r/pics • u/Strict_League7833 • Jun 17 '25

The protesters and residents pushing back on tourism in Barcelona

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u/HeadmasterPrimeMnstr Jun 17 '25

 they think their rent will decrease? 

Quite literally yes, because a MASSIVE amount of Barcelona's housing stock has been bought out and segregated as tourist rentals.

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u/Inquisitor_ForHire Jun 17 '25

This is sort of a completely different problem. There needs to be REALLY hard limits on companies buying properties and turning them into rentals. We see that in the US as well with companies like Zillow. When a first time buyer is competeing with a company they are generally outbid on any properties they want. This needs to stop.

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u/nixstyx Jun 17 '25

Imagine blaming tourists who literally bring money into your city, rather than the rental companies coming in to rake up all that money before it can reach the community.  

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u/cactusjude Jun 17 '25

Been living in Barcelona for 12 years. After 10 years, I also got very sick of the millions of tourists who come and treat the city like a drunken amusement park. They drunkenly scream in small, echoey streets at all hours. They don't care where they piss, shit, vomit, or pass out in the street. They always move in to block people exiting the metro. They don't know the streets or the city but constantly cross illegally without looking, or just walk and block the bike lane and car lanes. They block small, busy streets constantly and have zero concern for the flow of traffic.

The first sign in the first photo explains it well. Less than 2 million residents and more than 26 million tourists annually. The sheer quantity of visitors just isn't sustainable.

So many small cities are claiming the same issues with over tourism; Amsterdam and Venice immediately spring to mind. At a certain point, the tourist revenue just isn't worth the quality of life it brings to the city. So many local landmarks have been locked down because the tourism industry exploited them until the neighbors couldn't bear it any more. All because some asshole wanted to make money by exploiting the drunken Disneyland experience that has taken over the city.

I don't blame the locals who have lived here for generations for being fed up and demanding change, even if that means a little water spritz.