As early as next year, visitors to the city of Kyoto may see their hotel bills jump by possibly ¥100 to ¥300 per night as the city moves to implement a lodging tax.
On Monday, a committee formed to study the issue submitted its final report to Kyoto Mayor Daisaku Kadokawa, advising that all hotels, traditional inns, and minpaku (private lodging) businesses charge their customers a small tax, regardless of their rates. Student groups on official school trips would be exempt from the levy.
"Based on the recommendations of the expert committee, a detailed proposal for a lodging tax system will be submitted to the municipal assembly in September and we hope to have it implemented by next year at the earliest," Kadokawa, who favors the tax, told reporters upon receiving the report.