6 days ago
My day with Spanish anti-tourist activists giving Britons a soaking
Not long after we set off from near Gaudí's house, we came across our first target: a Louis Vuitton store.
After one activist climbed a ladder to deliver a political speech, protesters, including a child, began spraying the store front.
One scribbled 'Free Palestine' on the wall before a red smoke bomb engulfed us all.
This was supposed to be an anti-tourism protest in Barcelona, one of many co-ordinated across southern Europe on Sunday.
I had joined for the day to witness what it was like to be on the other side and see the sweeping pushback against over-tourism through the lens of locals.
After making a short political stand, the Assembly for Tourism Degrowth moved on, with the tourist magnet of the Sagrada Familia church in our sights.
I was now armed with a water pistol I'd been given by a figurehead in the group, Daniel Pardo, who was leading us past the Generator Hostel.
Two young women slapped 'Tourists Go Home' stickers on the windows. Mr Pardo, seeing a window of opportunity, ordered the demonstration to stop.
Next thing I knew, water guns were trained on the hostel entrance. For the tourists inside, it was initially amusing.
Then came the tape. Activists began crossing the front entrance repeatedly, symbolically 'barring' entry with red-and-white ribbon. It was too much for one hostel employee, who stormed out shouting in frustration.
Protesters sprayed him with their water pistols as he tore through the tape, grabbed one of the guns, and returned fire. A brief scuffle broke out, with pushing and shoving, before he was eventually pulled back inside.
Moments later, another activist emerged from the crowd and picked up where the soaking had left off. He kicked a smoke bomb into the hostel, where horrified tourists – including children – looked on.
The group moved on again, this time towards their biggest prize: the Sagrada Familia, a symbolic target for the protesters given it is visited by five million tourists every year.
Police blocked their path and even officers were caught by the odd squirt from water guns. After a 30-minute stand-off, the group was allowed to proceed to within sight, but not within reach, of the famous basilica.
On the way, protesters targeted outdoor restaurant tables. Gabriel and Rachel, tourists from Los Angeles, were among those caught in the crossfire.
While Gabriel sat over his soggy avocado lunch, he told me that it was annoying but insisted it wouldn't stop him returning to Barcelona.
At this point, I should make it clear I did not fire my water gun.
Many protesters insist their fight isn't with the tourists themselves, but with the political and economic model that they say allows mass tourism to overwhelm their city.
Rents in Barcelona have soared and neighbourhoods once filled with families are now dominated by short-term lets, particularly Airbnbs. Not only this but many local shops have vanished, replaced by souvenir stalls and endless Turkish cafes, particularly around areas such as La Rambla and Poblenou.
Residents say elderly neighbours are struggling to afford food and bills while landlords and corporations cash in.
'We have a big problem with housing in Barcelona. Some people are lucky just to eat or turn on the lights,' said Francisca García, who joined the protest.
For groups like hers, tourism is not just a nuisance but a form of 'economic colonisation,' where quality of life is sacrificed for the comfort of short-term visitors. Their goal, they insist, is not better tourism but less of it.
That may be true for most activists but their actions sometimes blur the line. The most common chant that echoed throughout the day was: 'Tourists go home, refugees welcome.'
Message may be getting through
At one point, a protester shouted into a microphone that Gaudí built the Sagrada Familia for locals, not tourists who leave it looking like a 'shit-tip'.
At the end of the protest, when the Assembly read out its manifesto, the language veered towards conspiracy, accusing authorities of 'brutal gentrification' and 'population replacement'.
'For more than two decades, we have seen a large part of the neighbourhood being evicted and practically its entire old town demolished, in a savage attempt to replace its population,' the manifesto reads.
Their message, however messy, may be getting through.
Barcelona's mayor has announced plans to ban all short-term tourist rentals by 2029. More than 10,000 flats are currently licensed for tourists, and the city hopes to return many of these to locals.
'We are confronting what we believe is Barcelona's largest problem,' said mayor Jaume Collboni.
The movement is no longer a fringe concern, with protests also taking place across southern Europe on Sunday in Madrid, Palma, Venice and Lisbon.
Tourists are undoubtedly starting to take notice – it's becoming harder to ignore.
Even away from the protests, my hotel made a point of proudly advertising its commitment to 'sustainable tourism' in the room, as though it were a key part of its appeal.
Sander and Luke Dingle, visiting from Florida, told me their hotel had posted warnings about the protest but they weren't deterred.
'We'll keep travelling around Spain, we're going to Madrid in a few days and we'll probably come back to Europe next year,' they said.
Indeed, tourism in Barcelona is still booming. More than 11.7 million tourists visited the city in 2024, a 5 per cent increase on the previous year.
The Spanish government in recent days has also approved a €3.2 billion expansion of the city's airport, indicating there will be no sign of the industry slowing down.
It seems inevitable that tourism will continue to thrive in Barcelona but if today is anything to go by, the activists won't be letting up. Visitors might just have to pack an extra waterproof next to their factor 50.
