Barcelona, is it over?

Barcelona, is a vibrant Spanish metropolis, which has been a magnet for tourists for decades.

The kids and I undertook our visit to this tourist hotspot in August 2022, as part of my 50th birthday celebrations.

The city's love affair with tourism may be facing a turning point. Local authorities are actively seeking to curb visitor numbers, with news this week that the plan is a cessation of ‘Airbnb style’ short term rentals in the city, by 2028.

This story in part, has started with local squirting tourists, with water pistols filled with water.

Biting the hand that feeds you? Or is this a drastic measure a necessary step for a city struggling to breathe?

Strains on the City:

Spain sees some 85.1m visitors pa, of which 12.4m visiting Barcelona.  The proposed plan on holiday rentals, would return c. 10,000 properties to the indigenous population for primary resident use.

Barcelona's immense popularity has undeniable downsides. Residents complain of overcrowded streets, rising rents fueled by short-term rentals, and a strain on local infrastructure. The city's unique character can be lost as tourist shops and restaurants replace local businesses.

Taking Back Control:

Discussions include limiting cruise ships, restricting hotel development, and promoting alternative destinations within Catalonia. This shift in focus aims to improve the quality of life for residents and ensure a more sustainable future for the city.

Tourism, Redefined:

Barcelona's move doesn't signal the end of tourism. Instead, it's a call for a different kind of tourism. The focus might shift towards attracting visitors who appreciate Barcelona's cultural heritage and architectural beauty, and who contribute positively to the local economy.

The Road Ahead:

While some hail Barcelona's initiative, others fear economic repercussions. Striking the right balance between tourism and livability is crucial. Barcelona's experiment will be closely watched, with the potential to reshape the conversation around tourism in popular destinations worldwide.

Whilst its clear that the tourism pilgrimage to Barcelona is generally bottlenecked into the 2, if not 1 season (Summer or Spring / Summer), here are some interesting numbers comparing Barcelona with London: 

Tourist Tale of Two Cities: Barcelona vs. London

While both Barcelona and London are major tourist hubs, their stories differ in scale and recent trends. Here's a comparison based on available statistics:

Visitor Numbers:

• London: As of 2023, London held the title of the most searched-for global tourist destination [most searched for global tourist destination ON standard.co.uk]. Though exact visitor numbers can be tricky to pin down due to different methodologies, estimates suggest London attracts well over 20 million visitors annually.

• Barcelona: Pre-pandemic figures show Barcelona receiving around 12.4 million visitors a year [STATISTA tourism barcelona ON statista.com]. While this is a substantial number, it falls short of London's massive tourist influx.

Length of Stay:

• London: Data suggests shorter stays are becoming more common in London, with a third of trips lasting only 3-4 days [most searched for global tourist destination ON standard.co.uk]. This trend aligns with "city break" style tourism, focused on short, action-packed visits.

• Barcelona: Barcelona might see slightly longer stays on average. While specific data is harder to find, the city's focus on cultural experiences and beach getaways could encourage visitors to linger a bit longer.

Tourist Spending:

• London: London benefits from a diverse tourist base, with visitors coming from all corners of the globe. This can lead to a wider range of spending habits.

• Barcelona: Recent reports show a promising trend for Barcelona. While visitor numbers might be dipping slightly, the average tourist spends more (€1,263 in May 2024). This suggests a shift towards a higher-value tourism model in Barcelona.

Local Impact:

• Both Cities: Both London and Barcelona grapple with the impact of tourism on residents. Housing affordability is a major concern, with rising rents due in part to short-term rentals.

• Key Differences: However, the scale of the issue might be more pronounced in Barcelona due to its smaller size. The sheer volume of tourists in a more compact city center can put a strain on infrastructure and contribute to a feeling of inauthenticity.

Barcelona could potentially strike a balance that promotes responsible tourism while safeguarding the city's well-being for the years ahead.

Lets hope so, as it’s a city I would very much like to visit in the future.

Until next time, keep snapping.

Budapest - We love you.

Its been a couple of months now, back to the bump and grind of Blighty, after the kids and my first overseas trip, since 2018.

This followed an aborted attempt to head over to Barcelona in April, which was eventually traded for Manchester (had to attend a work team meeting in Birmingham, with sitting in a room with 60 folk and decided to cancel it on the event I caught COVID............).     

Anyway, we decided on Budapest.  

It's a place that has been on my bucket list for years.  

A wonderful city, rich in culture and a checked history.  

Having been transfixed with the early Magnum black and white catalogue, which also covers the 1956 uprising, this city has intrigued me from an early age.  Images of formally dressed men running along streets with rifles, so soon after the atrocities of WW2. Some of David Hurn's work of this period is outstanding.  

The architecture, parks, cafes, restaurants, exhibitions, beer and cuisine, there is something for everyone.  

The city provides an excellent backdrop and perfect destination for some street photography. 

After some brief twitter chatter about the options of taking 35mm film, I decided to take some Fomapan 400 & Kodak Vision 3 250d, to shoot through my Olympus OM1, with my Olympus XA2 as back up. I also wanted to take my Sony A7iii for a 2nd back up. The backups were a prudent step, as the OM1 jammed, so it was XA2 all the way.

