{"id":158933,"date":"2026-10-08T14:44:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T12:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diaridigital.urv.cat\/?p=158933"},"modified":"2026-10-14T14:44:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T12:44:49","slug":"tourist-pressure-in-barcelona-forces-residents-to-change-their-routes-and-schedules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diaridigital.urv.cat\/en\/tourist-pressure-in-barcelona-forces-residents-to-change-their-routes-and-schedules\/","title":{"rendered":"Tourist pressure in Barcelona forces residents to change their routes and schedules"},"content":{"rendered":"

Going to the shops, taking the children to school, going to the beach or strolling around the neighbourhood are everyday activities that, in certain areas of Barcelona, now have to be planned in advance. A study by the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), published in the journal Tourism Planning & Development<\/em>, has analysed how overtourism affects the daily mobility of people living in three of the city’s neighbourhoods most affected by tourism: the Gothic Quarter, La Barceloneta and the Sagrada Fam\u00edlia.<\/p>\n

The research is part of the VISITMOB project and is led by Willian Cerino and Aaron Guti\u00e9rrez from the URV\u2019s Department of Geography, together with Marta Benages-Albert from the International University of Catalonia. The study shows that tourist pressure not only has effects on housing, commerce or the urban economy, but also directly impacts residents and how they move around in their environment.<\/p>\n

To study this, the research team conducted 44 street-level interviews with residents of the three neighbourhoods. The methodology is known as ‘walk-along’ and involves accompanying participants as they make their usual journeys through the neighbourhood. By accompanying residents as they go about daily activities such as shopping, accessing basic services, taking children to school, or accompanying elderly people, the researchers were able to observe first-hand how the presence of tourists interferes with residents\u2019 everyday movements and how residents consequently adapt their behaviour in public spaces.<\/p>\n

\"L'equip<\/a>
The research team accompanied the study participants as they made their usual journeys through the neighbourhood. PHOTO: Jeff Chabot (Pixabay).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The results show that many residents have adopted strategies to avoid congestion and overcrowding. Some change their route to avoid certain streets or squares that are particularly busy; others alter the times they go to the supermarket, go for a walk or visit the beach so they can do so when there are fewer tourists. Some residents also change the way they get around, avoiding certain spaces or seeking quieter alternatives to maintain a certain fluidity in their journeys.<\/p>\n

These adaptations, according to the researchers, are not coincidental. They reveal a profound transformation in the relationship between residents and their neighbourhood. “Some spaces that were previously perceived as places for community life are now experienced as ‘tourist territory’, that is to say, areas geared primarily towards visitors’ consumption and less towards the daily needs of those who live there,” explains Aaron Guti\u00e9rrez, a researcher in the Department of Geography who has taken part in the research. This situation, he comments, generates a feeling of losing one’s own space and of the local population being displaced.<\/p>\n

The impact, however, is not the same in all neighbourhoods. In Sagrada Fam\u00edlia, tourist pressure is concentrated mainly around the basilica and the nearby streets. In Barceloneta, its urban layout means that tourist flows are particularly concentrated in the areas bordering the seafront and the streets that lead to it. In the Gothic Quarter, by contrast, visitor presence is more widely distributed throughout the neighbourhood, facilitated by the network of narrow streets, the high concentration of heritage sites and the area’s very pedestrianised character.<\/p>\n

\"L'investigador<\/a>
Aaron Guti\u00e9rrez, a researcher at the Department of Geography, participated in the research.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The study also finds that the effects of overtourism are uneven depending on residents’ social and personal circumstances. The greatest difficulties are reported by older people, those who have lived in the neighbourhood the longest and those with caregiving responsibilities, especially those travelling with children. In these cases, the need to move out of the way of groups of visitors, hired bicycles and scooters and other forms of transport associated with tourists increases the perception of discomfort and insecurity during everyday journeys.<\/p>\n

The interviews also reveal that the presence of large groups of tourists can make it more difficult to walk on the pavements, cross streets or use cycle lanes. In some cases, participants associate this situation with a loss of comfort and a constant need to negotiate movement with other users of public space. The problem is not just the number of visitors, but also the fact that they move in groups in an unpredictable manner and that they block a significant part of the public right of way.<\/p>\n

The research team\u2019s findings also show that tourist overcrowding affects resident\u2019s daily use of squares, parks and main streets. According to the accounts given by participants, some of these spaces cease to function as neighbourhood meeting points and have become zones of tourist traffic. This leads to a perception of a loss of quality of life and a transformation of the neighbourhood’s identity.<\/p>\n

Another element that emerges in the interviews is a sense of insecurity linked to the concentration of visitors. The study does not identify instances of structural violence, but it does note that some residents associate the increase in tourists with a greater presence of theft or petty crime in very crowded areas. This perception can also influence walking routes and lead to certain spaces being avoided at particular times of the day.<\/p>\n

The COVID-19 pandemic features prominently in the participants’ accounts. Many residents recall that period, marked by a drastic reduction in tourist activity, as an exceptional time when they were able to rediscover the own neighbourhoods, move around more calmly, and get to know the people who lived there better. The return of mass tourism, according to the study, reactivated previous concerns and made some participants feel that an opportunity had been lost to rethink the tourism model.<\/p>\n