Desperate to thin out tourist crowds here, the city government will slap visitors with an accommodation tax of up to 10,000 yen ($68.3) per person per night, starting March 1. The levy, an increase from 1,000 yen, will be used to improve city infrastructure and measures to ease congestion.

Officials explained that the 10,000-yen levy will apply to hotel stays costing 100,000 yen or more per night under the staggered tax system.

After the revision, the city’s lodging tax revenue is projected to roughly double, from approximately 5.91 billion yen this fiscal year to 12.6 billion yen next fiscal year. Both figures are estimates.