Amsterdam continues to crack down on overtourism by banning new hotel development and limiting the number of tourists allowed to stay in the city.
“We want to create and maintain a liveable city for our residents and visitors,” the city of Holland said in a statement last week.
Amsterdam has had a strict policy on new hotels since 2017, but the new initiative is aimed at “preventing a further increase in the number of hotel stays,” according to the announcement.
Under the new regulations, new hotels can only be built “under certain conditions if hotels have closed elsewhere,” the city said. If this continues, the number of accommodation facilities in the city will remain stagnant. Hotels must also be “better”, including by being more sustainable.
Traveling to Europe soon? Barcelona is another popular European city raising tourist taxes to combat overtourism.
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According to the announcement, construction of the 26 hotel projects approved so far will proceed as planned. The construction of new hotels outside the city center is encouraged.
In addition to banning hotels, the city is limiting the number of overnight stays to 20 million people per year.
The restrictions were put in place after residents complained of the impact of the high number of tourists. In 2023, the city’s hotels alone accounted for 20,665,000 night stays, and vacation rentals, bed and breakfasts, and cruise stays are not reflected.
The restrictions are the latest in a series of moves by the popular European tourist destination to deal with unruly tourists and mass tourism. This year, the city’s tourism tax was raised from 7% to 12.5%, making it the highest in Europe. The city also banned guided tours of its famous red light district in 2019.
Kathleen Wong is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Hawaii. Please contact kwong@usatoday.com.
