No. At the time of writing (November 2026), visitors to Kraków do not pay a hotel city tax or tourist tax on top of their room rate. That could change in 2027: a new national law takes effect on 1 January 2027, and the city has opened public consultation on a proposed charge of 5 zł per night. If you are booking a stay in the Old Town, such as our boutique apartments in a 15th-century townhouse, 100 m from Kraków's Main Square, this guide explains what applies today, what may apply later and how to read your bill.
TL;DR
- Kraków does not charge a tourist or hotel city tax in 2026. Your accommodation bill should show no extra nightly levy.
- The city collected a local fee from 2004 to 2015. It was abolished when Kraków stopped meeting the legal criteria.
- A national amendment enters into force on 1 January 2027. It lets Kraków reintroduce the fee only if the City Council passes a resolution.
- The city's proposal is 5 zł per night, with exemptions for some disabled guests and their carers.
- If a fee is introduced, accommodation providers would collect it. Check the rules for your travel dates before you book.
Table of Contents
- Do you pay a tourist tax in Kraków today?
- Why Kraków has no tourist tax: the 2015 story
- What changes on 1 January 2027
- The proposed Kraków rate: what the city is consulting on
- Who would pay, who would collect, and who is exempt
- How to check whether a tax is in your Kraków bill
- Other small costs worth planning for in Kraków
- Staying in a 15th-century townhouse, 100 m from the Main Square
- Our view on the tourist tax debate
- FAQ
- Sources
Do you pay a tourist tax in Kraków today?
You do not. The Kraków Convention Bureau, the city's official tourism and business-events body, says that the current Polish legal system does not provide for a typical tourist tax. Poland has a local fee (opłata miejscowa) instead. Whether a municipality may levy it depends on specific criteria linked to climate and environment, so not every town qualifies.
This surprises many visitors from the UK and the rest of Europe. Cities such as Berlin, Amsterdam, Vienna and Prague all charge visitors per night or as a share of the room price. Kraków currently does not, so the price you see when booking is the price you pay for the room, apart from any services you choose to add, such as breakfast or an airport transfer.
The same applies to every type of accommodation. Hotels, aparthotels, guesthouses and private rentals in Kraków do not add a city tax line to the invoice at present. Business travellers and leisure travellers are treated alike, and so are visitors of every nationality. There is no separate rule for British guests, and none for guests from the US, Spain, Norway, Germany, the Benelux countries, Australia or Israel.
Why Kraków has no tourist tax: the 2015 story
Kraków is not a city that never tried. According to the Convention Bureau, the city collected a local fee between 2004 and 2015. It was abolished after changes to environmental protection regulations, because the city and its metropolitan area no longer met the required criteria.
The reason sits in how Polish law was written. Under the Law on Local Taxes and Levies, a local levy can only be charged to people staying for leisure, health or tourism purposes, and only where the place has a favourable climate, an attractive landscape and suitable tourism, leisure and training facilities. Kraków's air quality is the sticking point. The city has no problem with attractions, only with a legal test that was designed around spa towns and seaside resorts.
The city has argued for years that this is the wrong test. The same Convention Bureau article says that as early as 2017 a team of municipal officials and lawyers drafted an amendment, which the Association of Polish Cities passed to the government. It proposed a tourist tax based on cultural and landscape assets instead of climate criteria. City authorities describe a tourist tax as part of protecting Kraków's heritage and improving residents' quality of life. They also point out that similar charges abroad are treated as compensation for intensive use of urban infrastructure.
What changes on 1 January 2027
The picture is moving. On 23 October 2026 the City of Kraków reported that the President signed the amendment to the local taxes and fees act, with the new rules entering into force on 1 January 2027. They change both the local fee and the spa fee (opłata uzdrowiskowa).
Three points matter for a visitor:
- The fee is tied to the overnight stay, not the purpose of the trip. Under the new law it will be linked to using overnight accommodation. Hotels, guesthouses and private room owners will be responsible for collecting it.
- Signing the law does not switch the fee on. The city notice states that Kraków can reintroduce the fee only if the statutory conditions are met and the Kraków City Council adopts a resolution.
