The Dutch city of Amsterdam will not allow the construction of new hotel buildings as part of its fight against mass tourism. The Dutch capital will not apply this rule to new hotels that had already obtained a permit.
Sources from the local government indicated that only one new hotel can be built in Amsterdam if another hotel closes, if the number of sleeping places does not increase, and if the new hotel is better than the previous one, for example more sustainable.
In a statement, the city council ensures that it aims to keep the city livable for both visitors and residents. “This means: no to excess tourism, no to new hotels, and no more than 20 million tourist overnight stays per year.”
The city’s policy on hotel construction was already strict, and according to the city, only three proposals since 2017 met Amsterdam’s requirements. The new hotels that had been approved or were in development (26 in total) would be allowed to continue for now.
Amsterdam thus tightens its hotel policy, which adds to other restrictions to reduce mass tourism, including the ban on cruises. This week, it announced that it would start reducing the number of authorized river cruises docking in its waters.
Moreover, the city council will impose limitations on the number of coaches arriving in the city. The city of Amsterdam is said to be “for living and working,” with tourism being a secondary activity.
This is the latest in a series of measures that the Dutch capital has taken to mitigate the problem of excess tourism in the city. A few months ago, it also banned the use of marijuana on the public streets of the red-light district and ended guided tours that passed by the windows of sex workers.
How does the 20 million limit work?
The 20 million overnight stay limit stems from the popular initiative ‘Amsterdam has a choice’, in which 30,000 residents of Amsterdam requested that the flow of visitors to the city be controlled.
Thus, it was established through a regulation that the number of tourist overnight stays cannot exceed 20 million. The number of hotel nights in Amsterdam reached 20.6 million in 2023 excluding vacation rentals, bed and breakfast, and cruise nights.
Therefore, the city council ensures that it has been compelled to take extra measures to ensure that the number of hotel nights in the city does not continue to increase.
In total, Amsterdam has around 42,000 hotel rooms with a capacity for over 92,000 people, according to the country’s statistical institute.
Amsterdam is not the only major European destination that has struggled to control the growing number of tourists. Venice announced that it would charge visitors on day trips 5 euros (5.33 dollars) to enter the iconic streets of its city center on weekends and some holidays from April 25 to mid-July, its peak season.
