Catalonia Indep. Referendum effect on Barcelona tourism?

We would be very grateful for any first hand comments on the tourist climate, traveling and boots on the ground in Barcelona if you visit there in October, 2017. Reading that Spain National holiday is on Oct. 12th they expect more protests and perhaps transportation strikes. Did you have a work around? Or everything normal? We plan on train from Madrid to Barcelona @ 26th for cruise on 29th. Please no for or against political commentary, I am traveling with 3 elderly - 2 are mobility restricted. Several trips to Europe, first time to Spain. Thank you.

Firstly I would like to make clear this is not a strike... this is a soft revolution -with all it entails. Let's use the proper words so everyone understands what's going on.

The situation right now is very fluid and rapidly changing. Peaceful protests and demonstrations of citizens against the barbaric acts perpetrated by the Spanish police during the day of the referendum last Sunday continue. Today (Oct 3rd) a "general stoppage" (not a strike) in all cities and towns in Catalonia has been declared: shops and businesses (inc. of course tourist attractions) are closed and many of the major roads and motorways in Catalonia are blocked. There's no violence whatsoever among the citizens in the large concentrations in the centre of the cities. You can see some of the concentrations and roadblocks here: http://www.elnacional.cat/ca/en-directe/actualitat-031017_1827_126.html

Needless to say that, from the side of the citizens, there's no danger whatsoever for anyone visiting... if anything you might find your plans need to be altered if transportation is reduced or if businesses decide to close in further protests in the days to come. HOWEVER, if the Spanish paramilitary police shipped into the region is again deployed in the streets, one needs to be aware of their indiscriminate violence, as seen last Sunday in dozens of videos that made headlines around the world: http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-41463955/catalonia-referendum-violence-as-police-block-voting These troops were to leave sometime next week but today the Spanish government announced their stay in Catalonia will be extended.

This general stoppage is convoked just for today (Oct 3rd), as a protest, but depending on how the political situation evolves these next days and weeks and the aggressiveness on the Spanish response against the Catalan government, institutions and the citizens, the situation can easily escalate. There's not much more I can add right now.

I will add that there are thousands of tourists in Catalonia, especially in Barcelona, right now and more continue to come. There's an average of three large cruisers and several ferries arriving into the city every day bringing visitors plus many other arriving thru the airports and the border with France. This is a display on how "difficult" the tourist climate is right now.

EnricM, thank you for the detailed update. Getting good, solid, factual information on the situation here in the US is difficult. I understand everything is fluid and changes moment to moment, but I do have a couple of questions. Is transportation from the airport to hotels in the city available? Are hotels open? I assume restaurants and other shops are closed, correct?

We don't arrive for a week but just trying to understand the what is happening now.

EnricM, thank you for the detailed update. Getting good, solid, factual information on the situation here in the US is difficult. I understand everything is fluid and changes moment to moment, but I do have a couple of questions. Is transportation from the airport to hotels in the city available? Are hotels open? I assume restaurants and other shops are closed, correct?

 

We don't arrive for a week but just trying to understand the what is happening now.

Agree. We have to know what we are facing when we come to Barcelona or should we stay away? If we can not get from the airport to the hotels or to the ships it will be a very big mess and not worth the bother. Just hope this clears up soon as it is terrible for the locals also. Good luck to all of us. :(

Hotels are open, of course (why wouldn't they? where would visitors sleep tonite otherwise?)

Today everything is closed and mobility (train,roads...) is difficult, if not impossible, especially in all major cities. Tomorrow businesses will open back, but this is not to be seen as "a return to normal" -there's little normality in the current situation.

If you arrive next week... ask again then since today is impossible to forecast how the situation will evolve.

Hotels are open, of course (why wouldn't they? where would visitors sleep tonite otherwise?)

 

Today everything is closed and mobility (train,roads...) is difficult, if not impossible, especially in all major cities. Tomorrow businesses will open back, but this is not to be seen as "a return to normal" -there's little normality in the current situation.

