The curse of success

According to respondents to last year’s Municipal Service Survey, tourism is the second most serious problem affecting Barcelona, after unemployment and work instability. While there are those who welcome the wealth and prestige that the activity brings, others are keen to see a decrease in the 30 million annual visitors to the city—a number that’s steadily increased from 1.7 million in 1990. With the aim of placing Barcelona at the forefront of tourism management, Ada Colau’s government has recently released a new Pla Estratègic de Turisme (Strategic Tourism Plan). There are some however, who accuse the Ajuntament of being anti-tourist and introducing measures that are little more than an attack on the sector.  

What’s wrong with tourism?

On January 28, 2017, a demonstration against mass tourism was held on La Rambla, in which more than 60 local groups came together under the banner ‘Barcelona no està en venda’ (‘Barcelona is not for sale’). The movement claims that Barcelona is indeed for sale and that over the last 40 years the city has been turned into a big business. Activists speak of the shortage of housing, which has led to soaring rent prices and local people being expelled from their own neighbourhoods—overall, Ciutat Vella has lost 11 percent of its population since 2007, with the Barri Gòtic alone losing a staggering 45 percent. According to the Ajuntament’s 2016 diagnostic report on tourism, the housing shortage is a direct result of blocks of flats being turned into hotels and tourist apartments.

It’s not just local people who are being pushed out. Local businesses are also becoming vulnerable as they lose their clientele, and kitschy souvenir shops and bars are eagerly waiting to supersede them. What’s more, this isn’t necessarily a benefit for the tourists themselves. “Tourists don’t come here looking for souvenir shops,” said Agustí Colom, councillor for Employment, Business and Tourism. “What they come for are those 100-year-old shops, those emblematic establishments that are unique to Barcelona, but many of them are closing down and disappearing.” 

This highlights another issue: tourism may be destroying the very thing that people come to Barcelona for. Visitor Bri English said she came to Barcelona because “it’s known as a very singular city, with things to see and do that you won’t find anywhere else in the world”. However, with the loss of local businesses, Barcelona risks becoming homogenised. Some believe this is already happening, such as Gràcia resident Ernesto González who compared the city centre to a “theme park”. Colom warns that if things continue the way they’re going, Barcelona could lose the very essence that makes it attractive and the market could therefore kill itself. 

Environmental concerns and overcrowding of public spaces are also key issues. Fifty-eight percent of visitors surveyed in the 2015 Perception of Tourism Survey said the amount of tourists was excessive in Barcelona, which is geographically small (101 km2) but has a high population density of 15,887 inhabitants per square kilometre. Mobility problems are rife, especially in areas of high tourist concentration such as the Sagrada Família. The Ajuntament’s recent move to regulate personal mobility vehicles, such as Segways and electric scooters, including where they can go and how fast, aims to address problems of coexistence in public spaces—one regulation that is sure to be welcomed by most.

There are also underlying reasons for the sense of negativity towards tourists, which the Ajuntament’s diagnostic report on tourism attributes in part to the speed at which Barcelona became a tourist hub. It acknowledges that, despite the importance of tourism to the city, it’s still treated as an “alien and disruptive phenomenon”, with many citizens finding it hard to accept that they’ll never again live without the effects of tourism. 

What’s right with tourism?

A booming tourist industry has its upsides. According to the Estudio de opinión a la ciudadanía (Study of Citizen Opinions), 90 percent of respondents said they believed tourism was beneficial, although this figure falls drastically in areas of higher concentration, such as Ciutat Vella and Gràcia. Perhaps the most oft-cited upside is the 96 to 120 thousand jobs generated by the industry. 

Tourism also accounts for 14 percent of the city’s GDP and is what Fermín Villar, President of the association Amics de la Rambla (Friends of the Rambla), describes as “an undeniable economic motor”, with several economic upsides including the tourist tax (IEET), which is reinvested to maintain social services. Tourists also contribute to the local economy by spending money in local businesses, while money paid to visit cultural sites contributes to their upkeep—a particular example being the Sagrada Família, whose construction is largely funded by its entrance fee. The Ajuntament’s diagnosis, however, warns against relying too heavily on this sector: “In dynamic cities with advanced economies, tourism is present [...] but it isn’t the only sector. The supremacy of one sector over others brings negative effects and risks”.

Not all the upsides to tourism are economic. It also has a revitalising effect, encouraging the celebration and preservation of local festivals and cultural events, as well as attracting new events along the same lines. González talks about how Barcelona’s popularity has put the city on the map, making it a preferred destination for tech events, such as the Mobile World Congress, and many music and cultural festivals, such as Primavera Sound. 

“Tourism has many positives,” agreed retired resident Julià Fernández Chinchilla, “the first being new connections created between people and a marriage of different cultures. I find the mixture of cultures that results from so many people travelling in the 21st century fascinating.” 

What is the city council doing about it?

The Ajuntament is planning to take a more hands-on approach to tackle the impact of mass tourism. “Barcelona was once the leader in promotion, now it’s becoming the leader in governance,” stated Colom. To this end, the Consell de Turisme i Ciutat has been created to develop recommendations for policy, while the Ajuntament has developed the Strategic Tourism Plan 2020, which aims to provide a road map for tourism in the city over the next few years. 

Prior to drawing up this plan, the Ajuntament carried out an in-depth diagnosis, which identified several areas for improvement as well as committing to a vision for tourism. According to this, by 2020, Barcelona will continue to be one of the main tourist cities in the world, where citizens recognise visitors of all types as temporary citizens and not intruders.Rather than there being spaces exclusively for tourists, visitors will be an integral part of the city, and tourism will contribute to the quality of life of Barcelona residents.

