Barcelona Calls Emergency Meeting as Cruise Passenger Numbers Soar
Barcelona, May 20 – The city of Barcelona is set to convene an urgent extraordinary meeting with the Port of Barcelona and various institutions to address a significant increase in cruise passenger arrivals. This decision follows a notable surge in disembarkations during the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025.
Municipal data indicates an inter-annual growth of 23.2% in January, 20.3% in February, and a substantial 48% in March for cruise ship disembarkations. While April saw a 16.1% decrease year-on-year, the overall trend has prompted concern among city officials.
Urgent Session for Cruise Sustainability
The Barcelona City Council approved the urgent convocation of an extraordinary session of the cruise sustainability council during a Wednesday economy commission meeting. This council includes representatives from the city council, port authority, institutions such as the Generalitat and the Government Delegation, as well as business associations, trade unions, and neighborhood associations.
The request was put forward by ERC and received support from PSC, Barcelona en Comú, and the republicans. Junts abstained, while PP and Vox voted against the proposal.
City Aims to Reduce Stopover Cruises
Jordi Valls, Deputy Mayor for Tourism, reiterated the socialist government’s intention to reduce stopover cruises in Barcelona, potentially to the point of eradicating them, a goal announced by Mayor Jaume Collboni last week. Valls stated that these cruises “do not provide added value” to the city.
The municipal executive also plans to implement an “aggressive fiscal position” to discourage tourist ships that dock for less than 12 hours. The city aims to increase the tax on stopover cruise passengers from four to eight euros starting next year and seeks the Generalitat’s approval to raise this surcharge even further.
José Antonio Donaire, the city’s Tourism Commissioner, affirmed that the tax increase would be a “disincentive element” to achieve the goal of “no stopover cruises.” He highlighted that passengers from these ships have a “very strong impact on Barcelona and spend very little,” quantifying that they “cost the city 3.1 euros and only leave 3.3 euros in fiscal terms,” in addition to contributing to overcrowding, particularly in Ciutat Vella, and other negative impacts the city aims to avoid.
Record Pace and Skepticism
Councillor Jordi Coronas (ERC) noted that cruise activity “has not only not decreased but is growing steadily at a record pace.” In 2025, nearly four million cruise passengers stopped in Barcelona, a 9.3% increase from 2024. Coronas predicted that this increase could continue until 2030, potentially reaching five million cruise tourists. “Given the increase in cruise activity, it is not enough to propose debate forums or good intentions, such as the mayor’s desire for cruises to be reduced, which so far has not translated into official figures,” Coronas questioned.
Jordi Rabassa (BComú) also expressed skepticism regarding Collboni’s announcement. “Saying we want zero stopover cruises and not explaining what quantity of cruise passengers the rest of the cruises with departure or entry to the port imply is practically saying nothing,” he argued. While supporting the meeting, Rabassa believes the cruise sustainability council “will be of little use” and called for “political involvement” to curb “fast food tourists.”
Joana Ortega (Junts) defended her group’s abstention to allow the debate session to be organized. However, she distanced herself from what she considered a “simplistic view” of the tourism phenomenon and a position “too focused on degrowth.” She appealed to Barcelona’s need to be an “open city,” emphasizing that the port is a “great economic and strategic asset” for the city and that cruise tourism “can be a well-managed opportunity” to generate economic activity and jobs. Víctor Martí (PP) criticized left-wing parties for viewing tourism as a “problem” to which more limits should be imposed, and Gonzalo de Oro (Vox) rejected the proposal, considering it criminalizing.
Balancing Tourism and City Well-being
Valls acknowledged that the port and tourism are crucial for Barcelona’s economy. “But can tourism make Barcelona die of success? Yes, clearly,” he warned. He also highlighted an agreement for the port to reduce the number of cruise terminals from seven to five by 2030. “Sooner or later, this will lead to a reduction in the number of cruise passengers; the most important thing is the 16% reduction in the reception capacity of the terminals,” Donaire noted. He drew a parallel, stating, “In fact, we are talking about a PEUAT in the port,” referring to the regulation that restricts hotel openings in the city’s tourist areas.
Sources: El Periódico.com.cat