 

If you arrive next week... ask again then since today is impossible to forecast how the situation will evolve.

Please keep us up to date as you have been doing so good at in the past few months. Would love to see things get back to normal as Barcelona is one of our favorate cities in the world and we want to keep visiting as much as we can. Thanks again for all the good info. and do believe things will work out. Need to.

I'm a bit confused about the work stoppage in Barcelona. While I see much reference to a one day action, I note that Renfe's advisory refers to strike-related service reductions through October 13--obviously much longer than one day. I've also seen multiple reports that the airport functioned normally on Tuesday with plenty of taxis; other reports indicated taxis were on strike. The port was reportedly shut down, but a Costa cruise ship seems to have left on schedule. Perhaps EricM could offer his perspective.

Hotels are open, of course (why wouldn't they? where would visitors sleep tonite otherwise?)

 

Today everything is closed and mobility (train,roads...) is difficult, if not impossible, especially in all major cities. Tomorrow businesses will open back, but this is not to be seen as "a return to normal" -there's little normality in the current situation.

 

If you arrive next week... ask again then since today is impossible to forecast how the situation will evolve.

Hi EnricM. What happened after yesterday's demonstrations? Are businesses open today? We arrive on Sunday Oct 8 for a cruise and will be doing a post cruise stay in Barcelona on Oct 15-17. Do you foresee any transportation difficulties getting to the port on the 7th? Do you expect businesses to be open the following week? Thank you for any reassurance you can give a nervous traveler!

Just a quick line, today don't hv much time: calm down, BUSINESS AS USUAL, no problems whatsoever.

...at least until next week, when the Catalan Parliament is supposed to have a session to explain the results of the referendum and, since YES was the majority, declare independence.

Following. We arrive Oct. 26 for an Oct. 29 cruise and will be staying a couple days post-cruise as well. We are getting a little bit worried as well. Thanks!

Just a quick line, today don't hv much time: calm down, BUSINESS AS USUAL, no problems whatsoever.

 

...at least until next week, when the Catalan Parliament is supposed to have a session to explain the results of the referendum and, since YES was the majority, declare independence.

Thank you so much EnricM for keeping us all up to date. I truly appreciate it.

I’m going to follow this as well. I just want to know if I’m going to need alternate transportation from the airport. I still have about 3 weeks so I have time to move stuff around I think. Thank you!!

Just a quick line, today don't hv much time: calm down, BUSINESS AS USUAL, no problems whatsoever.

 

...at least until next week, when the Catalan Parliament is supposed to have a session to explain the results of the referendum and, since YES was the majority, declare independence.

Thank you for keeping us up to date as well as it is possible. We appreciate the insights from the local perspective. have a great day!

We are ticketed on Oceania Riviera is scheduled to sail from Barcelona port on Oct. 25 at 11:00pm. It comes in that morning to disembark the previous cruise's passengers. There is one other ship scheduled for Oct. 25, Corinthian. Has the port ever been completely closed to cruise ships ever before or is this likely to happen?

If no one is working that day because of another "industrial action" what would happen with cruise ships? Will dock workers cross the lines and show up for work anyway? I just don't see the cruise line flat out cancelling the cruise but I do see them leaving with a half empty ship if people cannot make it to the ship on time. The next port to try get to if we miss the ship in Barcelona is Marseilles 2 days later.

It may be too soon to know if Oceania is making alternate arrangements as there has been no communication from them on this matter. DH and I will already be in Barcelona (hopefully) arriving Oct. 23 two days before the scheduled sailing assuming work stoppages don't extend to the airport. We would have 2 days to make our way from the airport to the cruise port.

Is it likely taxi drivers or people with cars would be helping get people around and make some money at the same time? Or are all the main roads being blocked preventing cars from getting by on these "industrial action " days?

