Maresme's pet-friendly beaches attract more visitors

Maresme county, directly north of the Barcelona area, is getting more pet friendly as a dozen beaches are now open to dogs.

This new policy is helping to attract more visitors who want to spend their summer vacation with their canine friends.

That is the case of Martina Laignolea, a tourist from Italy who is staying at a campsite in Mataró, the capital of Maresme. She discovered the Mataró beach through a website that indicated all the pet friendly beaches: "I really like the beach, there is nothing like this in Italy," Laigonela said.

Dogs are also increasingly welcome in other spaces such as restaurants, hotels, museums, and mountain routes as long as petowners are responsible and considerate of their surroundings. 

Adrián Jurado, a Maresme resident and dog owner, says, "Having dogs on beaches is better in order to keep them clean, because us owners are always taking care that it is safe and there are no plastics or rubbish that the dogs may eat."

However, some Mataró locals argue that the beach is too small and it gets crowded easily - the city is home to more than 16,000 registered dogs.

"The Mataró beach is small, and we are a bit cornered. I think that the Sant Simó beach on the other edge could also be opened for dogs," Patrícia Beleda, a Maresme resident told Catalan News Agency (ACN).

This summer there are 37 dog-friendly beaches across Catalonia's twelve coastal counties.