Over 150 organisations and social movements took to Barcelona’s streets, symbolically sealing off hotels and restaurant terraces in protest against tourist overcrowding.

This demonstration follows similar protests in the Canary Islands and Mallorca in recent months.

Approximately 3,000 people gathered on Saturday evening, chanting “tourists, go home,” and demanding measures to curb tourism ahead of a summer season expected to set new records in Catalonia.

Martí Cusó, spokesperson for the Association of Neighbours of the Gothic Quarter, emphasised the need for a fairer economic model that reduces tourism.

Barcelona, Spain’s most visited city, struggles with over-tourism, receiving an average of 32 million visitors annually, many arriving on cruise ships. In response, the city council has voted to raise the tourist tax to €4 per person starting in October.

A local resident expressed concern about the impact of tourism and speculation on housing, highlighting the need for decent housing for Spaniards.

To address the housing crisis, particularly acute in tourist-heavy cities like Barcelona, the city council announced a plan to eliminate around 10,000 tourist flat licenses over the next five years. This measure aims to prioritise residential use and reflects a broader global trend of cities combating the adverse effects of mass tourism on local life.

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