I appreciate EnricM sharing insights on the evolving situation and with our cruise embarking in Barcelona in a couple of weeks the situation is being discussed on our CC roll call.

Here are links to two articles about affects on cruise ships including some cruise lines that are making backup plans to go to Valencia instead of Barcelona. Hopefully implementing those plans will not be necessary but cruise lines need to be proactive in case the situation gets worse.

http://www.express.co.uk/travel/cruise/862384/cruise-ship-cruises-barcelona-news-catalonia-travel

http://www.seatrade-cruise.com/news/news-headlines/cruise-business-as-usual-at-port-of-barcelona.html

The top Spanish court has suspended Catalonia's parliamentary session on independence acting on a petition from a political party opposed to unilateral independence from Spain. Catalan leaders must now decide if they will move forward with their meeting scheduled for Monday to present the results from Sunday's referendum and declare independence.

Either the Monday meeting will be postponed based on this ruling, or the session will be held and presumably independence will be declared. If independence is declared, it does not appear the Spanish government is in the mood for negotiation and they could invoke a provision in the constitution that allows the government to essentially seize control of Catalonia. At which point, I assume all hell breaks loose between the two sides.

Right now it appears a game of brinkmanship between the two sides. The EU, which could mediate this dispute, does not appear interested in getting directly involved at this point. However, that might change if all hell really does break loose.

I've been reading about the dispute extensively as we have a departure on MSC on 10/27 out of Barcelona. The above is just a summary of my research, and is not an endorsement of either sides position. Barcelona is one of my favorite cities in Europe, and I hope whatever happens violence and destruction be either party can be averted. I suspect by the middle of next week, we should have a pretty good indication of where this is headed.

Thanks for the information & I've been reading numerous news sources and the BBC website appears to be as objective as possible.

There are always two sides to any situation & appreciate the tone of this discussion. When this situation was discussed on the Princess forum it began with childish name-calling but eventually evolved into a respectful exchange of information...just like this discussion.

Our thoughts & prayers are for a peaceful solution for all Catalonians dealing with this situation.

Interested in this info as we are arriving in Barcelona on the 16th and taking our cruise from Barcelona on The 21st.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Thanks @mistertoaster, your general assesstment is indeed accurate.

However, and I can't stop stressing this, I need to make VERY clear that there has been NO violence whatsoever by neither the pro-indy nor even the anti-indy here in Catalonia. The only brutal use of violence has been pursued by the Spanish state thru their 'stormtroopers'. And the constant thread of "stopping this at any cost" is coming from the Spanish government not us in Catalonia, neither our Government not us regular citizens. Today for example, the Spanish Minister of Defense has, once again, publicly threatened on TV to use "any means" to stop any declaration of independence: Minister of Defense, "any means"... we're all grown ups to read between the lines of this unacceptable bravado, right?

Catalans haven't used any violence in any of the massive demonstrations held these past years, some of which have been the BIGGEST in Europe since the celebrations of V Day in 1945. This is not to say there hasn't been the odd scuffle, mostly by small anti-indy fascist groups, but not by regular people, again, not even the anti-indy. This means that, if there are no demonstrations or stoppages (*), the life in the cities and towns continue and everything is open and everything is working and there's no danger whatsoever. And, even if it's not politically correct, let me say it: for God's sake, Catalonia is a not a banana republic but a civilised society! Anyone that has visited can confirm this.

This, of course, might change if the Spanish government decides to use force again, but once more, the images of violence will be on their police's actions, we Catalans are not violent -and frankly, even if we wanted we don't have the means to counteract this brute display of force. We can however, continue a campaign of civil disobedience that can last a while, of course, and that might disrupt on and off certain services... Does this mean that a visitor should rethink his cruise trip? Well, I agree with other members here that should the city became "impractical" -again, not because of violence and mayhem, that won't happen, but because of general stoppages- cruises would have alternative plans.

