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Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

theguardian.com

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Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#31

Post by linkregister »

knob wrote: post #24
stickfigure wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a common sentiment, but it's misplaced. Cities don't speak with a single voice; it only takes one or two malcontents to make a statement that hits the news. They don't speak for everyone, or a majority, or even necessarily a significant minority. I've traveled pretty widely and experienced a small amount of mistreatment. In Oaxaca, some faceless person threw a rock at me from a building across the street (mis…

> it only takes one or two malcontents You are going to enjoy this link from Nicholas Taleb. I also recommend his books!

Which link? The "halal lemonade" one? I'll save you the experience of reading Taleb's smug, overwrought writing, stickfigure.

The article's point is that in matters of low importance, an intolerant minority can force the majority to adopt their viewpoint. The example is that since certifying lemonade as Halal is inexpensive, an intolerant minority that insist on it can cause all lemonade vendors in the UK to only sell Halal lemonade. As usual, there is no model provided and it's told in a "just-so story" format, with some gratuitous mockery of academics, notwithstanding the fact he's an academic.

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#32

Post by faragon »

malandrew wrote: post #25

> Anti-tourist graffiti has begun to appear, with “No tourists past this point” painted on a street in the old city and “Why call it tourist season if we can’t shoot them?” near the popular Park Güell. In recent weeks, several hotels have also been attacked with stones and paint bombs. Wow. This is shocking when Barcelona is a city that earns a sizable chunk of revenue from tourism. The annual report published by the…

Anti-tourist movement in Barcelona is a minority, mainly from extreme-left parties and activists from Catalan nationalist parties. I live in Barcelona, and I'm ashamed of those xenophobic acts. My guess is that over 90% of Barcelona population don't endorse such xenophobic attitude.

Despite being affected personally, e.g. because of tourism flat rental makes generic rental to have huge price increases (15% year to year increase (!)), I'm not against tourism, because tourism also means less unemployment, and most people having a better situation. Also, having people from around the world willing to visit the city where I live is amazing, and I'm very proud of it. Being Spain still recovering from the long, huge, and terrible financial and housing bubble crisis since 2007, I'm terrified with those radicals blaming the tourists for a problem that should be fixed by local rulers.

In my opinion, the major of Barcelona city (not the province), Mrs Ada Colau (former radical-left activist) should put her efforts into increasing housing offer, so the demand-offer reaches a reasonable equilibrium (e.g. fiscal discounts for empty flats put in the rental market, fiscal discounts for building flats in former industrial places that are like ghost neighborhoods, etc.).

From my side, you're very welcome to visit Barcelona as tourist, as worker, or as whatever you want while you do more good than harm :-)

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#33

Post by jacquesm »

horsecaptin wrote: post #27
jacquesm wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, just imagine that a city tries to deal with being overrun. They don't hate the tourists, they try to stay as organized as they can. There is such a thing as being too popular and the tourists converging on Barcelona are starting to make life for the people that live there harder and harder (rising rents, for once thing). You'll be more than welcome in Barcelona, it's a fantastic place to visit though you'll have…

I'm sure you are welcoming, but when the streets are painted with anti tourist messaging, then "you'll be more than welcome" sounds a bit hollow.

I've been in Barcelona multiple times over the last few years and it's one of my favorite cities. There are few places where the locals are as accommodating towards tourists but there are limits to how big a proportion of tourists : citizens you can have before there have to be some rules.

The fact that rent prices have jumped up tremendously to the point where locals are pushed out of Barcelona to make way for yet more professionally run AirBnB hotels (which are open 24x7 and all year round) does not help either.

If you see this as 'anti-tourist' imagine that the town or city where you currently live becomes the next hot thing in tourism and you'll be forced to go live somewhere else, or it will be impossible for you to get a spot on the beach in your city and so on. Sooner or later you too would be a big proponent of some reasonable restrictions.

I've seen some incredibly rude and downright criminal things in and near Barcelona on account of people who were just there for a few days, if anything the population is very restrained in how they are dealing with this, especially because it is for a large fraction of them their daily bread and butter.