- Business stays are no longer a separate case. Reporting on the government project says the exemptions for business stays would be removed. Tax advisers quoted by the press explain that accommodation providers would no longer need to work out whether a guest travels for leisure or work.
For a trip in the rest of 2026, none of this affects you. For a trip in 2027 or later, check the position on your travel dates, because the council's decision decides whether a charge appears.
The proposed Kraków rate: what the city is consulting on
On 10 November 2026 the city published its consultation notice. Public consultations on the draft resolution began on 6 November 2026. According to the notice, the proposed fee is 5 zł per night of accommodation, the maximum rate the legislator allows for 2027. It would apply across Kraków except the Swoszowice spa area. The city says income from the fee would be city revenue for maintaining urban infrastructure, cleanliness and order, and developing public spaces.
The national ceiling has been rising. The table below shows the figures from official and press sources.
| Period | Maximum local fee per night | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Until 31 December 2023 | 2.80 zł | Kraków Convention Bureau |
| From 1 January 2024 | 3.22 zł | Kraków Convention Bureau |
| 2026 (before the change) | 3.46 zł | CONVEN.ORG |
| From 1 January 2027 | Up to 5 zł | CONVEN.ORG |
For scale, the proposed 5 zł is the amount the press converts to roughly €1.14 per night. A couple staying four nights would pay 40 zł in total if the full rate applied, since the charge is reported as per person per night. These are proposals: the council may set a different rate within the legal limit, and it is worth checking the final resolution.
The politics are lively. Puls Krakowa reports that Łukasz Gibała has called 5 zł too low, comparing it with Prague, Bratislava, Berlin, Amsterdam and Vienna. Whatever the council decides, the national law caps what can be charged, and the proposal on the table is the legal maximum.
Who would pay, who would collect, and who is exempt
Per person, per night. The reported structure is a fee per person for each night of accommodation, for stays of up to 29 days according to KR24.pl. CONVEN.ORG describes stays of up to one month. A room for two people for three nights would therefore count as six person-nights, not three.
Hotels and rentals collect it. The City of Kraków's notice says entities providing accommodation, including hotels, guesthouses and private room owners, will be responsible for collecting the fee. The press adds that providers would keep detailed records and that timely remittance would entitle them to at least 10% of the money collected. KR24.pl reports that the obligation to settle the fee would fall on the business whether or not it has received the money from the guest. In practice, you would see it on your invoice or at check-in.
Exemptions. The reported exemptions cover people with significant disabilities, children with certified disabilities and their carers. Infor.pl specifies a significant disability certificate, people under 16 with a disability certificate, and one accompanying person, such as a parent or carer. Stays longer than 30 days would also be exempt, and municipalities could vary rates by length of stay, season or category of facility, according to Infor.pl's June 2026 report. If you travel with someone who may qualify, ask the accommodation how to document it when you book.
What about British visitors? Nationality plays no part. The fee, if introduced, would apply to anyone staying overnight, whether they arrive from London, Oslo, Sydney or Tel Aviv.
How to check whether a tax is in your Kraków bill
Until a Kraków resolution takes effect, a hotel city tax should not appear. Here is a short routine for any booking, in Kraków or elsewhere in Poland:
- Read the price breakdown before paying. Look for a line such as opłata miejscowa, city tax or tourist tax. If the total is described as including all taxes and fees, the line may be bundled.
- Check the booking conditions. The terms should say whether local charges are included or payable on arrival. Ours are in the apartment booking terms.
- Ask about your travel dates. For stays from 1 January 2027, ask whether a local fee applies, because the council's decision may be in force by then.
- Count person-nights. If a fee applies, multiply the nightly rate by every guest and every night, minus any exempt guests.
- Keep the invoice. It should show the fee separately, which helps if your employer reimburses travel costs.
Outside Kraków, other Polish destinations already collect a local or spa fee, so a seaside or mountain trip may differ from a city break. Budget for the destination you are actually visiting.
Other small costs worth planning for in Kraków
When the nightly bill has no city tax, the extras are where budgets drift. Plan for local transport: validating your ticket matters, as our guide to Kraków public transport tickets explains. Plan for cash and cards: see how the złoty, ATMs and exchange work in our currency guide for Kraków. Restaurants and taxis involve tipping, covered in tipping in Poland. If you drive, the Old Town parking rules are worth reading before you arrive.
