Tourists, go back!

Thu Jul 11 15:30:09 IST 2024

WHY ARE BARCELONA RESIDENTS PROTESTING ?

There are now more than 10,000 tourist apartment rentals in the city. According to local authorities, tourism has triggered a 68% increase in housing costs over the past decade
Police said that around 2,800 locals marched to demand a new economic model that would reduce the millions of tourists that visit every year, under banners such as Reduce Tourism Now! And Tourists Out of Our Neighbourhood

The protesters, shouting "Tourists go home," used water pistols to spray foreigners eating at popular tourist restaurants in the Las Ramblas district. Videos on social media show tourists leaving their tables to protect themselves from the water sprays

The Barcelona protests follow similar demonstrations in tourist hotspots like Malaga, Palma de Mallorca, and the Canary Islands

To combat the negative effects of mass tourism, city council mayor Jaume Collboni recently announced a plan to phase out all tourist apartment rentals by 2028

SPAIN IS THE SECOND-MOST VISITED COUNTRY IN EUROPE

After France, Spain is the second-most visited country, in Europe, welcomed 85 million foreign visitors in 2023, an 18.7% increase from the previous year, according to the National Statistics Institute

Catalonia attracted 18 million visitors, making it the top tourist destination, followed by the Balearic Islands with 14.4 million and the Canary Islands with 13.9 million holidayers
Barcelona received more than 12 million tourists in 2023, while it has 1.6 million residents