As per REPUTABLE sources explaining what's really going on the ground, while I do respect BBC, AFP, WaPo or Le Monde among other, I would suggest to interact with sources closest to the action: http://www.elnacional.cat/en/ and https://english.vilaweb.cat/ (both offer an English version). Let's be clear, these are pro-indy, so their analysis and opinion can obviously be a tad "biased", but their staff is very professionally reporting facts as they happen. Same goes with these other two media, in this case, anti-indy: http://www.lavanguardia.com/ and http://www.publico.es/ (but they don't offer an English version, you'll have to use Google Translate)

>>>>

I am focusing my efforts elsewhere during these days of uncertainty in my small nation, so I apologize if I'm not visiting this site as often as I would like. Actually, I'm working on a project to set up a micro-blog to specifically provide a centralized point of info on the situation, especially aimed to visitors. When it's up an running I'll drop a line here with the address -hoping the CC Webmaster won't be too upset! But events are moving so fast that I hope it'll be on time to launch it before a definitive "ending" of this situation! :)

Enric

(*) Please, let's use the proper wording.... "stoppage": companies AND workers stop the activity for a common cause, "strike": workers stop working for a demand to a company. There are also other consequencies to take into account: in an stoppage there's no chance of violence because everybody -workers, shops and companies- is rallying behind the same cause.

Thanks @mistertoaster, your general assesstment is indeed accurate.

 

However, and I can't stop stressing this, I need to make VERY clear that there has been NO violence whatsoever by neither the pro-indy nor even the anti-indy here in Catalonia. The only brutal use of violence has been pursued by the Spanish state thru their 'stormtroopers'. And the constant thread of "stopping this at any cost" is coming from the Spanish government not us in Catalonia, neither our Government not us regular citizens. Today for example, the Spanish Minister of Defense has, once again, publicly threatened on TV to use "any means" to stop any declaration of independence: Minister of Defense, "any means"... we're all grown ups to read between the lines of this unacceptable bravado, right?

 

Catalans haven't used any violence in any of the massive demonstrations held these past years, some of which have been the BIGGEST in Europe since the celebrations of V Day in 1945. This is not to say there hasn't been the odd scuffle, mostly by small anti-indy fascist groups, but not by regular people, again, not even the anti-indy. This means that, if there are no demonstrations or stoppages (*), the life in the cities and towns continue and everything is open and everything is working and there's no danger whatsoever. And, even if it's not politically correct, let me say it: for God's sake, Catalonia is a not a banana republic but a civilised society! Anyone that has visited can confirm this.

 

This, of course, might change if the Spanish government decides to use force again, but once more, the images of violence will be on their police's actions, we Catalans are not violent -and frankly, even if we wanted we don't have the means to counteract this brute display of force. We can however, continue a campaign of civil disobedience that can last a while, of course, and that might disrupt on and off certain services... Does this mean that a visitor should rethink his cruise trip? Well, I agree with other members here that should the city became "impractical" -again, not because of violence and mayhem, that won't happen, but because of general stoppages- cruises would have alternative plans.

 

As per REPUTABLE sources explaining what's really going on the ground, while I do respect BBC, AFP, WaPo or Le Monde among other, I would suggest to interact with sources closest to the action: http://www.elnacional.cat/en/ and https://english.vilaweb.cat/ (both offer an English version). Let's be clear, these are pro-indy, so their analysis and opinion can obviously be a tad "biased", but their staff is very professionally reporting facts as they happen. Same goes with these other two media, in this case, anti-indy: http://www.lavanguardia.com/ and http://www.publico.es/ (but they don't offer an English version, you'll have to use Google Translate)

 

>>>>

 

I am focusing my efforts elsewhere during these days of uncertainty in my small nation, so I apologize if I'm not visiting this site as often as I would like. Actually, I'm working on a project to set up a micro-blog to specifically provide a centralized point of info on the situation, especially aimed to visitors. When it's up an running I'll drop a line here with the address -hoping the CC Webmaster won't be too upset! But events are moving so fast that I hope it'll be on time to launch it before a definitive "ending" of this situation! :)

 

Enric

 

(*) Please, let's use the proper wording.... "stoppage": companies AND workers stop the activity for a common cause, "strike": workers stop working for a demand to a company. There are also other consequencies to take into account: in an stoppage there's no chance of violence because everybody -workers, shops and companies- is rallying behind the same cause.

