Glasgow Proposes 5% Tourist Tax on Hotel Stays, Following Edinburgh
by Daniel McCarthy /
Photo: Jaroslav Moravcik / Shutterstock.com
Another popular Scottish city is eyeing a tourist tax.
The Glasgow City Council on Thursday approved a proposal that would add a 5% tax on hotel rates for all inbound visitors. The tax would apply to all hotels, hostels, bed-and-breakfasts, and other accommodations in the city.
The city, the second-largest in Scotland, expects to raise a little more than £11 million annually if the tax is implemented. The proposal will now move to a consultation phase before it can take effect, which is not likely for at least 18 months—the required implementation period for the tax.
The news comes about a week after Edinburgh, the largest city in Scotland, approved the first tourist tax in the U.K.
Edinburgh’s tax is similar to what Glasgow proposed Thursday—a 5% fee on overnight stays. One key difference is that Edinburgh capped its tax at seven nights, so any stay longer than a week would not be taxed after the seventh night.
Edinburgh’s new fee will take effect July 24, 2026.
According to VisitScotland, Edinburgh receives about 5 million visitors per year, about half from the U.S. Glasgow, according to VisitGlasgow, sees about 4 million visitors annually.
