidaymakers travelling to Barcelona, in Spain, will see the tax raise once again from October.

As well as an increase on daily tourist charges, there will be a full ban on holiday apartments.

It comes after the cosmopolitan capital previously upped their traveller tax from €2.75 (£2.33) to €3.25 (£2.75) in April.

Now, holidaymakers will be forced to fork out €4 (£3.39) for city tax from October to enjoy the beauties Barcelona has to offer.

Regional tourist tax is charged measured where you’re staying.

A luxury hotel will set you back €3.50 (£2.96), while an Airbnb will only be €2.25 (£1.90).

Meanwhile, the city tax is flat rate charged per night, for up to seven nights.

This means from October, a tourist will have to pay a total of €52.50 (£44.43) to stay in a five-star hotel for a week.

The figure includes the €3.50 per night in regional tax, and €4 per night in city tax.

Meanwhile, a ban on short-term holiday rentals is due to be implemented in 2028.

As well as an increase in daily tourist charges, there will be a full ban on holiday apartments.