Norway to introduce tourist tax amid record visitor numbers and overtourism concerns

By&nbspEuronews Travel

Published on 06/06/2025 - 14:07 GMT+2

Norway is group to go nan latest European destination to present a tourer taxation to combat concerns astir rising visitant numbers.

Lawmakers approved nan caller levy connected Thursday, which allows municipalities to present a 3 per cent taxation connected overnight stays successful “areas peculiarly affected by tourism”.

The rule allows section authorities to use nan taxation astatine their ain discretion, and it will beryllium added to accommodation charges. Authorities will besides beryllium allowed to set nan percent based connected nan season.

The costs raised by nan taxation will beryllium utilized exclusively to amended tourism infrastructure projects that use some visitors and section people. Municipalities will person to show that their accommodation are inadequate and person their plans approved by nan authorities to walk nan funds.

Cecilie Myrseth, Norway’s curate of waste and acquisition and industry, said connected societal media that her authorities had reached a “historic agreement” to present a tourism taxation that was “in statement pinch what they person successful nan remainder of Europe”.

The state is nan latest successful a drawstring of European nations introducing aliases expanding visitant levies to tackle nan increasing problem of overtourism. A taxation whitethorn besides beryllium applied to cruise ships that make stops successful nan country, peculiarly successful areas that are astir affected by overtourism.

Norway is experiencing a tourism boom

As visitors progressively choose cooler, bluish European destinations to get distant from nan heat, Norway has knowledgeable a roar successful visitant numbers.

Last year, a record-breaking 38.6 cardinal group booked accommodation successful nan country. That includes much than 12 cardinal overnight stays by overseas visitors - a 4.2 per cent summation from 2023.

Some antecedently quiet destinations person been overwhelmed, for illustration nan Lofoten islands, wherever eye-catching images of hiking trails posted connected societal media person led to an influx of visitors. With a organization of 24,500 group distributed crossed respective mini towns and villages, keeping up pinch nan costs of each these caller visitors has been hard.

A caller study by manufacture organisation Norwegian Tourism Partners recovered that 77 per cent of group successful Tromsø, successful bluish Norway supra nan Arctic Circle, thought location were excessively galore visitors there. Visitors person been drawn by nan Northern Lights, wildlife excursions, Sami taste experiences and what nan metropolis itself has to offer.

The summation successful tourism has caused hostility pinch section residents crossed Norway arsenic infrastructure has struggled to support up pinch nan boom. Facilities for illustration nationalist toilets and car parks person been overwhelmed successful celebrated destinations.

Some residents person moreover reported cases of group utilizing their backmost gardens arsenic toilets, and bemoaned nan accrued postulation clogging up Norway’s roads.