The Observatory of Tourism in Barcelona updates the Destination Barcelona tourism forecast report as of 16/07/2021. This report highlights the effects of Covid-19 on the tourism sector.

Covid-19 situation

Covid-19 preventive measures continue despite the increasing number of worldwide vaccinations.

In Catalonia, from the 15/07 to the 23/07, the following measures affect the tourism sector:

• Restaurants and bars: 50% of capacity on the inside and 100% on the outside of the establishments. Opening time: until 12.30 am.
• Commerce: 70% of capacity on shops without surface limit
• Professional events: allowed at 70% of their capacity
• Culture: 70% of capacity in museums, exhibition centers, cinemas and concert halls until 23 h. Opening time: until 12.30 am.
• Nightlife: closed except totally outdoor venues. Opening time: until 12.30 am.
• Sports: public is not allowed in international or national professional football or basketball competitions
• Amusement parks: 50% of capacity
• Night curfew: from 1 am to 6 am in the municipalities with the highest epidemiological risk

Source markets

The EU Digital COVID certificate is operational. In Spain, the entrance of passengers from EU countries (or zones) with risk is allowed if one of the following is presented:

1. Vaccination certificate

2. Diagnosis certificate

3. Recovery certificate

The rest of EU passengers are accepted without any certificate. However, this week the EU has advised not to travel to Catalonia due to extreme risk of Covid-19.

On the other hand, passengers traveling from intercontinental countries are also accepted as long as they present the vaccination certificate. 

Noteworthy is that from the 02/07 passengers coming from the UK have to show a vaccination or a diagnosis certificate. Meanwhile, the USA and Canada are on the list of intercontinental countries from which no certificates are required.

The entry measures for passengers coming from India, South Africa and Brazil are maintained. 

Transportation offer

The global airlines capacity during 12/07 week has decreased by -32.9%, and in Spain, by -33.4% (var. 21/19). However, Spain has experienced a week-on-week growth of +5.0%, which means that more than 100,000 new seats in a single week have been added.

The forecasts show an important recovery in the number of seats operated worldwide over the summer weeks, although it must be reminded that airlines continue to readjust their flight schedules week after week.

During the next week, 5 cruise ships will leave or make an stopover at the Port of Barcelona.

Tourist offer and professional events

In Barcelona city, 202 hotels with 44,275 beds remain open. The Eixample, the Gothic Quarter, and Sant Martí are the districts with more available offer.

Beasides, 88.6% of the cultural facilities in Barcelona city are open, while more restrictive measures for the development of cultural, popular, and sports activities are being added: Only events with seated assistants are allowed. 

As for the professional events, it must be highlighted that there are 110 confirmed congresses for the upcoming years, 32 in 2021. Meanwhile, about 90 applications are open until 2027.

Tourist demand

Over the last week, Google searches from Spain for both Barcelona city and Destination Barcelona have decreased. Most of the searches for both geographical areas keep coming from Catalonia.

The Barcelona flights and accommodation searches achieve their best positioning on the French, the Spanish, the Italian and the Dutch markets, followed by Germany and the United Kingdom. Destination Barcelona has ranked, 11th in searches of accommodation and 10th in searches of flights in the ranking of international destinations worldwide.

The hotel bookings in Barcelona city over the last week (04/07-10/07) have slightly decreased: while two weeks ago, 54.1% of bookings had been made, last week, they were 51.8% compared to the series peak (January 2020). However, over the same week, the volume of hotel reservations in Barcelona region has been higher: while two weeks ago, 64.5% of bookings have been made, last week, they were 68.2% compared to the series peak (June 2020). 

In Barcelona city, the international bookings (62.4%) have been predominant once again. Meanwhile, national reservations (54.1%) keep being higher than the domestic ones in Barcelona region.

Destination Barcelona tourism forecast (16/07/2021)