Cardiff is poised to become the first city in Wales to impose a “Wales Visitor Levy,” affecting those staying overnight in the capital. The Labour-led Welsh Government has endorsed plans for a £1.30-per-night charge at key tourist locations under the formal Visitor Accommodation (Wales) Act 2025.
The levy would apply to hotels, B&Bs, AirBnBs, and holiday parks, while campers and hostel guests would pay 75p per night. Council chiefs in Cardiff are aiming to be the first to introduce the levy—and say it could generate around £3.5m a year in the Welsh capital. Visitors who would be exempt from the charge include children under 18 staying in campsites or shared rooms and people staying for more than 31 consecutive nights in a single booking. Anyone in emergency or temporary accommodation arranged by the council will also be exempt.
It comes after leaders in Wrexham—home to A-lister Ryan Reynolds’s football team—distanced themselves from the tax. The council’s lead for economy suggested a levy would be “detrimental” as visitors come to Wrexham from as far as America and Australia due to the success of the “Welcome to Wrexham” TV series about their football team.
Official figures show since Welcome to Wrexham first aired, tourism revenue into the north Wales city is up 20 per cent year on year and almost 50 per cent on five years. But officials at Cardiff Council insist that the cash will be used to “improve the visitor experience for everyone coming to Cardiff”.
They say the revenue would be used to improve infrastructure, promote major events and support tourism-related businesses across the city.
Councillor Russell Goodway, Cardiff council’s cabinet member for investment and development, said: “The proposed visitor levy in Cardiff would be used to improve the visitor experience for everyone coming to Cardiff, by funding marketing campaigns or by supporting a broader range of events in the city.
“Not only do we want people to enjoy their experience coming to Cardiff, but we also want people to stay longer, so we need to increase our offer through investment. The proposed charge, set out in legislation, is significantly lower than the typical charge across Europe.
“This initiative is clearly set out in the council’s corporate plan and has been scrutinised in detail by the Economy and Culture Scrutiny Committee, and their findings have been built into our proposals going forward.”
Federation of Small Businesses Wales chief Joshua Miles said: “FSB has been and remains of the view that this is not the time to introduce a new tax on tourism in Wales, and that there is a risk of damage done to local economies by its implementation.
The small business sector has experienced a prolonged period of difficult economic conditions. With low consumer spending and disproportionately high costs still affecting some tourism businesses’ viability, they still need support to recover.”
A 12-week public consultation concludes soon before a final proposal is due in March 2026. The scheme will be introduced by April 2027 if approved.
