Some people worry that New Zealand will significantly raise the entry fee for international visitors.
The cost of the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy will near triple to NZ$ 100 ( £47.20 ) from NZ$ 35 ( £16.52 ) from 1 October.
The government claimed this will encourage economic growth and “ensure customers ‘ contributions to public service and high-quality activities while visiting New Zealand.”
However, Tourism Industry Aotearoa, the nation’s separate tourism body, claims the higher cost is a drag on visitors, making it “incredibly cheap to visit.”
The country is famed for its Māori society and extraordinary beauty, including ice, mountains, volcanoes and lakes.
However, tourists frequently encountered a challenge due to its proximity to the South Pacific and associated long-distance air tickets.
” New Zealand’s hospitality treatment is falling behind the rest of the world, and this will further thorn our world competitiveness”, said Rebecca Ingram, the institution’s chief executive.
New Zealand first introduced the charge in 2019, as it grappled with the influence of large numbers of tourists on its equipment, culture and areas.
During the coronavirus pandemic, the country shut its borders for two and a half years and didn’t allow foreign visitors to return until August 2022.
The country has been struggling to return to the visitor levels it saw before the pandemic, with just under three million international visitors in 2023, roughly three-quarters of pre-pandemic levels.
According to Matt Doocey, the new tax rate would not be a major deterrent, since NZ$ 100 would account for less than 3 % of the common traveler’s regular expenditure in the nation.
He continued to be convinced that New Zealand will continue to be viewed as a desirable tourist destination by people all over the world and that it remained competitive in comparison to nations like Australia and the UK.
Tourists from Australia and the Pacific do not need to pay the tax. Most readers to New Zealand are from Australia, the United States, China and Fiji.
The higher prices are in addition to the additional card fees that some visitors are paying starting October 1st.
Tourism income exist in other countries as well.
Other states that charge travellers include Indonesia, Spain, France, Austria, Croatia, Costa Rica, Iceland and Italy.
In most locations, the taxes is included as part of lodging, immigration or plane seat costs.
In April, Venice launched a trial where day trippers were charged a €5 tax to visit the city on peak days, in a bid to combat the effects of over-tourism.