With a sense of climate and planetary responsibility, #flygskam was meant to keep us from jet-setting abroad at the drop of a hat. Overtourism, and its habit of transforming cities into theme parks devoid of local character, was meant to send us into distant patches of countryside that were often unpopular for good reason.
But with the “carrot” of appealing to our collective conscience seemingly not working, tourism destinations around the world are turning to the “stick” of simply making things more expensive.
In what seems to be an extended age of overtourism, the era of the “free” destination is quietly slipping away, as governments and city authorities introduce new visitor levies, access charges and overnight taxes with one goal in mind: ensuring tourism pays for the pressure it brings to public spaces, city infrastructure and heritage sites.
Mauritius is a case in point. Long sold as an easy luxury escape for South Africans — all turquoise lagoons, polished resorts and sun loungers — the island now comes with an added nightly cost. On October 1 2025, the island introduced a tourist fee of €3 per person, per night for visitors aged 12 and older staying in hotels, guesthouses, tourist residences and domaines. Authorities have framed the fee as a way to support sustainable tourism development and infrastructure. And while it’s probably not going to convince you to cancel your holiday, and it is small change compared to what many resorts charge, the point has been made.
In Hawaii, the shift is even more ambitious.
In May 2025, governor Josh Green signed legislation establishing what has been billed as the first “green fee” in the US, hiking taxes by almost one percentage point and expanding the tax to include cruise ship visitors — about 150,000/year — for the first time. The new taxes come into force this year, and will, they say, be used to fund climate resilience and environmental protection.
“As an island chain, Hawaii cannot wait for the next disaster to hit before taking action. We must build resiliency now, and the green fee will provide the necessary financing to ensure resources are available for our future,” said Governor Green.
For visitors, it means those already-spendy hotel bills will creep that little bit higher, with the fee expected to rake in close to $100m each year.
But if there’s one destination that has wholeheartedly embraced levies as a deterrent to keep visitors in their place, it’s Venice.
And perhaps you can’t blame them. The historic centre — that postcard scene of canals and vaporetti, opera-singing gondoliers and romantic bridges — is only home to 50,000 residents yet receives (we won’t use the word “welcomes”) up to 30-million tourists each year. Which might be grudgingly accepted if they were all staying in hotels and eating in the restaurants, but 90% of those visitors simply pull in for the day, take their photos and leave. Overpriced Bellini at Harry’s Bar is optional. So, little wonder that the much-talked-about day visitor fee returns for 2026, as one of the clearest examples of a city actively trying to manage day-tripper crowds.
From April 3, day visitors will have to pay an access fee of €5 if they book at least four days in advance or €10 for last-minute bookings. The fee applies only on selected peak days and only to visitors entering the historic centre without staying overnight.
Perhaps inspired by the €5.4m that Venice raked in in 2025, Rome has now taken a similar approach at one of its most overrun landmarks. Since February 2 2026, tourists and non-residents wanting to access the basin area directly in front of the Trevi Fountain — popular for throwing coins in to ensure your return to the city — have had to pay a €2 entry. The broader piazza and upper viewing area remain free.
Elsewhere, the screws are tightening as well. Kyoto’s revised accommodation tax comes into force in March 2026, and for luxury travellers it is a serious jump. Guests staying in rooms costing ¥100,000 (R10,200) or more per person per night will now pay ¥10,000 in tax, 10 times the previous levy.
Whether the measure makes a difference isn’t clear, but the messaging is clear: if you want to sleep in one of Japan’s most tourism-pressured cultural capitals, especially at the top end, expect to pay more.
In Barcelona, another city struggling with overtourism, officials have approved another sharp increase, doubling the regional tourist tax, which will raise the levy for high-end hotel stays to as much as €15/night. Edinburgh will also introduce a visitor levy on all paid overnight stays from July 24 2026, adding 5% to your hotel bill in “Auld Reekie”.
The question is, will the levies have the desired effect? Will tourists who’ve paid thousands of euros for flights and hotels baulk at paying €2 to cast a coin? Of course not.
Which, in turn, begs the question: why bother in the first place? The first, most obviously, is financial: more money means more resources to maintain, upgrade and protect the places we’re all flocking to see. The second, more nebulous, is to remind us to check our entitlement at the airport. These cities and monuments belong to others, and they have value beyond our acquisitive eye. If you want that basilica, castle or fountain selfie, you also have to help pay for what it takes to keep that place standing.
