Sagan

Yes indeed. I think in Europe the worst is probably Lisbon, that has basically been overrun by foreigners, but that’s a common phenomenon in all major cities.

It’s a bit different, Amsterdam and Paris are touristic destinations, but not to the same level as Barcelona.

By absolute numbers, Paris has obviously more visitors (22 millions vs 13 for Barcelona and 10 for Amsterdam), but Paris is much more populated than Barcelona.

Also, the type of tourism is quite different. Amsterdam and Paris are more expensive, while Barcelona is still seen as a cheaper destination, which brings a different type of crowd. On the same topic, the average level of income of the people living in Barcelona is quite lower than people living in Paris or Amsterdam, making it even more difficult for people living in Barcelona to compete against either tourists or “digital nomads” coming here to work without paying taxes locally.

Sources

• https://www.statista.com/topics/6314/tourism-in-paris/#topicOverview
• https://www.statista.com/topics/4156/tourism-in-barcelona/
• https://www.statista.com/topics/6025/tourism-in-amsterdam/

Not sure if anyone who lives here hasn’t seen it yet, but !barcelona@piefed.social is a thing.

Copy pasted from another comment, the mayor who announced the decision made it so that it would applied after the end of his tenure (that will end in 2027, the decision is supposed to happen in 2028)

The other issue is that even besides tourism, Barcelona is a very attractive city for Spanish people due to the work opportunities, and there is definitely a lack of supply for the housing market. Getting back the Airbnb would help with the mass tourism (which is an issue of its own), but the housing crisis might still be there for a while.

For more details: https://www.euronews.com/travel/2024/07/22/the-end-of-airbnb-in-barcelona-what-does-the-tourism-industry-have-to-say

I live here (!barcelona@piefed.social), the mayor who announced the decision made it so that it would applied after the end of his tenure (that will end in 2027, the decision is supposed to happen in 2028)

The other issue is that even besides tourism, Barcelona is a very attractive city for Spanish people due to the work opportunities, and there is definitely a lack of supply for the housing market. Getting back the Airbnb would help with the mass tourism (which is an issue of its own), but the housing crisis might still be there for a while.