Protests against Tourists in Barcelona

[Sunset]

It appears some groups are targeting tourists and tourist related services/shops.

I do wonder if it will be less safe depending upon "Catalonia’s long-awaited and bitterly controversial referendum on independence from Spain is due to be held on October 1, with the announcement triggering political and judicial showdowns between Barcelona and Madrid."

Spain’s anti-tourism riots - violent clans MERGE to target Barcelona | World | News | Express.co.uk

Would Catalonia and Spain actually end up in a civil war for separation ?

 

[Nemo2]

The last time we were in Barcelona, (or perhaps it was the time before), there was a huge pro-unity rally......next time, ¿Quién sabe?

 

[FIREd]

There has been a recent push against mass tourism in several European cities (including Barcelona, Prague, and Venice) on the count that it changes the character of those cities and makes them less affordable for the locals. I can't say that I disagree with that sentiment.

 

[Bamaman]

In many European cities and especially along the Mediterranean, tourism is all there is for citizen's livelihoods.

 

[audreyh1]

Yeah, I get the impression that it is supporting the traditional way of life in many areas plus providing employment for a huge amount of young people.

It's a double-edged sword of course.

Barcelona is so crowded with tourists I can understand the frustration. A lot of tourism there is also of the stag/hen party variety. Maybe not so culture oriented. But they still have loads of tourists interested in culture.

 

[Nemo2]

There is also a distinct possibility that the primary objective, of those orchestrating/sponsoring/funding the protests, has nothing to do with 'culture' but everything to do with subverting the political system.

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

Might be safer to run with the bulls.

 

[FIYes]

When we were in Barcelona in 2016, I recall seeing banners on some apartment buildings saying No Tourists. We stayed in an airbnb type apartment just outside of the heavy tourist area. Thinking about it, I understand the sentiment. I would not be thrilled if the house next door was converted to an airbnb type lodging. I don't think the constant turnover of tenants would be good for my neighborhood.

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

When we were in Barcelona in 2016, I recall seeing banners on some apartment buildings saying No Tourists. We stayed in an airbnb type apartment just outside of the heavy tourist area. Thinking about it, I understand the sentiment. I would not be thrilled if the house next door was converted to an airbnb type lodging. I don't think the constant turnover of tenants would be good for my neighborhood.

This is why Airbnb is largely illegal in NYC

 

[bclover]

Heavily regulated in Philadelphia. They came down really hard a few years ago when the pope came to town and then the DNC.

Many of even single family homes have HOA's (including mine) that really restrict what they call short term rentals.

 

[IMATERP]

When we were in Barcelona in 2016, I recall seeing banners on some apartment buildings saying No Tourists. We stayed in an airbnb type apartment just outside of the heavy tourist area. Thinking about it, I understand the sentiment. I would not be thrilled if the house next door was converted to an airbnb type lodging. I don't think the constant turnover of tenants would be good for my neighborhood.

My wife and I began our TA Cruise in the fall of 2014 in Barcelona. We spent three days around the city prior to embarking on the cruise. During our visit, we took a long stroll up toward the National Art Museum and toward the stadium and fort at the top of the hill. Well, when we arrived at the stadium, there was a lot of commotion and we found out that they were have peaceful protests for their independence in Catalonia.

Anyway, the folks seemed to be quite civil and it was geared toward families. Actually, the justification is that the Catalonians do not want to be responsible for the debt and the policies of the existing government.

One of my favorite cities and if you have a chance to visit Gaudi Parc or the Sagrada Familia - its definitely "chow" from a tourist perspective.

Michael

 

[Senator]

I would not visit a city that was having protests, in Europe or the USA.. You never know when the latest crackpot will take further action.

If a city/country is having protests, you can bet it is not a safer place to be than a city without protests. A protester could get you, a cop who thought you were protesting could get you, a non-protester with sympathetic tendencies could lead you astray.

You still may be safe, but not as safe as a place without protests.

 

[Mdlerth]

You catch more flies with honey

I would not visit a city that was having protests, in Europe or the USA.

Roger that. If they don't want me there, why would I want to visit them? I can stay home and spend my vacation bucks at places that welcome me.

 

[Nemo2]

If they don't want me there, why would I want to visit them? .

But what constitutes 'they'? There are 1.6 million people in the Barcelona area, many of whom are dependent upon, and welcome, the tourist industry.

