Willingen Visitor's Tax: Guest Cards and Costs

On top of the room rate, Willingen charges a Kurbeitrag (visitor’s tax, a local levy per person per overnight stay), which is from € 3 per person per night in the village of Willingen itself. The amount is almost never included in the booking price and is charged separately at reception. In return you receive the Sauerland Card, the local guest card; some properties additionally hand out MeineCardPlus, which grants free admission rather than discounts.

Key takeaways

• The visitor’s tax is added to the room rate: from € 3 per person per night in Willingen village, from € 2.50 in Usseln, from € 2 in Schwalefeld, from € 1.50 in Eimelrod and Bömighausen.
• Children under 14 are exempt. People whose German disability pass certifies a 100 % reduction in earning capacity are also exempt. Anyone whose pass states that they require a companion is exempt together with that companion. The fifth and each further member of a family is also exempt; arrival and departure day count as one day.
• The Sauerland Card comes automatically: free buses and trains across the Sauerland, plus discounts at leisure facilities.
• MeineCardPlus grants free admission to over 160 attractions but is only available from participating hosts, so ask before you book.

How much the visitor’s tax is

The rate depends on the village and its official spa or resort status; the statute awards those titles to Willingen, Usseln, Schwalefeld, Bömighausen and Eimelrod, while Stryck and Wakenfeld belong to the corresponding charging area. The basis is the visitor’s tax statute of the municipality of Willingen (Upland) in the version effective 1 January 2025.

Most spa hotels are located in Willingen village, so from € 3 per person per night applies. One exception is Sunday Hotel Willingen, which sits in Usseln, where the rate is from € 2.50. For a couple staying three nights in the centre, that adds from € 18 to the bill.

Who is exempt, and how nights are counted

Children under 14 pay no visitor’s tax. The binding source is the municipal visitor tax statute, which exempts children until their 14th birthday. The municipality’s tourism website says “up to and including 14 years” instead; if in doubt, ask the tourist information office. Also exempt are people with a certified reduction in earning capacity of 100 % under the German disability pass, as well as those whose pass states they require a companion, including that companion. The fifth and each further member of a family is exempt too. For the age limit we follow the municipal visitor tax statute.

Note for business travellers: the former exemption for people staying purely for work or training purposes has been removed from the current statute. Business guests in Willingen now pay the full rate.

Arrival day and departure day count together as a single day. In practice, you therefore pay exactly per overnight stay. Anyone staying more than 28 days in a calendar year is exempt for the time beyond those 28 days.

Sauerland Card: what the guest card includes

Paying the visitor’s tax entitles you to the Sauerland Card, issued by your host. It is personalised, non-transferable and must be shown when using local facilities. It covers free travel on buses and trains throughout the Sauerland, plus discounts (reduced prices, not free entry) at more than a dozen leisure facilities including cable cars, pools and toboggan runs. The card is valid not only in Willingen but also in Brilon, Olsberg, Diemelsee, Winterberg, Hallenberg, Schmallenberg, Eslohe and Medebach. A digital version is available through the Willingen app.

MeineCardPlus: free admission instead of discounts

MeineCardPlus is a second, entirely separate guest card issued by the GrimmHeimat NordHessen holiday region. It provides free admission to more than 160 leisure attractions between Kassel, Frankenberg, Willingen and Lake Eder. In Willingen itself the municipality currently lists twelve facilities: the Lagunen-Erlebnisbad pool complex (2 hours in the water world), the ice rink (2 hours during public skating), the Ettelsberg cable car, the Christine slate mine, the climbing hall with archery, adventure golf at the viaduct, the Snow & Bike Factory, Fantastic Rooms, the Usseln outdoor pool, the Curioseum in Usseln, the Original Willinger glassworks and the Mini-Eldorado, which is temporarily closed. With MeineCardPlus you can also use the Mühlenkopfliner once a day free of charge. It also serves as a ticket for buses and trains in the North Hesse transport association (NVV), including the RegioTram and on-demand shared taxis.

Two limitations matter: the card is valid from your day of arrival until the end of your departure day, and you receive it only as a gift from around 140 participating hosts. It cannot be bought separately.

The two cards compared

Which spa hotels issue MeineCardPlus?

Waldhaus am See lists MeineCardPlus as an included benefit on its own rooms and prices page. For the remaining properties no reliable information could be found. Göbel’s Landhotel, Romantik Hotel Stryckhaus, Sauerland Stern Hotel and Familotel Sonnenpark refer on their own websites only to the Sauerland Card. Ask the property directly before booking whether MeineCardPlus is included. On a family stay with two or three outings, the difference quickly reaches a double-digit sum.