Anyone planning to travel to Chicago is in for a shock.
Chicago’s City Council unanimously voted to create a Tourism Improvement District and raise hotel the hotel tax on rooms within that district to 19% — the highest in the nation, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
For comparison, Los Angeles hotel taxes are 14%, and the rate in New York City is a total of about 14.75%, plus a daily fee of $3.50 per room per night. In Chicago, the current combined city, county and state tax on hotel rooms is 17.5%.
With the new plan, tourists will be hit with a 1.5% surcharge for hotel stays at larger properties. For a $300 hotel room, visitors could now pay nearly $60 in just taxes and fees.
The new tax will remain in place for at least five years and apply to hotels across 14 districts, including Downtown, McCormick Place, the Illinois Medical District and Hyde Park.
The money will be channeled into marketing efforts for Choose Chicago, the city’s convention and tourism agency. The agency said it needs more money to rehabilitate Chicago’s image that has been stained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and high-profile crimes.
Choose Chicago CEO Kristen Reynolds said that competitors “know very well that Chicago is underfunded, and they use it to their advantage” to attract conventions, visitors and events, as well as lure away “legacy clients that have been coming to Chicago for decades.”
“Our competitors benefit from the negative narratives surrounding our city that we can’t afford to counteract, and they offer lucrative incentives that they know we can’t match,” she said.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson added that the tax will help attract more tourists “by combating the negative narratives that surround our city.”
However, some experts believe that it’s a flawed plan.
“Chicago just raised the price of admission and is hoping more people show up,” wealth advisor Ted Jenkin told the Daily Mail. “It will only make the city less competitive.”
Social media users have also slammed the decision.
“Let’s make it more expensive to visit Chicago so we can attract more visitors,” one person said on Reddit.
“It’s already brutal to get a hotel in Chicago regardless of what area you’re in. How is this supposed to help tourism?” another questioned.
“So the city boosts tourism by making tourists pay more?” someone mocked.
“When has anything this city does ever been logical?” a user commented.
Some even pointed out that major events will no longer look to Chicago as their destinations.
“Bye bye to more trade shows in the city,” one wrote.
“My organization had a small training in Chicago last summer, it was the most expensive hotel rate I’ve ever paid,” another person shared. “There is no way we’ll ever have our convention there, which books well over 10k room nights.”
Chicago is still a major tourist destination, with landmarks like Cloud Gate, also known as the Chicago Bean, people traveling for St. Patrick’s Day hoping to see the Chicago River dyed bright green, and Lollapalooza, a large music festival held annually at Grant Park.
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