Research › Ski and mountain towns where the platforms skip local lodging taxes
Ski and mountain towns where the platforms skip local lodging taxes
Last checked Oct 26, 2026 from official sources. Not tax advice.
Ski and mountain homes carry some of the highest lodging taxes in the country, often 12% to 17% of every booking. We checked 28 mountain and lake markets against official town and county pages and each platform’s own help pages to see who actually pays the local tax.
28mountain and lake markets checked
18where at least one platform skips part of the local tax, or we couldn’t confirm it does
5where neither Airbnb nor Vrbo collects the local tax
Key findings
- Neither platform collects the local tax in 5 markets: Aspen (Pitkin County), Stateline (Douglas County), North Lake Tahoe (Placer County), Truckee, Telluride (town). Owners file it themselves.
- Telluride is the starkest case. The Town says it has no tax agreement with any online platform, so owners file its 11% monthly, one return per property, on top of 6.22% in state and county taxes.
- “Platforms collect” doesn’t mean “nothing to file.” Gatlinburg’s 1.25% and Pigeon Forge’s 1% gross receipts taxes are the owner’s, Arizona expects a TPT license and returns even when the platform pays, and Galveston requires zero returns.
- Airbnb and Vrbo often split. At Big Bear Lake, Vrbo collects the 3% tourism district assessment that Airbnb skips. At Incline Village, Mammoth Lakes and Durango, Airbnb collects and Vrbo isn’t listed.
- Colorado’s home-rule towns are a patchwork. Both platforms collect state-collected taxes statewide, but each self-collecting town has to be named on the platform’s list. Aspen and Telluride aren’t on either list.
All 28 markets
Select a column heading to sort. “Partly” means the platform collects some local taxes but not all of them, or that we couldn’t confirm one piece.
| Breckenridge (Summit County) | CO | 3.4% accommodation + 2.5% town sales; 2% county lodging (unincorporated) | Yes (Breckenridge); county 2%: confirm | Yes (Breckenridge, Frisco, Keystone, Dillon, Silverthorne) | Town accommodation-unit license; direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Vail (Eagle County) | CO | 4.5% town sales + 1.4% marketing district; Eagle County 4% lodging (from Jan 1, 2026) | Partly: town sales tax listed | Partly: town sales tax listed | Confirm the 1.4% marketing district tax in payouts | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Aspen (Pitkin County) | CO | City sales and lodging taxes + 5% or 10% STR excise tax | No | No | All city taxes, monthly | City of Aspen, Lodging and STR Taxes · Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Steamboat Springs (Routt County) | CO | 9% STR tax + 1% accommodations + 4.5% city sales | Yes | Partly: sales and accommodations listed, not the 9% STR tax | Confirm the 9% STR tax on Vrbo bookings | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Park City (Summit County) | UT | 1% city + 3% county transient room tax + state taxes | Yes (statewide) | Yes (statewide) | Nightly rental license; direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2509 (where Airbnb collects tax) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Jackson Hole (Teton County) | WY | 5% lodging tax (3% state + 2% local) | Yes | Yes (statewide) | Direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2338 (Wyoming) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Big Sky | MT | 8% state lodging taxes + 4% resort tax | Yes | Yes | Register with the resort district and the state | Airbnb Help 2314 (Montana) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. F–M |
| Ketchum and Sun Valley (Blaine County) | ID | Ketchum 3% local option tax; Sun Valley rate: confirm | Partly: not on Airbnb’s Idaho list (state law requires marketplaces to collect) | Yes (Ketchum and Sun Valley listed) | Check Airbnb payouts for the city tax | Airbnb Help 2302 (Idaho) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. F–M |
| Incline Village (Washoe County) | NV | 13% transient lodging tax | Yes | No (Washoe not listed) | Tax on Vrbo and direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2315 (Nevada) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Stateline (Douglas County) | NV | 14% transient occupancy tax (13% East Fork) | No (not listed) | No (not listed) | All county TOT | Airbnb Help 2315 (Nevada) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Mammoth Lakes (Mono County) | CA | 15% transient occupancy tax | Yes (per the Town’s 2016 agreement; not on Airbnb’s help list) | No (not listed) | Monthly town return for Vrbo and direct bookings | Town of Mammoth Lakes, TOT · Airbnb Help 2297 (California) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Big Bear Lake | CA | 10% TOT + 3% tourism district assessment | Partly: the 10% only, not the 3% | Yes (TOT and the 3% assessment) | The 3% assessment on Airbnb bookings, monthly | City of Big Bear Lake, TOT/TBID · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| North Lake Tahoe (Placer County) | CA | 10% TOT (8% western slope) | No | No | All county TOT, quarterly | Airbnb Help 2297 (California) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Truckee | CA | 12% TOT + 2% tourism district | No (not on Airbnb’s list) | No (not listed) | Quarterly town TOT | Airbnb Help 2297 (California) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Stowe | VT | 9% meals and rooms + 3% STR surcharge + 1% local option | Yes | Partly: state tax and Stowe 1% listed; 3% surcharge not named | Confirm the 3% surcharge on Vrbo bookings | Airbnb Help 2334 (Vermont) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Lake Placid (Essex County) | NY | 5% county room occupancy tax | Yes | Yes (NY local accommodations taxes) | Register each property with the county | Airbnb Help 2319 (New York) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Mt. Hood (Clackamas County) | OR | 6% county transient lodging tax | No (not on Airbnb’s Oregon list) | Listed statewide (state, county, city) | Monthly county return, including $0 months | Airbnb Help 2324 (Oregon) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Sevier County (outside the cities) | TN | 3% county lodging tax (outside cities) | Yes | Yes | Set up a county lodging account; file direct bookings | Sevier County Trustee, Lodging Tax · Airbnb Help 2330 (Tennessee) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Gatlinburg | TN | 3% hotel/motel tax + 1.25% gross receipts tax | Partly: not the gross receipts tax | Partly: not the gross receipts tax | 1.25% city gross receipts tax on every booking | City of Gatlinburg, New Business: Overnight Rental · Airbnb Help 2330 (Tennessee) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Pigeon Forge | TN | 2.5% lodging tax + 1% gross receipts tax | Partly: not the gross receipts tax | Partly: not the gross receipts tax | 1% city gross receipts tax (business tax) | City of Pigeon Forge, tax requirements and forms · Airbnb Help 2330 (Tennessee) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. N–Z |
| Sedona | AZ | State TPT + county + city taxes | Yes | Yes | A TPT license and monthly returns (even $0) | Arizona Department of Revenue, Short-Term Lodging · City of Sedona, Short-Term Rentals · Airbnb Help 2295 (Arizona) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Flagstaff and Coconino County | AZ | State TPT + county + city taxes | Yes | Yes | A TPT license and returns (even $0) | Arizona Department of Revenue, Short-Term Lodging · Airbnb Help 2295 (Arizona) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Telluride (town) | CO | Town 11% (sales, lodging, lodgers’, STR excise) | No | No | The Town’s 11% on every booking, monthly | Town of Telluride, Taxes · Town of Telluride, Short-Term Rental Licenses · Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Crested Butte, Mt. Crested Butte and Gunnison County | CO | Town sales + vacation rental / lodging excise | Yes | Yes | Direct bookings; town license | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Winter Park and Grand County | CO | Town sales + transit/trails + accommodations | Yes | Partly: transit and trails tax unconfirmed | Vrbo transit and trails tax (confirm); direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Estes Park | CO | 5% town + 5.5% LMD | Partly: town 5% unconfirmed | Partly: town 5% unconfirmed | Possibly the town 5% (confirm) | Town of Estes Park, Sales Tax · Town of Estes Park, Town Clerk · Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Durango and La Plata County | CO | City 3.5% sales + 2% lodging | Yes | No | City taxes on Vrbo and direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
| Pagosa Springs | CO | 4.9% town lodging tax | Yes | Yes | Direct bookings | Airbnb Help 2298 (Colorado) · Vrbo Help: lodging taxes U.S. A–E |
Methodology
- Markets: our 14 original ski and lake markets, plus Mt. Hood, North Lake Tahoe, Truckee, the Smoky Mountains, Sedona, Flagstaff and six more Colorado towns.
- Tax rates come from each town’s or county’s own tax page, linked on each market’s guide. Where Airbnb’s help page is the only source for a rate, we say so on the guide.
- Airbnb coverage comes from Airbnb’s state help articles (2293–2338) and Help 2509. Vrbo coverage comes from Vrbo’s three U.S. “Where Vrbo collects and remits taxes” pages. A market counts as “Yes” only if the platform names that local tax, or collects it statewide.
- Where a town’s own page says something different from the platform’s list, we follow the town and note it (for example, Mammoth Lakes’ 2016 Airbnb agreement).
- We checked every source on October 26, 2026. Check your own payout reports. This is general information, not tax advice.
Last verified: October 26, 2026. Cite as: HostTaxDesk, “Ski and mountain towns where the platforms skip local lodging taxes,” October 2026, https://hosttaxdesk.com/research/mountain-town-lodging-tax/. Free to reuse with a link (CC BY 4.0). Press: hello@hosttaxdesk.com.
Related: Ski and lake town guides · Who collects where · Florida study
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