Recently, the mayors of Barcelona, Spain and Amsterdam in the Netherlands held a meeting. Through the meeting, they plan to continue working together in both cities, at a time of recovery after the pandemic. Both major cities are calling for European regulation to combat illegal tourist accommodation, lessen overcrowding and work towards sustainable tourism.

Barcelona and Amsterdam fight overcrowding

Both Barcelona and Amsterdam are extremely popular with tourists from all over the world. This can, naturally, lead to overcrowding, which can then spoil the visitor’s experience. However, there is also a problem with illegal tourist accommodation, where owners fail to pay tax on their earnings. Also, by not having the required license, inferior accommodations are offered, spoiling vacationers’ experience of each city.

Both cities have been working together for years, attempting to regulate hotel activity in the center and do away will the illegal accommodation. One example is the beach suburb of La Barceloneta in Barcelona. Here, residents have complained for years about illegal apartments being rented to rowdy tourists.

Both mayors working together

According to El Periodico (in Spanish), Barcelona’s mayor Ada Colau and Amsterdam’s mayor Femke Halsema met to share their experiences on June 10. At the meeting, Colau thanked Amsterdam for working together with the Catalan capital. She noted that the popular city is an economic engine of Europe, with a strong economic hub.

Meanwhile, the two cities have worked together for quite some time, developing similar policies to curb overcrowding and work towards sustainable tourism. Along the way, Halsema is getting to know first-hand what Barcelona’s work is doing in terms of tourism management.

Barcelona’s ‘shock plan’

Following the pandemic, Ada Colau announced the reactivation of Barcelona’s shock plan against illegal tourist accommodation. Work so far has had good results, shutting down more than 6,000 illegal properties. Colau said:

With the recovery of tourism after the pandemic, we do not want this activity to return to the city.

Meanwhile, the mayor added that economic activity works better if there is regulation.

Barcelona’s municipality has a team of more than 70 people working on the project, including 25 people out on the street to prevent the return of the activity. More than 21,000 advertisements online have been tracked, where around 360 apartments were offering illegal accommodation.

Meanwhile, the relevant online platforms were requested to immediately remove advertisements for illegal properties. If they fail to comply, the owners can face a fine from 3,000 to 60,000 euros ($3,155 to $63,000).

Barcelona is also planning to launch a new information campaign to remind visitors not to stay in unlicensed properties. The campaign is also aimed at residents, reminding them that tourist accommodation can only be offered with approval.

For readers’ interest, any legal tourist accommodation in Spain holds a registration number. When making a booking in Barcelona, request that number from the owner to ensure quality accommodation. In the case of Airbnb, look for the official tick that shows the owner is verified.

Registered property owners have to keep their accommodations to a high standard in order to continue renting to tourists. This means that booking with them saves disappointment.

Amsterdam praises Barcelona’s leadership

Meanwhile, Femke Halsema praised Barcelona’s leadership and the commitment between the two cities to work in coordination. Moreover, Halsema is in favor of limiting activity at airports, especially with short flights that have an alternative by train.

As more high-speed rail is installed in Europe, this option of travel reduces tourism’s carbon footprint. Meanwhile, when taking into account checking in at airports and the various delays, catching a train doesn’t take that much longer.

Amsterdam’s mayor emphasized the importance of continuing to collaborate and share experiences to work towards a sustainable and not overcrowded tourist experience.