The plan covers a far-reaching range of issues, such as the need for an official body that monitors tourism to inform policy decisions, and a marketing strategy that manages people’s expectations about the city before they arrive. It also includes proposals to tackle the low salaries and job precarity that blight the industry, with the aim of redistributing the wealth generated by tourism. Working with the Instituto de Turismo Responsable (Responsible Tourism Institute), Colom explained that the Ajuntament is creating a Biosphere-Barcelona certification that will position social and labour practices as also being key to the sustainability of the city. Turisme de Barcelona will then use this certification to encourage different establishments to move towards quality jobs and dignified salaries for employees within the sector.

Within the strategic plan is yet another plan, the Pla Especial Urbanístic d'Allotjaments Turístics (Special Urban Plan for Tourist Accommodation) (PEUAT). This aims to tackle the shortage of housing where there has been an increase in tourist accommodation by establishing three zones in the city. The first zone—Hostafrancs, Sant Antoni, the centre, Vila Olímpica and Poblenou—is earmarked for a decrease in tourist accommodation. No new accommodation can open in this area and, if any closes, none can open to replace it. In the second zone, moving further afield, the amount of tourist accommodation is to be maintained—no new accommodation can open, but if one closes a new one can replace it. In the final zone, an increase in the amount of accommodation is allowed. This plan is an example of the general aim to decentralise tourism so the over-saturated zones can get some respite. Hand-in-hand with this vision is the Barcelona és molt més (Barcelona is much more) campaign, which aims to encourage visitors to venture out of the city of Barcelona and explore the province.

Parallel to the Strategic Tourism Plan 2020 is a plan to eliminate illegal tourist flats. This focuses on finding and closing down tourist accommodations that are operating without a proper licence—last year 615 such apartments were shut down. Illegal tourist flats are not the only ones being targeted, however, with the Ajuntament planning to implement a higher property tax (IBI) on legal lets because they too are used to make a profit. 

What do people think?

With so many interests at stake, the Ajuntament is struggling to please everyone. The Association of Barcelona Tourist Apartments (APARTUR) is furious about the rise in property tax, and feels that the sector, which redistributes the profits of tourism to thousands of small proprietors, is being unfairly targeted. APARTUR and the Catalan Federation of Tourist Flats (FEDERATUR) believe that these punitive measures will simply generate more illegality and they would even consider going to court to stop this tax increase. The measure would see visitors who stay in tourist flats pay a comparable level of tax to those who stay in luxury hotels. “We are facing a meaningless measure that goes against family tourism,” argued Enrique Alcántara, President of APARTUR. 

Some groups take more issue with PEUAT. In Villar’s opinion, the problem with PEUAT is that it is not only against tourism, but will result in less competition, risking an increase in prices and a decrease in quality. Villar does concede, however, that the Ajuntament has modified its initial position on tourism and has stopped talking about reducing the numbers. 

Others are upset that the Ajuntament is not talking about reducing the amount of tourists. In their document “Why we’re saying no to PEUAT”, the Moviment Popular de Gràcia explains that PEUAT doesn’t propose a framework of regulation and decrease that would ensure neighbourhoods don’t become prey to big tourist capital. It goes on to lament that PEUAT’s regulated zones will simply spread touristic pressure from the centre to the periphery. Furthermore, it’s just the lower part of Gràcia’s old town that will be regulated in a relatively effective way whereas other areas such as Camp d’en Grassot i Gràcia Nova will be gobbled up by hotel groups. PEUAT sees a risk of this particular area becoming a corridor between Park Güell and the Sagrada Família, resulting in the ousting of local people.

So many conflicting viewpoints create a fine line that the Ajuntament must tread. Accused by some of acting against tourism and others of not doing enough, the Ajuntament is keen to stress that “Barcelona is and will continue to be a tourist city”, while also taking steps to reduce the impact of tourism on the city and its residents. As Colom said, “If we manage to reduce the impact of tourism, we can have less backlash with the same volume of visitors.” It sounds like the ideal solution, but is it really possible?

THE CONSCIENTIOUS TOURIST'S GUIDE

It’s not just the government’s responsibility to reduce the impact of mass tourism, individual visitors can help too. Here are some tips for your friends and family when they visit, or to use yourself when visiting other cities with an increasing number of tourists.

Don’t stay in unlicensed tourist accommodations: You won’t be contributing to the local economy by paying a tourist tax, instead you’ll be contributing to a shortage of housing that drives up rent for residents. Meet.barcelona.cat offers a tool that allows you to check if an address is licensed. If you believe you’ve stayed in an unlicensed flat, or that there’s one operating in your building, there’s a place on the website to report it.

Stay in an accommodation outside of the most tourist-heavy areas: This will help to alleviate the pressure in the most crowded areas of the city while bringing your tourist money to places that don’t normally benefit. You may even discover some hidden gems while you’re at it. 

Don’t follow the crowd: Consider travelling in the off season to spread the burden of tourism evenly throughout the year.

Avoid all-inclusive packages: Instead of spending all your time and money in one place, frequent various locally-owned restaurants, cafes and bars. Family-run businesses always have an interesting history, and the people you’ll interact with tend to be more welcoming and grateful for your business. 

Buy local: Keep an eye out for artisan souvenirs made locally, something with a real story behind it that you can take home with you, and avoid mass-produced souvenirs.

Step off the beaten path: Do research before your trip and ask locals for recommendations of sites, museums, restaurants, bars and neighbourhoods to visit. You’re more likely to discover the ‘true’ Barcelona this way, and you’ll be spending your money in places that appreciate (and need) it more.

Behave considerately: Don’t make too much noise at night, throw your litter in the bin and remember that not everyone is on holiday.