SPAIN: Barcelona
World Geography of Travel and Tourism
Virtual Field Trip
Photos and text by: C. Michael Hall Photos Taken: 2004-2005
Creative Commons 3.0 Copyright by Alan A. Lew: Some Rights Reserved
Outline
Barcelona, the capital of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, is the second largest city in Spain. Located on the Mediterranean coast the city has been an important economic and transport hub since Roman times. The city is an important travel destination for leisure and business tourists and is recognised as a major centre for cultural tourism, events and conventions.
Cultural heritage
The city is recognised internationally for the architecture of the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852-1926) His most famous work is probably the Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família (usually simply called the Sagrada Família) which is a Roman Catholic church the construction of which began in 1882 and continues to the present day
Sagrada Família
The church is a major attraction in Barcelona and serves as a hub for a range of visitor activities The church receives over 2 million visitors a year It is hoped that it will be finished by 2026 for the anniversary of Gaudí’s death.
Paying for its completion
Tourism is extremely important for completion of the church because construction is not financially supported by official government or church sources. In addition to private donations money from tickets purchased by tourists for entry is used to pay for construction activities.
Catalan culture
In addition to the iconic attractions of Gaudí the city also offers a range of different activities for the tourist ranging from visits to the markets and museums to enjoying the city’s nightlife and food culture which is recognised as one of the best in southern Europe
Regenerating Barcelona
One of the most significant aspects of tourism development in Barcelona since the late 1980s has been the extensive use of events to develop new infrastructure and regenerate parts of the city as well as reinforce its attractiveness for business, conferences and tourism
Barcelona Forum
A conference and exhibition centre that opened in 2004 as part of a waterfront redevelopment in Barcelona that was designed to regenerate an otherwise rundown area of the city that had high unemployment
Facilities and infrastructure
The development of the conference facilities was tied into a specific event Barcelona Forum 2004 an international festival of multiculturalism and dialogue - that was a series of events to discuss cultural and other issues as well as cultural performances - funding from EU, provincial and national governments.
Event strategy
The use of an event as a cornerstone strategy for infrastructure development is not unusual and follows on from approach previously used with the hosting of the 1992 Olympics.
The legacy also includes surrounding hotel infrastructure and transport improvements