In addition, the total number of such tourists within the five-year period from 2011 to 2016 remained relatively constant, increasing by approximately 1% every year. Even though the volume of cruise tourists remains nearly the same each year, researchers nevertheless report that these visitors contribute a considerable and continuously growing amount to the economy of Catalonia. Moreover, the data shows that the cruise passengers supply more funds to Barcelona’s budget than average tourists visiting the city on vacation.
The number of cruise tourists who chose Barcelona as their departure or destination point grew by 28% within the period from 2014-2016. Overall, North American tourists are considered the most generous (as they contribute 18% of the general revenues from tourism), while the visitors from this geographical region constitute just 8% of the general population of tourists to Barcelona.
According to the researchers, the profits from tourism foremost positively impact the economic development of Barcelona as a city (73%). In particular, the Ciutat Vella and Eixample districts benefit, as 14-19% of the jobs in these areas are generated by cruise tourism.
Recently, the CLIA launched the EscalaBCN Internet platform, which enables visitors to the site to track the direct impact of the cruise sector on the city economy as well as to browse through the current cruise offers.