BARCELONA – Like Palma (Mallorca), the municipality of Barcelona is now also planning to limit the number of cruise ships docking in the city’s port.
To this end, the city council of the Catalan capital is proposing to the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Spanish government in Madrid to limit the number of cruise ships that can access the city’s port.
The decision follows the large influx of large tourist boats that are not sustainable for the environment. And that, furthermore, saturate the already busy and touristic centre of the city.
Limit daily cruise ships
Mallorca has agreed with shipping lines to limit daily cruises to three. “Cruise ships cause pollution and the model of unlimited cruises that has existed until now is not tenable. Therefore, it must also be regulated,” said Ada Colau, mayor of Barcelona, in statements collected by the newspaper La Razón.
According to Colau, 125 cruise ships have docked in the port of Barcelona so far in May. In addition, a very strong peak season is expected for the rest of 2022. Especially compared to the past two years, when the number of tourists was limited due to the corona pandemic. And, furthermore, the additional measures that limited mobility both nationally and internationally.
See also: Costa Brava faces the best cruise season in its history
The council’s announcement comes after it became known that Royal Caribbean, one of the five largest cruise companies in the world, is to build a large self-managed cruise terminal in the port of Barcelona. The port is already home to bases for other cruise giants such as Carnival Corporation and MSC Cruises.
See also: Fuss in Spain over large poison cloud from mega cruise Wonder of the Seas