When you compare places to stay, compare what is included in the stay rather than only the headline rate: kitchen facilities, breakfast, cleaning and location. Our comparison of an aparthotel and a hotel in Krakow walks through the trade-offs, and the guide to choosing Old Town apartments covers the location questions. Planning ahead also helps when booking a weekend stay, because short breaks fill up early in peak months.
Staying in a 15th-century townhouse, 100 m from the Main Square
Bracka 6 offers fully equipped short-term apartments for two to four guests in a 15th-century building in the Old Town, 100 m from the Main Market Square. The Studio Superior, Studio Deluxe, Studio Executive and the Apartament each have air conditioning, a kitchen area, a private bathroom and free Wi-Fi, with daily cleaning. Breakfast is served in the on-site Sempre Bracka restaurant, and packed lunches are available for early departures. We also arrange transfers from Kraków-Balice airport and Kraków Główny station.
If you are planning a trip, the Bracka 6 apartments page shows each apartment type and lets you book directly. Our heritage hotel comfort checks explain what to look for in a historic building.
Our view on the tourist tax debate
We welcome guests from around the world, and many of them ask us about the city tax before they arrive. The honest answer today is simple: none is charged in Kraków.
We do not make the rules, so we keep to what the city and national law say. If a Kraków resolution introduces a fee, we expect it to be a small nightly amount set by law and visible on the invoice. A visitor who knows this in advance is rarely surprised at check-in.
What we think matters more is the experience around the stay. A townhouse that has stood since the 15th century, a kitchen area for slow mornings, air conditioning in July and a walk of 100 m to the Main Square: that is what guests tell us they plan their trip around. We design our apartments for couples and small groups who want to use their days in the city, not decode their bill.
If you have a question about your dates, ask us before you book. We would rather answer it now than at the reception desk.
Antek
FAQ
Do you pay tourist tax in Kraków?
Not at the moment. Polish law does not currently provide for a typical tourist tax, and Kraków stopped collecting its local fee after 2015, according to the Kraków Convention Bureau. A new national law takes effect on 1 January 2027, and a charge would only start if the City Council adopts a resolution.
Is hotel city tax charged per person or per room?
In Kraków there is nothing to charge today. Under the proposed system the fee would be per person for each night of accommodation, not per room. Hotels, guesthouses and private room owners would collect it and pass it to the city.
Will Brits have to pay tourist tax in Kraków?
No tourist tax applies to British visitors now. If Kraków introduces the fee, it would apply to anyone staying overnight, regardless of nationality or whether the trip is for leisure or work. Reported exemptions focus on guests with significant disabilities and their carers.
How much could the Kraków tourist tax be?
The city's consultation notice proposes 5 zł per night, the maximum the new law allows for 2027. The council may still decide on a different rate or conditions, so confirm the figure on krakow.pl before you travel in 2027.
How do I know whether I have to pay a tourist tax?
Check your booking confirmation and invoice for a line called city tax, tourist tax or opłata miejscowa. The accommodation's booking terms should also say whether local charges apply. For stays from 2027, ask your host about the current position.
Ready to stay in the Old Town? Book direct with Bracka 6 and choose the apartment that suits your trip.
Sources
- Tourist Tax: What Would It Mean for Kraków? (Kraków Convention Bureau)
- Krakow needs a tourism tax (Kraków Convention Bureau)
- Kraków może wrócić do pobierania opłaty miejscowej (City of Kraków)
- Na jakich zasadach wprowadzić tzw. opłatę turystyczną w Krakowie (City of Kraków)
- Poland moves to allow more municipalities to charge tourist fee (CONVEN.ORG)
- Rząd pomaga Piątkowskiej przed wyborami (KR24.pl)
- Gibała krytykuje rządową opłatę dla turystów (Puls Krakowa)
- Opłata miejscowa, opłata uzdrowiskowa 2026 (Infor.pl)
- Dodatkowy koszt wypoczynku: opłata miejscowa albo uzdrowiskowa (Infor.pl)