<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Barcelona's cruise ship port is to close two of its terminals, as part of efforts to fight the city's overtourism problem.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The closure, which will bring the number of operational terminals down to five when it takes effect next year, is part of an agreement with Barcelona's city council, announced in a statement from the council Friday.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The agreement also provides funding for a study to evaluate how cruise-ship passengers move around the city, which the council says is a first step in developing sustainable mobility plan.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/father-arrested-in-new-york-in-death-of-9yearold-daughter-he-had-reported-missing/3a5e72fd-e43b-4c24-9885-2ee1426d0aa0" target="_blank"><strong><span>Luciano said his daughter was abducted. She was dead in a pond</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In addition, the agreement will involve the modernisation of port infrastructure to make cruise operations more sustainable – for example, by allowing ships to connect to a green onshore power supply while they are docked, meaning their engines can be switched off, cutting emissions.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Overall, the plan will involve €185 million ($331.6 million) in public-private investment, according to the council statement.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It is part of wider efforts to deal with the pressures of overtourism in the city, where local opposition to mass tourism has been rising in recent years, including a now-famous protest in July 2024 in which visitors were squirted with water pistols.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/world/barcelona-closes-cruise-ship-terminals-to-cut-tourist-numbers/8f032d3a-0417-468d-86bb-da3dd21f0e19" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/four-day-work-week-improves-worker-happiness-confidence-study-finds/7695eef3-c897-4264-868a-2aab865eafa3" target="_blank"><strong><span>The eight-hour change making workers happier, healthier, better</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Barcelona's popularity among tourists has led to complaints from residents about overcrowding and a lack of affordable housing as apartments are given over to short-term holiday lets.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In 2024, the Port of Barcelona, the biggest cruise port in Europe, reported 1.6 million cruise ship passengers "in transit."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The majority come ashore when their ships dock in the morning, tour the city, and return by late afternoon to sail for their next destination, the Barcelona Tourism Consortium press office said in March.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/police-officer-dies-suddenly-on-the-beach-while-playing-with-his-kids/7251553d-762e-4b56-9ab0-2d744ddf6df0" target="_blank"><strong><span>Police officer dies suddenly on the beach while playing with his kids</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="styles__Wrapper-sc-2o34ro-0 cmwkBV"><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><a href="/content/2023/12/05/11/56/top-10-tourist-destinations-for-travellers-in-2024"><img alt="" sizes="(min-width: 1024px) 636px, (min-width: 768px) 396px, 100vw" src="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/rfRU135c3uLhIMoHL9Gl1cNSVro=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F26adacb2-af61-4e78-ab40-ab2bcb3e2769" srcset="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/rfRU135c3uLhIMoHL9Gl1cNSVro=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F26adacb2-af61-4e78-ab40-ab2bcb3e2769 396w, https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/IyR3TqwMHjZQ8AHvMbDpOvIhv0Y=/636x358/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F26adacb2-af61-4e78-ab40-ab2bcb3e2769 636w"/></a></div><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><div class="styles__Headline-sc-2o34ro-4 hpbOlz">Top 10 tourist destinations for travellers in 2024</div><div class="styles__Button-sc-2o34ro-1 eBjlmW"><a class="styles__ButtonLink-sc-2o34ro-2 hqpklJ" href="/content/2023/12/05/11/56/top-10-tourist-destinations-for-travellers-in-2024">View Gallery</a></div></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The resulting crowds, at places like La Rambla street and in the adjacent Gothic quarter, the oldest part of town, are partly to blame for the ire among Barcelona's residents.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Friday's agreement is the latest in a series of efforts to reduce the impact of cruise tourism.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In October 2023, Barcelona closed its northern port terminal to cruise traffic, after an agreement with the local authorities to move ships further out of town.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/rain-to-soak-australia-this-week/d44e39b5-19ea-4e01-a534-840689b84018" target="_blank"><strong><span>Cold fronts to bring Australia-wide soaking this week</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>That move followed a 2018 agreement between the port authorities and the city council to "move cruise activity away from urban areas… making them more sustainable," the port authorities said in a statement at the time.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Also as a result of the 2018 agreement, the port closed another cruise terminal, the Maremagnum, and the area is now home to restaurants, bars, a sailing club and marina, an aquarium and a shopping mall.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a 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