But I'm really not surprised by what is happening there, the same is happening in many other tourist spots the world over (Amsterdam being another one, for instance).

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#34

Post by the_af »

msoad wrote: post #5

I'm planning to visit Barcelona. Seeing all those anti-tourist signs makes me wonder if I'll be welcome there. It's funny how people of a city who earn lots of money from tourists hate the tourists this much!

I've just been there. You'll feel welcome. Of all the cities I visited in Spain, Barcelona was definitely the most "touristy" (whether that's a good thing depends on what you except from your visit).

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#35

Post by the_af »

empath75 wrote: post #9
msoad wrote: post #5

I'm planning to visit Barcelona. Seeing all those anti-tourist signs makes me wonder if I'll be welcome there. It's funny how people of a city who earn lots of money from tourists hate the tourists this much!

Worry more about pickpockets :) Barcelona was pretty friendly when I was there.

Heh heh, true! Just returned from my month-long vacation in Portugal and Spain, and Barcelona was the only place where pickpockets tried to steal my cellphone (it was in the metro, I noticed it and moved away from the pickpocket, who promptly left the train). Not particularly noteworthy to me: pickpockets are very common where I live as well.

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#38

Post by ilamont »

faragon wrote: post #32
malandrew wrote: post #25

> Anti-tourist graffiti has begun to appear, with “No tourists past this point” painted on a street in the old city and “Why call it tourist season if we can’t shoot them?” near the popular Park Güell. In recent weeks, several hotels have also been attacked with stones and paint bombs. Wow. This is shocking when Barcelona is a city that earns a sizable chunk of revenue from tourism. The annual report published by the…

Anti-tourist movement in Barcelona is a minority, mainly from extreme-left parties and activists from Catalan nationalist parties. I live in Barcelona, and I'm ashamed of those xenophobic acts. My guess is that over 90% of Barcelona population don't endorse such xenophobic attitude. Despite being affected personally, e.g. because of tourism flat rental makes generic rental to have huge price increases (15% year to ye…

Thank you for sharing this perspective. It's easy to assume the extreme but vocal views of a small minority represent the views of the population at large.

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#39

Post by faragon »

ilamont wrote: post #38
faragon wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Anti-tourist movement in Barcelona is a minority, mainly from extreme-left parties and activists from Catalan nationalist parties. I live in Barcelona, and I'm ashamed of those xenophobic acts. My guess is that over 90% of Barcelona population don't endorse such xenophobic attitude. Despite being affected personally, e.g. because of tourism flat rental makes generic rental to have huge price increases (15% year to ye…

Thank you for sharing this perspective. It's easy to assume the extreme but vocal views of a small minority represent the views of the population at large.

Yes, that was my concern: a small but radical movement willing to steal the voice of the majority. You're welcome :-)

Re: Barcelona cracks down on Airbnb rentals with illegal apartment squads

#40

Post by kafkaesq »

faragon wrote: post #32
malandrew wrote: post #25

> Anti-tourist graffiti has begun to appear, with “No tourists past this point” painted on a street in the old city and “Why call it tourist season if we can’t shoot them?” near the popular Park Güell. In recent weeks, several hotels have also been attacked with stones and paint bombs. Wow. This is shocking when Barcelona is a city that earns a sizable chunk of revenue from tourism. The annual report published by the…

Anti-tourist movement in Barcelona is a minority, mainly from extreme-left parties and activists from Catalan nationalist parties. I live in Barcelona, and I'm ashamed of those xenophobic acts. My guess is that over 90% of Barcelona population don't endorse such xenophobic attitude. Despite being affected personally, e.g. because of tourism flat rental makes generic rental to have huge price increases (15% year to ye…

Is it "extreme left", "xenophobic" or even "anti-tourist" to actually enforce pre-existing requiring that flats be properly licensed in order to serve as short-term rentals?

If 90% of the population is, in fact, against such legislation, then it should be pretty easy to get it overturned.

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