Next week, Bruges city council will discuss a new multi-year plan to fund the city for the next six years. The good people of Bruges will not have to pay any higher taxes. But the West Flemish capital is introducing new taxes on tourists and people using public spaces for commercial purposes. These new taxes will also hit people visiting music festivals in the city or taking part in running events.
A cruise passenger tax will be introduced from 1 January 2027 onwards. “Every cruise tourist who docks in Zeebrugge (the port of Bruges) will have to pay €5 to city coffers, monies collected via the shipping company. And every tourist who visits the city in a tourist group, arriving by coach, and stays in the city for half a day or a full day will also have to pay €5 too.’
The coach tax will not come into effect until 1 January 2028. ‘First, the necessary infrastructure work must be carried out at the bus parking facilities in order for it to be possible to collect the bus tax.’
Also from 2028, Bruges will increase the tourist tax for those staying in the city overnight from 3.75 to 5 euros per person per night.
Half a euro to participate
Bruges is also taxing people participating in a commercial event in the city including visitors to the popular Cactus music festival or taking part in the Athora Bruges Marathon . They will now be charged an extra half a euro that will be collected via the organisers. ‘That's only fair, because after all, it's the city that cleans up after a big event and sometimes even has to make repairs.’
Finally, pop-up bars will also have to make a contribution. ‘The hospitality industry rightly complained that the playing field was not level for all hospitality businesses,’ says Bruges Mayor De fauw. ‘That is why we are introducing a tax on pop-up bars, with three different monthly rates, depending on the size of the bar.’
A safe city
Bruges boasts one of the safest city centres in Flanders and is determined for it to remain so. The city is providing additional resources for the police, 40 million in 2031. ‘There are some places where the police need to be more visible,’ the mayor noted.