Paris hotels decry spike in tourist tax ahead of 2024 Olympics

PARIS – The owners of hotels in Paris criticised the authorities for their plan to triple the tax paid by visitors on nights at hotels from next year.

The tourist tax is being revised in 2024 when the city hosts the Olympic Games. Presently, the tourist tax in Paris varies from €0.25 (US$0.27) a night for the most basic accommodation to €5 a night for fancy settlements.

As part of the plans for 2024 budget, the government is to triple the tourist fee but the representatives of hotels say that the fee revision is another blow to the competitiveness of the sector as well as France’s image at a time when all attention is on the Paris 2024 Olympics.

While the UMIH hotel and restaurant union and GNC group of hotel chains took aim at the government, the authorities state that the 200 per cent increase in the tourist tax would help fund public transport.

 “The authorities fear a hike in hotel prices, but they’re sending the tax rate through the roof. Then they’ll come and blame us,” Catherine Querard, the president of union GHR said while criticising the move.

It bears mentioning that the Olympics would run from July 26 to August 11 but the hotels have already revised their rates. Interestingly, the government aims to pass the legislation regarding budget without a vote by invoking article 49.3 of the French constitution.

The French government recently promulgated the immigration bill as well which is visibly anti-immigration and restricts provision of social welfare benefits to some of the immigrants.

At present, President Macron’s government does not have a majority and invokes article 49.3 to pass pieces of legislation. What is bothering the hotel industry is the fact that the regional authorities have also announced a rise in public transport tickets for the Games.