Residents of Cadiz, a city in southern Spain, are increasingly angry at the number of passengers on the cruise arriving at the port. The city has become the main port of call for cruise ships, with over 300 docking events taking place last year.
Approximately 700,000 passengers dropped into the city in 2024, with traffic volumes estimated to have increased by 2% compared to 2023, and experts are forecasting another bumper cruise season this year as demand continues to increase. Already, cruise passengers have arrived thousands to sample the joys of the southern city.
The Queen Victoria ship in Canard arrived on May 1st, with over 1,900 passengers on board.
There was a considerable kickback from local residents, where the number of tourists on the cruise ship continues to grow.
Farrent protests broke out last August after more than 13,000 cruise passengers arrived at the port that month.
At one demonstration, the group Cadiz Resistance led a march of 2,000 locals through a bustling port city.
The group claimed that tourists are “stolen our cities, neighborhoods and businesses and are very likely to live in Cadiz.”
Recent research has questioned whether cruise ships will bring money to the local economy.
One study conducted by Junta de Andalucía showed that the average daily spending per cruise passenger in the region is around 40 euros (34 pounds).
Several Spanish ports have begun to introduce measures to try to alleviate fears about tourism.
Such measures include charging tourism fees, limiting the number of ships that can be docked at a time, or being completely prohibited.
Europe's largest cruise port Barcelona stopped cruise ships from arriving at the northern terminal in the city centre in October 2023.
Mallorca also set limits for only three cruise ships entering Parma Port every day. However, the agreement between the Balearic government and the cruise company ended this year.