Gatwick Airport were very kind to hand check the film, rather than run it through their X-Ray scanners. (On the way back, Budapest Airport put the film through their CT Scanners). I now know that <ISO800 film is ok to put through either scanner a number of times and as you will see from the images within this post, the film was undamaged.

The buzz of the city is addictive. This is also topped off with an exceptional public transport service.  Trams, trains and buses link seamlessly. The excellent BudapestGo app for your smartphone, provides an all covering journey planner.   Single fares are 73p (yes 73p). The bus transfer services to the airport (some 9 miles from the city centre) comes in at a wallet friendly £2.36. A taxi comparison for the same journey is typically 30-35 euros.  

I had a mild concern about stag and hen do's, for Friday and Saturday night, but this didn't materialise, or at least the kids and I were not out too late to witness it.

After watching a series of YouTube videos on 'Budapest hidden gems' 'Things to do in Budapest', we decided on District 5 / The Jewish Quarter for our Airbnb location (see red bounding box below). This is on the ‘Pest’ side of the city, were the majority of bars, restaurants and life is going on. This proved a good choice.

Accomodation is notably cheaper, the location has some excellent bars and restaurants, which are best explained as having a ‘bohemian feel’.  

It's also in close proximity to Kalvin Square, which is the central hub for the transport links.  

We flew out of Gatwick Airport. Having booked our flights a month before departure, there was not a ripple of warning about the car crash that happened relating to last minute flight cancellations, following the increased half term demand and the understaffed airport network.

We were some of the lucky few, both outward and incoming flights were cancelled by c. 2 1/2 hours each way. 

Getting into Budapest, the ease of transfer was a stark contrast to Gatwick. We headed straight to the Ruin Bars.  This is a great spot. I can imagine that on inception, this would have been a buzzing underground spot, but it now appears to be much of a tourist trap, with patrons pointing cameras at the decor, rather than chatting to their companions. The cherry beer was great.  

We then headed off to Street Food Karavan, which is a great spot for some fast food. Burgers, Chicken, goulash and Langos are avaialble, from the food vans that are parked up. We got here about 19:00, not at all busy, but I would expect this place to get chocker, in the wee hours.

Because it was lovely and warm, after completing our first recce of the Jewish Quarter, we decided to chill in the park at the end of the road, where the Hungarian National Museum was located.

Day 2

Saw us take in the historic tourist trail.

Firstly we headed to St Stephen’s Basilica. The objective was to climb the stairs and walk around the dome and take in the excellent vistas of the city. This was a very easy sell to the kids. Spectacular views.

After that we strolled down to the Danube river to walk across the Chain Bridge, disappointingly, it was closed for some esssential repairs.

Observing the Buda Castle complex and the Fishermans Bastion, you are treated to some outstanding architecture and vistas across the Danuble, to see the Hungarian Parliament Building. After a long lunch break - and another cherry lager - we decided to head to Fashion Street, for some clothes shopping.

Day 3

We headed over to Esceri Flea Market, as a couple of the tourist guides mentioned that this was worth a gander.

Not sure if we were too early or it was part closed for the summer period, but it was a disappointment as it was only open to say, 5-10% capacity.

The trip over on the two buses was a nice mind, seeing the urban side of the city.

Getting back to the city, the kids and I decided to make amends and have a culture vulture afternoon. We first decided to go to the House of Terror Museum, which is a fitting tribute to the cities two terror regimes. This is housed in the ex Secret Police Building. The museum is very sombre in outlining the extent of the secret police activies during this time, the torture chambers in the basement were harrowing.

Outside, there was a piece of the Berlin Wall, which was a fitting for the period.

We then walked upto Heroes Square, to see the monuents and by pure happenstance, discovered there was a Hieronymus Bosch exbiition at the Museum of Fine Arts. 50 pieces of work by this mismerising artist housed in architectural slendour. The ticket office attendant took great delight in telling me as a UK citizen, that I wasnt entitled to the tourist discount for EU members.

Oh the benefits of Brexit.

For the evening, we decided to venture upto Margaret Island. An idyllic park in the centre of the city. Time to chill at the fountain and listen to classical music and enjoy a burger and another cherry beer.

Day 4

Today we had a wander upto Memento Park, which is a unique and relevant attraction, when the city had the 1956 uprising, rather than dispose of the toppled communist statues, these were rehoused several miles outside of the city.

Continuing the governmental theme, we then decided to head back into ‘Pest’ to see the Parliament Building and also The Shoes on the Danube.

This particular route saw us take the No 2 tram and also the metro. The former offering some excellent vistas of the city.

We decided to head back to Margaret Island for the evening, as we spotted a middle eastern restaurant, and unsurprisingly, the food was excellent.

Day 5

The last day, had a more sedate feel to it. We decided to visit the Vajdahunyad Castle in the City Park.

The grounds of the castle were lovely.

After that we had one final lap of the Jewish Quarter and the ruin bars, we were again lucky to stumble across a flea market, which was a delight.

We begrudgingy dragged outselves back to the airport for our early evening flight back home.

Well thats it, I hope the above gives you an idea of what this wonderful city has to offer you. Its a destination that I am most certianly likely to revisit.

I have a selection of the images for sale on the website, or the Etsy store. Either are available in our new professionally sourced framing service.

Better still, if you have interest in any other images, please do not hesitate to contact me with your enquiry: hello@frommylemsphoto.com.

Until next time, keep snapping