Wow, what a great report. I will need to re read it to fully understand it all but I thank you for all the good work you are doing for us. Please keep the news coming to us. :):):)

 

However, and I can't stop stressing this, I need to make VERY clear that there has been NO violence whatsoever by neither the pro-indy nor even the anti-indy here in Catalonia. The only brutal use of violence has been pursued by the Spanish state thru their 'stormtroopers'. And the constant thread of "stopping this at any cost" is coming from the Spanish government not us in Catalonia, neither our Government, not us regular citizens. Today, for example, the Spanish Minister of Defense has, once again, publicly threatened on TV to use "any means" to stop any declaration of independence: Minister of Defense, "any means"... we're all grown ups to read between the lines of this unacceptable bravado, right?

 

Catalans haven't used any violence in any of the massive demonstrations held these past years, some of which have been the BIGGEST in Europe since the celebrations of V Day in 1945. This is not to say there hasn't been the odd scuffle, mostly by small anti-indy fascist groups, but not by regular people, again, not even the anti-indy. This means that, if there are no demonstrations or stoppages (*), the life in the cities and towns continue and everything is open and everything is working and there's no danger whatsoever. And, even if it's not politically correct, let me say it: for God's sake, Catalonia is a not a banana republic but a civilized society! Anyone that has visited can confirm this.

 

This, of course, might change if the Spanish government decides to use force again, but once more, the images of violence will be on their police's actions, we Catalans are not violent -and frankly, even if we wanted we don't have the means to counteract this brute display of force. We can, however, continue a campaign of civil disobedience that can last a while, of course, and that might disrupt on and off certain services... Does this mean that a visitor should rethink his cruise trip? Well, I agree with other members here that should the city became "impractical" -again, not because of violence and mayhem, that won't happen, but because of general stoppages- cruises would have alternative plans.

 

As per REPUTABLE sources explaining what's really going on the ground, while I do respect BBC, AFP, WaPo or Le Monde among other, I would suggest interacting with sources closest to the action: http://www.elnacional.cat/en/ and https://english.vilaweb.cat/ (both offer an English version). Let's be clear, these are pro-indy, so their analysis and opinion can obviously be a tad "biased", but their staff is very professionally reporting facts as they happen. Same goes with these other two media, in this case, anti-indy: http://www.lavanguardia.com/ and http://www.publico.es/ (but they don't offer an English version, you'll have to use Google Translate)

 

>>>>

 

I am focusing my efforts elsewhere during these days of uncertainty in my small nation, so I apologize if I'm not visiting this site as often as I would like. Actually, I'm working on a project to set up a micro-blog to specifically provide a centralized point of info on the situation, especially aimed to visitors. When it's up an running I'll drop a line here with the address -hoping the CC Webmaster won't be too upset! But events are moving so fast that I hope it'll be on time to launch it before a definitive "ending" of this situation! :)

 

Enric

 

(*) Please, let's use the proper wording.... "stoppage": companies AND workers stop the activity for a common cause, "strike": workers stop working for a demand to a company. There are also other consequences to take into account: in a stoppage, there's no chance of violence because everybody -workers, shops, and companies- is rallying behind the same cause.

Thanks a lot for your report, even thinking of dividing a country sounds stupid to me :eek:

You can try El Pais for another viewpoint...largely anti independence. They have an English version...

