It makes perfect sense: slap a visitors’ fee onto your overly popular country/city/attraction and not only are you likely to reduce tourist numbers to more manageable levels, but you will also ensure the experience is more pleasant for those who still come, while adding cash to the public coffers that could be earmarked for restoration and the upkeep of your golden-egg-laying goose. Park fees that run to hundreds of US dollars have long been charged to people wishing to climb Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro, for instance, and Bhutan has levied its daily Sustainable Development Fee, currently US$100 per adult, since 1974. But many of the world’s most popular destinations are introducing taxes, levies, fees – whatever you wish to call them – for the first time this summer, or significantly raising those that already exist, as they deal with the post-Covid resurgence in travel. Here are some of the major developments, and a tip or two on how to avoid the worst of the crush. 1. Mount Fuji, Japan On May 9 – ahead of the summer climbing season, which begins in July – the fee levied by Shizuoka prefecture to climb Japan’s sacred and most recognisable landmark will double to 4,000 yen (US$27). Also being introduced is a restriction on access between 2pm and 3am, to curb what is known as “bullet climbing”: risky attempts to reach the 3,776-metre (12,388-foot) peak at speed, without resting in one of the mountain’s overnight huts. Climbing Japan’s tallest mountain has its many attractions, of course, but a drawback to the spectacular views from the top is that Mount Fuji is not part of them. That can be rectified by instead climbing Mount Mitsutoge, which has an easier-to-achieve summit, at 1,786 metres (a hike of about 4.5 hours), and views over Tokyo that include not only Mount Fuji, but also Japan’s Southern Alps. There is no fee to climb the mountain, but it is worth having some cash in your pocket to pay for the toilets at the top – and for the summit’s vending machine. This is Japan, after all. For a climbing experience similar to that of Mount Fuji, including overnight huts – around 1,300 yen for a bed, dinner and breakfast – head a couple of hours west of Tokyo to the 2,899-metre high Mount Akadake, where the climbing is also free. 2. Bali, Indonesia Is there or is there not a mandatory tourism tax for those visiting Bali? Well, yes and no. The Bali Tourist Levy was introduced on February 14, 2024, and requires all international tourists to the province to pay a fee of 150,000 rupiah (US$9) upon arrival at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport or through the Love Bali app or website. However, according to The Bali Sun news site, “even though this is a mandatory fee, written into Bali Provincial Law, less than 40 per cent of all international arrivals have been paying their way”. Having already trialled a number of solutions to this problem, Bali governor I Wayan Koster said in March that more points of payment would be established across the island, and any business that facilitates a tourist paying their tax would get 3 per cent as commission. Separately, airlines that fly into Bali are being asked to consider adding the levy to airfares, or at least issuing reminders when passengers check in. Those intending to merely transit through Bali on their way to the more peaceful Lombok, Gili Islands or Nusa Lembongan and back are still expected to pay, although just the once should suffice. “The levy is paid only once while travelling in Bali, before the person leaves the territory of the Republic of Indonesia,” states the Love Bali website. 3. Thailand The government is proposing a travel tax of 300 baht (US$9) that will, according to the country’s Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong, come into effect before the end of the year. Tourists arriving by plane will pay when they land, but those who enter by land or water would be entitled to several entries over a set period of weeks while covered by the one fee, he said. Plans are still sketchy, but it is envisaged that at least some of the tax revenue will fund accident and life insurance for visitors. An additional US$9 is unlikely to put off many visitors from Hong Kong. More of a deterrent, at least to those looking for a quiet island on which to relax, is likely to be the “White Lotus effect”. Season three of the wildly popular satirical comedy-drama, packed with vice as well as the odd murder, was shot in Thailand. So if set-jetting is your thing, you should set your travel apps for Phuket or Koh Samui – and, if they are able to squeeze you in, the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui or one of the various Anantara properties used as sets. If, on the other hand, you would prefer to avoid the commotion, the Land of Smiles is anything but short of alternatives: Koh Lipe, Koh Kood, Koh Yao Noi, Koh Jum and Koh Phayam are all peaceful, but not quite as cut off as Koh Wai, which has no grid electricity or shops, no restaurants other than those run by the five resorts on the island, and can be reached only by an infrequent, 45-minute ferry from Koh Chang. Greece has taken a many-tiered approach this year, having raised what was a €0.50 nightly charge to €8 (US$9) per night for visitors staying between April and October. That drops to €2 during the winter. On top of that are rises in accommodation levies, with one- and two-star hotels now charging €2 per night instead of €1.50. Guests at four-star hotels will now pay €10, while those in five-star establishments will need to add €15 per night to their bill. Also from this summer, cruise visitors to Santorini and Mykonos have to each pay €20 just to step onto the most popular of the Greek islands. Regular visitors staying for more than just the day should be aware that the price of almost everything, from accommodation to everyday essentials, is several times higher on busy islands than elsewhere, which is in itself a kind of tourist tax, albeit one that does not necessarily benefit the public coffers. Fortunately for the crowd-averse, Greece has many other specks of heaven surrounded by the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea, so consider instead Hydra, Zakynthos or one of the Cyclades Islands. Or perhaps a quiet corner of the Greek mainland, such as the Peloponnese Peninsula. Elsewhere in Europe, with the primary aim of upgrading regional public transport, the French government has this year added huge regional levies to its taxe de séjour (tourist tax), a nightly charge that ranges from less than €1 if you are staying in a campsite to as high as €4.60 for “palace” accommodation. Now, visitors must also pay departmental and regional taxes, which, in Paris and municipalities across the surrounding Île-de-France region, add more than 200 per cent to the base rate. Venice’s entry tax was trialled in 2024 and now, visitors to the Italian city between 8.30am and 4pm on certain dates in April, May, June and July will have to pay €5 to enter. Meanwhile, Amsterdam and several Spanish hotspots are among those cities and regions across the continent that have significantly raised or implemented their own taxes in recent months. On the other side of the world, New Zealand tripled its tourist tax on October 1, 2024. Tourists entering the country now having to pay a fee of NZ$100 (US$59), up from NZ$35.