Barcelona rages against tourists and cruise ships
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Ada Colau, the mayor of Barcelona, has said the city needs to limit the number of tourists. The coastal Spanish city attracts a wide range of tourists, some of who travel on cruise ships.
Colau told The Times: “We can’t take infinite numbers of tourists. There has to be a sense of limits and order.”
Barcelona receives more than 27 million tourists per year and locals have expressed concerns about overcrowding.
Housing is also an issue in the city as many residents are forced to leave the centre due to the high number of holiday lets.
Colau has limited the number of hotel beds in the city and forbidden the opening of new hotels in the centre.
The mayor also closed illegal tourist apartments rented out on sites such as Airbnb and banned further licences for them.
She is now hoping to reduce the number of cruise ships allowed to visit the port and stop the airport being extended.
“Forty percent of the cruise ships stop for four hours. They don’t give the city economic return, and thousands of people disembark, create great mobility issues and then leave. It is an industry we have to limit,” Colau told The Times.
Cruise tourism is controversial due to the pollution the ships cause and the number of people entering the city at once.
Cruise holidaymakers are also less likely to spend money in the city as they get most of their food and drink onboard.
Tourists who arrive on cruise ships already pay a tax if they stay overnight in Barcelona but this could be increased.
The city’s Gothic Quarter and tree-lined Las Ramblas street are two of the areas that are most overcrowded in peak season.
Local residents have complained about excessive noise from partying tourists at night and loud tour groups.
Last year, tour guides were banned from using megaphones in the Gothic Quarter and given limits on people numbers.
However, Colau’s plans aren’t universally popular with some critics saying her policies have damaged the economy.
She has also been criticised over traffic congestion and some people have said the city has been less secure.
Barcelona isn’t the only Spanish city to be targeting tourism with strict rules and limits on numbers.
Last year, tour guides were banned from using megaphones in the Gothic Quarter and given limits on people numbers.
However, Colau’s plans aren’t universally popular with some critics saying her policies have damaged the economy.
She has also been criticised over traffic congestion and some people have said the city has been less secure.
Barcelona isn’t the only Spanish city to be targeting tourism with strict rules and limits on numbers.
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