The Spanish city of Seville is the latest one to join the list of destinations that charge tourist taxes. Because of the great number of tourists visiting the Plaza de España, a neo-Moorish square, Seville’s mayor is in favour of implementing a tax to ensure its conservation.
Many destinations around the world have implemented a tourist tax. Bali, Iceland and Venice are just a few of the tourist hotspots trying to combat overtourism by demanding visitors to pay a tax. Seville, however, is thinking of a different system. Even though an overnight city tax has been applicable for years – just like anywhere in Spain – its mayor José Luis Sanz is talking of adding another fee, specifically aimed at people visiting the Plaza de España.
The square dates back to the Ibero-American Exhibition in 1929, when it was conceived to showcase the Spanishness in its architecture and tiled decorations. Since then, it has been a hotspots for tourists, who either visit the monument by foot or by horse-drawn carriage. Its popularity rose even more from 1999 onwards, when the Plaza de España was used as a backdrop in the Star Wars Phantom Menace movie.
“We are planning to close the Plaza de España and charge tourists to finance its conservation and guarantee its safety. In addition, we will create a craft workshop school. Of course, the monument will continue to be freely accessible and free for all Sevillians”, Sanz wrote on X.
As one of the city’s best-known monuments, the neo-Moorish square has been suffering under the impact of countless visitors. The structure is in need of restoration, a big undertaking which Sanz hopes to be able to pay by implementing the entry fee. In order for that to be possible, a fence will need to be build to ensure only those who have paid the tax will be able to enter the premises. Sanz and his team have contacted the government with regards to the project but so far, there hasn’t been a definitive answer.
