Consultation backed for Cardiff tourism tax plans

Lewis Smith, local democracy reporter

Senior councillors have agreed to a public consultation over plans to implement a tourism tax for overnight stays in Cardiff.

The proposed levy would apply to paid overnight stays of 31 nights or less in accommodation such as hotels, hostels, guest-houses, Airbnb’s, camp-sites, and temporary event accommodation.

If eventually taken forward most overnight stays would see the introduction of a charge of £1.30 per person, per night, with a reduced rate of 75p per person applying to shared rooms such as hostels and camp-sites- though some visitors would be exempt from the charge.

A council spokesperson said the money raised would be used to “support Cardiff’s visitor economy, through destination management and improvement”.

This would include improving infrastructure, promoting events, supporting tourism businesses, and enhancing the city’s appeal to visitors.

The money raised is estimated to be worth around £3.5 million each year and would be paid to the Welsh Revenue Authority, who in turn pay the levy to the local council.

Those exempt would include people staying for more than 31 nights from a single booking and those under 18 and staying on a camp-site pitch or in a shared room.

Speaking at the meeting of the council’s cabinet, Cllr John Lancaster referenced a survey where he said 40% of respondents said a tourism levy of this nature could prevent them from visiting, curtail spending, or alter plans so they wouldn’t spend as long in a particular destination.

He also asked what would be done in the consultation to capture some of the potential negatives and downsides so those affected could respond with the information they need.

However, Cllr Huw Thomas said he believed the figures were taken on a Wales-wide basis, adding that he had absolute confidence in the “world class ” visitor offer that Cardiff has.

He also said with people travelling from across the world, in some cases spending £700 for concert tickets, he didn’t believe a levy of £1.30 per head would deter them from doing that, though noted this would be tested through the consultation process.

Others made reference to countries such as France, Portugal, New Zealand, Greece and Japan who all had massive tourism industries that were not affected by tourism levys of this kind.

Full council

Following cabinet approval on November 20, a further decision will now be made by full council to approve the 12-week public consultation that is set to begin on December 1.

The results of this will be part of a final proposal, which will be presented to cabinet and cull council again in March 2026.

If approved it could be introduced to Cardiff from April of 2027.