They are cities packed with history, where tourists flock in their millions every year to soak up the art, culture and the sights.

And soon Edinburgh will have something else in common with the European tourist hotspots of Venice, Barcelona and Paris.

Unfortunately for visitors, though, it will cost them.

Edinburgh City Council has taken a step closer to joining its European counterparts, with a vote yesterday to press ahead with the introduction of a tourist tax – or transient visitor levy.

It says the move could raise as much as £29 million a year, money that could help keep streets clean and manage growing numbers of tourists.

The Herald:

The move, which still requires permission from the Scottish Government, could mean Scots – as well as international visitors – will have to pay extra for short breaks to the capital city.

Council leaders have not decided how much the tax will be.

Thursday’s vote is also said to have given added impetus to other cities, with Glasgow among the councils considering a similar move.

Around four million visitors stay in Edinburgh every year, pumping £1.2 billion into the economy. However, over-tourism has led to a ticket system at Edinburgh Castle and calls for curbs on the number of tourist coaches choking historic thoroughfares in the city’s World Heritage Site.

The issue of the tourist tax has divided the city, with hospitality industry leaders “steadfastly” opposing it.

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They insist that enough taxes are raised in the UK and shared with councils, adding Edinburgh would still need special permission from Holyrood to raise the tax.

However, Green MSP Andy Wightman claimed the city is being denied “European” status by so far being refused the power to raise such taxes.

He urged Holyrood to bring forward legislation to give local councils “powers that municipalities in other European countries take for granted”.

The body that represents Scottish local authorities, Cosla, has also backed local tax-raising powers.

Meanwhile an Edinburgh group of the Educational Institute of Scotland is also expected to raise at the union AGM whether education could benefit from tourist tax.

Adam McVey, leader of the SNP-Labour coalition council, said the next stage of the process is to consult fully with hospitality firms.

Around Europe, tourist levies are seen in popular destinations. In Paris, it costs about £2.50 per person in a mid-range hotel. The charge in Rome is about £5 per person, while visitors to Venice pay £3.50.

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Mr McVey also said that “with such a level of vibrancy come consequences that we need to manage and mitigate.

“The transient visitor levy is all about trying to raise additional money, a small levy placed on particularly the hotels in (a city with) one of the most regularly highest occupancy rates anywhere outside London.

“It is a very, very strong hotel market in this city, to ask them to add a small levy to those stays in helping us fund the things that we pay for to create that vibrancy.”

READ MORE: Businesses oppose Edinburgh tourism tax plans

Willie Macleod, of the British Hospitality Association, said that “in the vast majority of these destinations, VAT is levied on tourism services including hotel rooms at around half of the 20 per cent rate applied here, including France and Italy where it is 10%”.

He added: “Edinburgh council is singularly determined to push this through and we are determined that this is a bad thing for the industry.

“To suggest that tourism businesses and hotels in particular are not making their contribution to public finances is misleading.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We have been consistent in our stance that, given the potential impact on tourism, we have no plans to introduce visitor levy on the tourism sector.”