Cities such as Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia, Braga, Póvoa do Varzim, Coimbra, Lisbon, Sintra, Cascais, Mafra, Óbidos, Faro, Vila Real de Santo António and Santa Cruz already charge a municipal tourist tax. Figueira da Foz will debut later this year.

According to a report by ECO, in Porto, the cost is two euros per person and the fee is charged up to a maximum of seven consecutive nights per person. The fee, launched in 2018, is applied to people aged 13 or over. Last year alone, Porto raised 15 million euros with this measure, triple what was raised in 2021, ECO found out from the Porto municipality.

In Vila Nova de Gaia, the tourist tax came into force at the end of 2018 and costs two euros per night in the high season, from April 1st to September 30th, and one euro in the low season, which corresponds to the period between October 1st and March 31st, up to a maximum of seven nights in a row. The fee applies to guests aged 16 and over.

Further north, in the municipality of Braga, the tourist tax is 1.50 euros per overnight stay, up to a maximum of four nights and is applied between the months of March and October. In accordance with Gaia, the fee applies to persons aged 16 and over. In Póvoa de Varzim, it costs 1.50 euros and applies to the same age group, having entered into force at the beginning of this year.


Lisbon rates


As in Porto, in Lisbon the rate is two euros per night, for a maximum of seven nights per person. In the capital, the tourist tax began to be applied in January 2016 on overnight stays of national tourists (including Lisbon tourists) and foreigners in hotels or local accommodation units. Initially it was one euro per night, but from January 2019 it increased to two euros. Lisbon Council wants to use tourist tax to invest in housing.

Óbidos joins the list of Portuguese cities that charge tourist tax. This fee came into effect in January 2022 and costs one euro per night for all guests aged 13 and over.

In Mafra, the tourist tax came into force in March this year and is worth 2.20 euros in the high season, from May 1st to October 31st and 1.10 euros in the low season, from November 1st to April 30th.

In the municipality of Sintra, the municipal tourist tax for overnight stays came into force in 2019 and costs two euros per guest in all tourist developments and local accommodation establishments, up to a maximum of three nights.

Cascais charges a city tax of two euros per person. The fee applies up to a maximum of seven consecutive nights and is charged to guests age 13 and older at check-in.


Coimbra


In Coimbra, the Municipal Tourist Tax came into force on April 5th and costs one euro per night. The fee will be charged in all tourist developments and local accommodation establishments located in the geographical area of the Municipality, up to a maximum of three consecutive nights. According to the municipality, the fee is levied on guests aged 16 or over, and is applied only between the months of March and October.

The Câmara da Figueira da Foz, in the district of Coimbra, approved last month the draft regulation of the tourist tax. Tourists will have to pay, on average, two euros per night, up to a maximum of seven nights, with a price reduction for people with physical limitations, children and young people under 14 years old. The fee will be applied this year.

On the island of Berlengas, in Peniche, the tourist tax also applies. Last year, visitors to the island of Berlengas began, as of April, to pay a tourist tax of three euros per day (between 6 and 18 years old, while those over 65 pay half). The tourist tax on the island of Berlengas yielded 83,000 euros in the first nine months. The Institute for the Conservation of Nature and Forests (ICNF) clarified that the revenue was collected between April and December 2022.


Algarve tourist taxes


In the Algarve, the tourist tax also applies to cities such as Faro and Vila Real de Santo António. In Faro, the rate costs 1.50 euros per person and is applied from March to October up to a maximum of seven consecutive nights, from the age of 12, the municipality advanced to ECO.

Vila Real de Santo António has a tourist tax of one euro up to a maximum of seven nights. Minors aged ten or less are exempt from paying this fee, while minors aged between 11 and 13 will only pay half the amount, ie 0.50 cents.

In Madeira, the tourist tax also applies in the municipality of Santa Cruz. The value of the fee is two euros per night for a maximum of seven nights. Guests aged 13 and over are covered.

The decision to apply the fee is up to each municipality, which also defines the amount charged to tourists who stay overnight in hotels, local accommodation or even in campsites. Last year, the tourist tax yielded 54 million to the councils. Lisbon and Porto concentrated more than 80% of the financial inflow, which was 4% below the last year before the pandemic (2019) but which corresponded to triple the amount verified in 2021.