2021-2031 Tourism Business Improvement District

Visit Greater Palm Springs (VGPS) is the official tourism marketing agency for the Coachella Valley. Founded in May 1989 by a Joint Powers Authority comprising the cities of Palm Springs, Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta and Indio, the County of Riverside, and now including the City of Coachella, VGPS was created as a public-private partnership to help grow the region’s tourism economy.

The mission of VGPS is to positively affect the destination’s tourism economy and quality of life for its residents, serving the Greater Palm Springs Tourism Business Improvement District (GPSTBID) partners and providing sales, marketing, promotion, and public relations support targeting potential leisure travelers from around the world as well as event, meeting and convention groups. In addition to destination sales and marketing, VGPS supports air service development, workforce development, consumer and group business research, economic development, visitor studies, and destination stewardship.

What Businesses Are Included in the GPSTBID?

Vacation rentals and hotels with 50 rooms or more within the boundaries of the GPSTBID are included.

Assessment by lodging type:

Vacation rentals: 1% assessment of gross short-term rental revenue on stays of 27 days or less.
Hotels with 50 rooms or more: 3% assessment of gross short-term room rental revenue on stays of 27 days or less.

How Do I Pay the Assessment?

VACATION RENTALS:
The GPSTBID assessment is remitted to the same city that you pay TOT to. You can find the payment forms, or online payment portal, on each city's website. If your vacation rental is in Unincorporated Riverside County, click HERE.

All hosts and property managers are responsible for remitting GPSTBID.

Forms for cities where platforms do not collect either TOT or GPSTBID directly from guests, both must be remitted by hosts or property managers to the city:

Forms for cities where one or more platforms collects TOT directly from guests, but hosts must still pay GPSTBID separately:

DESERT HOT SPRINGS - Expedia (Vrbo, HomeAway, etc.) collect the GPSTBID along with your TOT and remits to the city directly. For all other booking sources, hosts and property managers need to remit the TBID to the city directly.

RIVERSIDE COUNTY - All GPSTBID for Riverside County properties is paid the VGPS directly. Please contact Vacation Rental Compliance at TBID@visitgreaterps.com if you have questions.

RANCHO MIRAGE - The City of Rancho Mirage currently has a ban on all short-term rentals in all areas of the city.

COACHELLA - Short-term rentals in the City of Coachella will join the GPSTBID starting July 1, 2025. TBID will be paid directly to the City of Coachella.

HOTELS WITH 50 ROOMS OR MORE:
Payment is due monthly to Visit Greater Palm Springs for all hotels with 50 rooms or more in the GPSTBID boundary. For forms and more information, contact Dan Tackett, staff accountant, at dan@visitgreaterps.com or (760) 969-1343.

LOG IN TO YOUR ACCOUNT

Hotels with 50 rooms or more and vacation rental property managers and owners have online access to an account with Visit Greater Palm Springs. Access allows you to update your profile, images and listing information; add special offers; and more. Use the link below to log in:

LOG IN NOW

HOW DO I GET INVOLVED?

Vacation rentals:

Sign up for regular Vacation Rental TBID partner communications here.
Log in to your account at MyGreaterPS.com
If you have questions, or need help logging into your account, please contact Josh Heinz at josh@visitgreaterps.com

Hotels with 50 rooms or more:

GPSTBID hotel sales and marketing reps are invited to join regular update meetings for GPSTBID hotels. Please contact Colleen Pace, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, at colleen@visitgreaterps.com, or (760) 969-1347 if you have questions.

Additional FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

What are the boundaries of the GPSTBID?

All lodging businesses with 50 rooms or more and vacation rentals located within the boundaries of the cities of Desert Hot Springs, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta and Indio, as well as portions of the unincorporated area of Riverside County in the Coachella Valley. The boundary will extend to the City of Coachella starting July 1, 2025.
How is the assessment calculated?

The TBID assessment is calculated as 1% for short-term rentals and 3% for hotels with 50 rooms or more of gross rental revenue on stays of less than 28 days, remitted each month/quarter. Rental revenue includes all taxable, non-optional fees and charges paid by the guest for overnight occupancy.
What is a Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID)?

A Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) is a collection of lodging properties that pay an assessment on individual room night stays. The assessment—a small fee usually paid by guests on their nightly bill—provides funding for destination marketing and development to grow visitation year-round and help the destination remain competitive worldwide.

Over 160 tourism improvement districts exist across the United States, with the majority being in California, including San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Big Bear Lake, Napa Valley, Huntington Beach, Oceanside and Temecula.

The Greater Palm Springs TBID helps us compete with these destinations and promote our many wonderful activities, events, attractions and unique places to stay to visitors around the world.
Why does Greater Palm Springs need a TBID?

The TBID provides a stable, long-term funding source to promote tourism, our region’s No. 1 industry. Increasing visitation and room night sales ultimately benefits our hotel/vacation rental businesses and helps grow the local economy. Unlike Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) collections, which can be used for a variety of purposes, TBID funds are protected for exclusive use by the destination marketing organization (in this case, Visit Greater Palm Springs). The Greater Palm Springs TBID represents about 80% of Visit Greater Palm Springs' total annual funding.
How do I add the TBID Assessment to my Airbnb or Vrbo listing?

For homes located in the City of Palm Springs, Click here to download a step-by-step guide on how to set up your TOT + TBID on Airbnb & VRBO.

For all other properties, click here for instructions from Airbnb.