The end of Airbnb in Barcelona: What does the tourism industry think of the apartment ban?

Last year the province of Barcelona, home to 5.5 million, received 26 million tourists. The direct economic impact was €12.75 billion.

But for residents, the economic gains are not worth the negative impacts on their lives. With private landlords buying up apartments to rent them out to tourists, it is very difficult for locals to find places to live. Demand, of course, pushes up prices for the housing that is available.

The impact of recent protests against overtourism in the city, as well as the city mayor's announcement he will eliminatethe city's 10,000 tourist flats by 2028, have not been well received by the tourism sector.

"Rental prices have risen significantly in the last 10 years, and I believe the administration is trying to cover its shortcomings by using existing apartments for other purposes.

But this is neither going to fix the problem nor is it the solution," says Bonaventura Durall, managing director at Durlet Apartments, a holiday apartment company in the city.

According to the Barcelona Association of Tourist Apartments (APARTUR), tourist apartments account for only 0.77 per cent of the city's housing.

They warn that restricting licences could increase the number of illegal apartments and potentially cause 40 per cent of the city's tourism to disappear.

"Sure, it would have an impact. But I think it would not only affect the hospitality industry, it would have repercussions in all services.

Now in summer, everyone knows that in Barcelona, the local clientele disappears due to the heat and people going away from the city. Tourists basically make up 50% of our clientele," Marc, a restaurant manager, tells Euronews Travel.

Pablo, from Belgium, who is visiting the city with his family, agrees with Marc: "I can