Tourismophobia or touristification? An analysis of the impacts of tourism in Poblenou, Barcelona

Abstract

Barcelona has been investing strategically in its infrastructures and in a new image to attract investments and tourists, especially from the Olympic project. The transformation impacts in favour of tourism, real estate and entertainment businesses have sparked a recent debate about tourismophobia and touristification. Taking this into account, this article aims to discuss the main impacts of tourism gentrification in Poblenou, Barcelona. This research analyses real estate valuation, the evolution of services in tourism and their conflicts in Poblenou considering a mixture of quantitative and qualitative data collected by bibliographic and documentary sources, spot observations and interviews conducted with the population involved. Despite the complexity that this topic involves, this analysis of tourism impacts in Poblenou contributes by bringing more clarity to this controversial discussion about tourismophobia and touristification. It is important to understand that, despite the positive impacts for the economy in terms of generating income and jobs, there are negative impacts, such as the increase in the cost of living, residents´ decrease in quality of life and the exodus of part of its population.