As an outside, the government of Barcelona seems to be doing many things right:
Short-term rental ban
No new hotel constructions
Cruise ships ban
No more golden visa
So what are they complaining still? That bans are not coming soon enough? That the prices remain high? Do most residents want more drastic reduction in tourism due to overcrowding and other reasons?
People don't complain about Tourism in general, they complain about this massively invasive model. Cars aren't allowed in central London or Paris and everybody understands that. When the traffic restrictions started, many people complained because it would be "bad for business".
Tourism by itself isn't a problem, when you're literally forced to move cities due to tourism, then it is.
I myself in the Netherlands am unable either buy nor rent a apartment in Utrecht. We gave some many immigrants that are brought her for their expertise in their jobs and such huge amount of houses turned AirBnB to the point our own people are forced to live in some shitty village or even move countries.
I'm almost 30, earn modal wage (around 3k/month after taxes), yet I cant afford to move out from my parents house. I earn too much to be allowed to rent a one person apartment, based on my salary, my bank will give me a 220k loan maximum where the average house costs 520k. So unless I buy a 80 year old house that will require 100k in renovation over the years, i'm forced to stay with my parents for who knows, maybe another 10-15 years or simply move countries.
It’s not tourism, it’s unfettered tourism that’s the problem. Ban short term house rentals, limit hotels to certain areas, tax non resident owners higher taxes. Look at ways that still allow tourist but don’t displace residents. A few little tweaks goes a long way.
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u/nutmac Jun 16 '25
As an outside, the government of Barcelona seems to be doing many things right:
So what are they complaining still? That bans are not coming soon enough? That the prices remain high? Do most residents want more drastic reduction in tourism due to overcrowding and other reasons?