Between El Pais, the Guardian, and El Nacionale.cat, you'll gain sufficient perspective on what's going on with respect to the independence movement...all in English.

https://elpais.com/elpais/inenglish.html

Can anyone foresee an event that would cause the entire port of Barcelona to completely shut down and prevent a cruise from leaving? I am scheduled to sail on Oceania Riviera on Oct. 25 at 11:00pm. The ship will be arriving early that morning to let off the previous cruise pax. if there are more industrial actions will cruises still operate? Did cruises come and go on the October 3 work stoppage day? I am not as concerned with violence as I am with no workers showing up to do their jobs turning around a cruise ship. This would look very very bad for Barcelona if this were to happen. Thousands of visitors would be impacted by this kind of protest action.

This kind of action happened this past August at the Barcelona airport. Workers did not show up and thousands and thousands of travelers were stranded for days.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/842053/Barcelona-airport-strike-2017-Spain-el-prat-majorca-palma-travel-chaos-holiday

Can anyone foresee an event that would cause the entire port of Barcelona to completely shut down and prevent a cruise from leaving? I am scheduled to sail on Oceania Riviera on Oct. 25 at 11:00pm. The ship will be arriving early that morning to let off the previous cruise pax. if there are more industrial actions will cruises still operate? Did cruises come and go on the October 3 work stoppage day? I am not as concerned with violence as I am with no workers showing up to do their jobs turning around a cruise ship. This would look very very bad for Barcelona if this were to happen. Thousands of visitors would be impacted by this kind of protest action.

 

This kind of action happened this past August at the Barcelona airport. Workers did not show up and thousands and thousands of travelers were stranded for days.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/842053/Barcelona-airport-strike-2017-Spain-el-prat-majorca-palma-travel-chaos-holiday

My travel agent said that Seatrade is the cruise industry's Bible and you can read that things went rather smoothly on the referendum day & on other days.

Cruise ship operations at the Port of Barcelona are continuing as usual confirmed the Port Authority and several customers today, despite yesterday’s protests in the city and general strike following the disputed referendum on Catalonian independence which took place on Sunday.

On Sunday, four out of the five cruise ships scheduled to call in Barcelona did. Only TUI Cruises’ Mein Schiff 3 decided to turn bow and head for Valencia. Royal Caribbean International’s Freedom of the Seas undertook a full turnaround without any issues and the company reports Brilliance of the Seas called as normal today.

‘Freedom is expected to call again Thursday for a full turnaround and we expect no issues impacting our operations,’ remarked Alessandro Carollo, head of port operations, EMEA, Royal Caribbean.

Michel Nestour, vp EuroMed at Carnival Corp & plc also confirmed to Seatrade Cruise News scheduled calls by Costa Diadema (Monday), Costa Pacifica (Tuesday) and Costa Mediterranea (today) all went ahead, 'as planned and as usual'.

MSC Cruises also confirmed a ‘business as usual’ scenario for its regular operations for MSC Fantasia (which called Sunday), MSC Orchestra today and MSC Meraviglia and Magnifica, both scheduled to visit on Friday.

TUI Cruises took the decision to also drop Mein Schiff 5’s scheduled overnight in Barcelona last Monday/Tuesday and go to Valencia instead. A spokesman said the line was concerned what impact the strike might have on the passenger experience ashore. Mein Schiff 3 and 5 are due to call in Barcelona again next week and the line said it is monitoring the situation daily and will make a decision nearer the time whether to call as planned or divert.

http://www.seatrade-cruise.com/news/news-headlines/cruise-business-as-usual-at-port-of-barcelona.html

That's encouraging to me that there's been normal activity & we arrive on 10/19 at BCN and board the Royal Princess on 10/21.

I've read that many Spanish security forces are berthed on rented cruise ships docked in the harbor. Hopefully crowds won't block harbor entrances which could also affect cruise ships activities.

Thanks for this informative thread, EnricM. My mother will be in Barcelona on October 13 so I will follow this thread. I hope the situation improves for the local people and their visitors.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk