Popular holiday destination mulls tourist tax

LONDON – Travellers may have to pay tourist tax when visiting another attractive holiday destination as the Tenerife island, Spain is currently exploring the suggestion due to mass tourism tourists.

According to the details, from 2025, tourists will pay an undisclosed fee while visiting certain areas in Tenerife as the Canary Islands’ City Council confirmed that the levy would be introduced on January 1.

Thousands of protestors participated last weekend in Tenerife and the other Canary Islands of Lanzarote and Gran Canaria holding placards against mass tourism.

The decision has come in response to almost 50,000 residents protesting in the streets of Tenerife with a small group of hunger strikers that prolonged for around two weeks. The residents claim that tourists are affecting vital environmental issues as well as reducing wages and removing locals from comfortable housing. Many residents are living in tents and cars because of over-tourism.

It is being reported that the ‘eco-tax’ will be introduced which will help to calm the protestors who demand to limit tourism on the island. This latest idea is the part of island’s new tourism policy however the charge and other formalities are yet to be agreed upon by Parliament.

The tax will apply to all of Tenerife’s most visited secured areas, including the volcano Mount Teide and several rural parks and hamlets like Masca.

A spokesman for the Tenerife government said the implementation of this eco-tax is highly important due to the mass tourists visiting the secured sites.

The concept of tourism tax is not new and many popular destinations like Bali, parts of the UK, Venice and other spots impose tax on tourists to help preserve the environment.