Tourist tax in Barcelona by type 2023

Many European travel destinations have introduced taxes on accommodation services for tourists as a way to discourage overcrowding and work towards a more sustainable type of tourism. Barcelona, one of Europe’s most visited cities, also carries out such taxation. In addition, the Barcelona city council added on June 1st, 2021 a surcharge of originally 0.75 euros to the already established tax, which was calculated based on the category of the accommodation establishment. This surcharge has since then increased by one euro each April 1st, pushing the total tourist tax fee up. Since the beginning of April 2023, for example, visitors staying in 5-star and luxury hotels in Barcelona must pay 6.25 euros per night, whereas the fee for lower accommodation services amounts to 3.75 euros per night.

Which accommodation types are offered in Barcelona?

There are more than 10 thousand travel accommodation premises in Barcelona, most of which are short-term rentals. However, hotels account for the highest number of beds available in the Mediterranean city. In 2022, this number stood at over 76 thousand, while the number of beds offered by homes for tourist use and tourist apartments amounted to roughly 59 thousand.

Where do visitors prefer to stay in Barcelona?

Hotels are the first accommodation choice among tourists in Barcelona. In 2022, hotel establishments welcomed nearly seven million guests, which accounts for seven out of ten overnight visitors that year. But this choice also depends on the number of nights people decide to stay in the city. For instance, guesthouses and inns had an average length of stay of 4.3 nights in 2022, while hotel guests only stayed 2.6 nights on average.