Imagine planning a vacation and not being able to or another online booking site for an apartment in which to spend a few days walking, shopping and eating among the locals. Would a hotel do? That's the future confronting visitors to central in four years. To safeguard and expand the housing supply for full-time residents, local authorities want to rid the Spanish city known for its architecture, beaches and of the 10,000 apartments licensed as short-term rentals.
Barcelona City Hall announced last month that it would not renew any tourist apartment licenses after they expire in 2028. Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet said the city wants , which accounts for 15% of the local economy, but must help residents cope with skyrocketing rents and real estate prices. “Our housing emergency obligates us, forces us, to change the way we do things and to put the priority on housing above our policies for accommodating tourists,” Bonet told The Associated Press.
Property owners plan to fight the decision, arguing that eliminating short-term rentals would threaten their livelihoods and leave the city without enough temporary lodging: Some 2.5 million tourists stayed in an apartment last year, according to the Association of Tourist Apartments of Barcelona, also known as Apartur. Residents of the city, which has a population of about 1.
6 million, have campaigned for several years, but the anti-tourism sentiment has grown more heated: During a protest in Barcelona's Las Ramblas district this mont.