 

[Red Badger]

Roger that. If they don't want me there, why would I want to visit them? I can stay home and spend my vacation bucks at places that welcome me.

+1.

I had enough "excitement" in an army career that spanned almost 30 years. Not going anywhere that is ground zero for protests, etc. Also, too many riots are now called protests. F*** that.

 

[Senator]

But what constitutes 'they'? There are 1.6 million people in the Barcelona area, many of whom are dependent upon, and welcome, the tourist industry.

If 'they' are enough to make the news, it's probably too many...

 

[Sunset]

I would not visit a city that was having protests, in Europe or the USA.. You never know when the latest crackpot will take further action.

If a city/country is having protests, you can bet it is not a safer place to be than a city without protests. A protester could get you, a cop who thought you were protesting could get you, a non-protester with sympathetic tendencies could lead you astray.

You still may be safe, but not as safe as a place without protests.

While I agree, the big issue is for many tourists, one has to line up the plans, make reservations, book things many months in advance.

So it's a little worrisome months after getting everything lined up, to hear about this stuff happening.

Maybe by the time we travel, it will be all settled, and we will be visiting the new Country of Catalonia instead of Spain. I wonder if we will need a visa

 

[W2R]

The situation there could become pretty dire. If I was a tourist, I'd put off Barcelona and go to another part of the world this year.

My son-in-law is Catalan. Although he has lived in the US for a couple of decades, his elderly parents still live in a small village near Barcelona. Given that situation, the struggles for and against independence there are a bit unnerving for us. I sure hope things do not deteriorate any further back there, and that whatever happens, can happen relatively peacefully. I fear that may not be the case.

 

[Mdlerth]

But what constitutes 'they'? There are 1.6 million people in the Barcelona area, many of whom are dependent upon, and welcome, the tourist industry.

"They" comprise whatever number* of sufficiently agitated malcontents it takes for me to decide it's too much trouble to risk Barcelona. When I go on vacation, the last thing I want to deal with is other people's acrimony.

There may well be 1.5999 million friendly people in Barcelona who depend on tourism. But if the others want to bite the hand that feeds them, that's their problem, not mine. There are plenty of other places to visit that don't feature violent head cases attacking visitors.

* I don't know precisely what that number is, but rest assured they've reached it.

 

[Nemo2]

* I don't know precisely what that number is, but rest assured they've reached it.

I'd be more concerned about those who drive vans up Las Ramblas deliberately killing people......(was there a thread about that?)

 

[FIYes]

We really enjoyed the time we spent in Barcelona. I would hate to see it deteriorate. It was a lovely city to visit when we were there. I didn't feel uncomfortable at all. In fact the only place I did not care for was Las Ramblas...too crowded. Enjoyed the area around Las Ramblas, just the street itself was too crowded.

 

[brett]

Spain is a big country and there are lots of great places to see and visit.

We toured Greece during the 'difficult' times. We had no problems. The demos in Athens were short lived and in a small area. The news reports we saw prior to leaving were completely overblown and sensationalized. As soon as we left Athens, throughout the Peloponnese and on the islands we saw no disruption whatsoever.

We had the identical experience when we first went to Thailand four years ago.
What we saw and experienced in Bangkok was very different than what we saw on the TV news during the 10 days prior to our departure.

 

[audreyh1]

Last year Barcelona was packed with tourists while southern France (Provence, Côte d'Azur) suffered a 20% drop in tourism. Every year, something different.

I don't worry about traveling in Europe. Europe is very safe compared to most of the world including the US!

 

[brett]

Absolutely. We feel as safe or safer in European cities as we do in many US cities.

 

[Nemo2]

From the link I recently posted on "Anyone got any travel..."

I arrived in Zāhedān with my then-girlfriend in May 1995 in order to catch the twice-monthly train to Quetta in Pakistan. Not that many years ago, Zāhedān was called Dozda, which translates as Thieves, and having spent the afternoon of our arrival wandering through its streets, I can tell you it is not the sort of place you want to spend any time in unless you absolutely have to. It was like a scene out of Arabian Nights with shady characters on every street corner watching our every move. It was horrible and we couldn’t wait to leave.

I was there 32 years before he was.......doubt it was much/any better then.....just be careful, is all, don't hide under the bed after every creak of the floorboards.