5-star hotels in Barcelona increased by 50% in the last decade

The number of beds from 5-star and luxury hotels on offer in Barcelona have increased more than 50% in the last decade, according to data from the Catalan Statistics Institute (Idescat).  

Specifically, the number of beds in these hotels on offer has increased from 8,600 in 2012 to 13,200 in 2022. 

There has been a similar rise in absolute terms when comparing the trend in hotels of a lower rank. The number of beds in four-star hotels has increased by 18% in the same period, from 26,420 to 31,286. 

The president of Barcelona's hotels guild, Jordi Clos, embraces this evolution in the offering the Catalan capital has. "This is very positive and aligns with our project of increasing the quality of the visitors we receive." 

Experts point out that this increase in high-end hotels is following a trend seen in other big Mediterranean cities, while they also indicate that there is still a "margin to grow" as the current numbers are far from the high-end hotel beds on offer in other big European cities such as London, Paris, and Rome.  

In addition, this range of hotels has a higher occupancy rate compared to other types of lodging, at around 80%, according to Francesc Rufas, a professor at EAE International Business School. 

Big events and conventions that take place in Barcelona, such as the America's Cup and the Mobile World Congress, are resulting in this boost of more high-end hotel offering, as pointed out by UOC professor in Tourism, Pablo Díaz. 

More investment in luxury hotels 

Seeing that there is still room for growth, investors are keeping an eye on high-end hotels. 

According to the real state agency CBRE, investments in this range of hotels increased to €100 million, which represents 36% of the total investment, during the first semester of the year. 

That number is higher than the 30% average invested in Spain. 

Among the biggest deals seen in 2024, the agency highlights the purchase of hotels such as Miramar and La Florida by the hotel company Atom.  

Although the hotel offering in Barcelona is regulated and limited, this increase is explained by the increasing interest in investors buying lower-rank hotels and increasing their category. That allows them to increase prices in kind.  

Impacts of “elite” tourism 

However, some organizations are questioning this process of fostering "elite" tourism in Barcelona. 

Carla Izcara, a researcher from the group Alba Sud that studies tourism from a critical point of view, states: "Although it is true that these tourists spend more time, that does not represent a re-distribution of profit." 

"Hotel workers do not get paid more because the guests pay more," she points out.  

In addition, Izcara indicates that this type of tourism has a higher use of natural resources, such as water.  

A customer in a high-end hotel uses 242 liters of water daily according to a study by the Barcelona hotels guild. This number contrasts with the 172 liters on average consumed by a Barcelona citizen, according to 2023 data provided by the Barcelona city council. 

Carla Izcara points out that Barcelona needs to "rethink” its tourism model – "there are a lot of other European cities to compete with and the market is not big enough." 

"Elite tourism in Barcelona further increases vulnerability," the Alba Sud researcher mentions.  

"The first step needs to be economic diversification and a decrease in tourism in a fair way, so that tourism workers who are already in a precarious situation do not suffer all the consequences," she concludes.  

According to recent data published by the Barcelona Tourism Observatory, the tourism industry employs 298,398 people in the area, 11.3% of the total. Half of these employees have a monthly salary of less than €1,000. 

Of these almost 300,000 workers, 40% were women who earned an average of 25% less compared to men.