The Southland District Council has voted in favour to triple the Stewart Island/Rakiura visitor levy to $15 by 2025.
The levy was first introduced in 2013 and charged non-residents over the age of 18 $5 to visit the island. It has raked in around $1.3 million to date for visitor-related infrastructure.
Now that will go up to $10 in October next year, before increasing to $15 in October 2025.
But some of those who rely on tourism told 1News in March this year, that the increase was excessive and not fair on tourists, particularly international visitors when they return.
READ MORE: Stewart Island tourism operators furious at council plans
There was also concern that the price increase would deter visitors coming to the island all together.
There was a previous attempt to increase the levy in 2018, but since then a council report found the current charge is "unlikely to be sufficient to fund the future costs of visitor-related activities."
Around 400 people live on the island and roughly 100 times that number visit every year, which the council says is putting strain on core services, like wastewater, stormwater and electricity.
At the time, the island's community board chair, Jon Spraggon, said: "To us, that is double dipping because we've already paid a rate on it any work on the sewage system or toilets should come out of the rate not the levy."
More than 100 submissions were made during the month-long consultation period earlier this year.
The councillors voted unanimously on the change at a full council meeting this morning.
The fee is added to a customer's ticket when they fly or travel by ferry.
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