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Some 2,800 people -- according to police -- marched along a waterfront district of Barcelona Image: AFP
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Barcelona residents protest against mass tourism

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Thousands of protesters marched Saturday in Barcelona to denounce mass tourism and its effect on Spain's most visited city, the latest in a series of similar marches in the country.

Under the slogan "Enough! Let's put limits on tourism", some 2,800 people -- according to police -- marched along a waterfront district of Barcelona to demand a new economic model that would reduce the millions of tourists that visit every year.

"I have nothing against tourism, but here in Barcelona we are suffering from an excess of tourism that has made our city unliveable," said Jordi Guiu, a 70-year-old sociologist.

With banners saying "Reduce tourism now!", the protesters chanted slogans such as "Tourists out of our neighbourhood", stopping in front of hotels to the surprise of visitors.

Barcelona's rising cost of housing, up 68 percent in the past decade according to local authorities, is one of the main issues for the movement, along with the effects of tourism on local commerce and working conditions in the city of 1.6 million inhabitants.

"Local shops are closing to make way for stores that do not serve the needs of neighbourhoods. People cannot afford their rents," said Isa Miralles, a 35-year-old musician who lives in the Barceloneta district.

The northeastern coastal city, with internationally famous sites such as La Sagrada Familia, received more than 12 million tourists last year, according to local authorities.

To combat the "negative effects of mass tourism", the city council run by the Socialist Jaume Collboni announced 10 days ago that it was banning tourist apartment rentals -- there are now more than 10,000 -- by 2028 so that they can be put back on the local housing market.

The announcement could lead to a legal battle and is opposed by an association of tourist apartments who say it will just feed the black market.

The Barcelona protests come after similar demonstrations in tourist hotspots such as Malaga, Palma de Mallorca and the Canary Islands.

The second most visited country after France, Spain received 85 million foreign visitors in 2023, an increase of 18.7 percent from the previous year, according to the National Statistics Institute.

The most visited region was Catalonia, whose capital is Barcelona, with 18 million, followed by the Balearic Islands (14.4 million) and the Canary Islands (13.9 million).

© 2024 AFP

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

3 Comments
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Barcelona is built for tourism. There are 10,000 pickpockets who will need to target locals instead of tourists if this slows down. It is really sad how brazen the thieves are there. Even doing that, we weren't prepared when one came into an empty restaurant, through the main dining area, into the back (not visible from outside), and ran between 2 tables to grab whatever they could, then ran out of the restaurant. We made it into a game - finger the pickpocket. It was clear that some worker there had called them.

Pickpocketing accounted for 48.1% of crimes committed in Barcelona. In 2023, the figure was reduced by 22% compared to 2019, from 129,149 incidents to 100,944, but was up by 6.5% compared to 2022 (94,7769).

If they want, they can limit apartment rentals to 6-months at a time, nothing shorter. That will just push people to rent in the countryside or by word of mouth. Barcelona does have hotels. Don't think this article is complaining about them. We stayed in the northern part of the city, far from the tourist areas - where people were home and in bed by 10pm, not just starting to go out for dinner, like everyone claims.

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The lack of affordable properties in European cities - which have always been full of tourists - is due to governments being too lazy and too tight to build them for the last few decades. Instead, they now scapegoat tourists. Owners of such properties need to get them on the market now before they get filched by the state. The value of them will likely decline, so sell now rather than later and don't waste your money on lawyers.

There are loads of nice places to stay in Spain. Just avoid Barcelona. Then they will be happy and you'll be safe.

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Cheap airfares in Europe mean almost anyone can afford to fly and become a tourist.

If central governments do not wish to curtail the chaos then local governments can easily impose tourist taxes on meals, rooms and transportation.

The problem is easily solved

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