A British woman living in Barcelona has shared a video of the city’s streets looking eerily quiet after months of protests against overtourism in Spain, leaving people to ditch the country
People are shocked at the state of Barcelona after the anti-tourism protests (Stock image)(Image: Alexander Spatari via Getty Images)
Since April 2024, locals in Spain have been protesting the growing problem of overtourism in the country – particularly in mainland cities like Barcelona and Malaga, as well as some of the more popular islands like the Canaries and Majorca.
The demonstrations resumed in 2025 as the holiday season commenced, with Spanish locals arguing their communities are being destroyed by spiralling rental costs, disappearing accommodation, and the constant expansion of short-term rentals. This lead to several demonstrations in major tourist hotspots, such as Alicante and Barcelona. Some locals were also spotted shouting at tourists and even spraying them with water guns.
This has resulted in fewer tourists travelling to Spain – however, people have begun filming the deserted streets of once-thriving cities and holiday areas, including central Barcelona.
British resident Laura, who has lived in Spain for two and a half years, posted footage of the abandoned city on social media.
“Day one of recording how quiet Barcelona is now the tourists don’t feel welcome. The businesses must be feeling it,” she captioned her TikTok video.
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Laura said the area is El Born in central Barcelona, explaining that the video in question had been filmed at 2pm on Wednesday, 13 August.
The area is often described to be one of the more ‘trendy’ areas of the large city. It is home to narrow medieval streets offering designer boutiques, the famous Picasso museum and cafes by day.
It then turns into a fun place for cocktail bars and samba dancing at night, which made the area popular at all hours of the day.
However, it appears to be considerably quieter than normal following all the demonstrations. Laura proceeded to film the deserted street below, which seemed to house various shops, cafés, and eateries.
Just ten people were seen strolling along the broad shopping street. Additionally, restaurant tables remained largely unoccupied despite the footage being captured during the lunch period.
Laura continued sharing clips throughout the day, including at 5pm and 9pm, when the roads are typically teeming with residents and visitors.
She went on to write in the caption of the video: “The streets are so quiet now. These businesses last year used to wake me up in the morning. One has just recently been renovated.”
People are seen spraying tourists and buildings with water guns and pistols during a demonstration in Barcelona(Image: SOPA Images, SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Numerous viewers swiftly flocked to the comments section to voice their opinions on the situation. Whilst some expressed genuine concern about the footage, others dismissed it as insignificant.
“Girl, it’s quiet because it’s 2pm,” one person wrote. To this, Laura responded: “Thats even worse if they are not in work and also not supporting there local businesses what the locals were filling up so much. This city doesn’t stop. They will work all day and alternate shifts.”
Another commenter observed: “The way their economy is gonna crash all because of hatred.”
Someone else replied: “The way they will be able to afford their own city again after that happens.”
A third person said: “To be honest, Barcelona residents have a right to be mad and I understand their frustration, but it’s focused at the wrong people. Airbnb and the government are the culprits. Tourism is important in every economy, there just has to be regulation on the capitalists who exploit it for profit at the cost of the local population.”
Meanwhile, another added: “I wont go to Spain until I feel I will be welcome. The protests really put me off.”