Barcelona is planning to modernise its cruise ship infrastructure. As part of this project, three existing structures will be demolished to make way for a new, larger terminal with the capacity to host up to 7,000 passengers per day.

While in Italy, the city of Genoa will face opposition from shipowners (represented by the trade association Assarmatori) and the local Port Authority, who have challenged the introduction of a 3-euro surcharge for each embarked passenger before the Liguria Regional Administrative Court (TAR). Meanwhile, Barcelona is moving toward doubling the tourist tax levied on cruise passengers disembarking in the city.

The tax would go up a little bit each year until 2029.

The newspaper El País says that the mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, has said that the tax will go up from 4 to 8 euros a person in the next few months. This is what some people who work in the city hall of Barcelona had said would happen. They said the tax would go up a little bit each year until 2029.

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A broader effort to combat mass tourism.

"We will increase it from four to eight euros in the coming months, not over the course of four years as we had agreed," Collboni said. 'I want to discourage the arrival of cruise passengers,' the mayor added, emphasising that the fee is charged per person per day. The mayor did not provide further details on the proposal, which is part of a broader effort to combat mass tourism.

The Catalan capital is their home port.

The Spanish newspaper El País reported that the new measure is specifically aimed at reducing the number of one-day transit stops of cruise visitors in Barcelona. The city administration aims to eliminate transit cruise ship calls as much as possible, instead favouring those companies that choose to make the Catalan capital their home port.

Plans to reduce the number of cruise terminals

Last year, Barcelona made an announcement about its plans to reduce the number of cruise terminals in its port. This is because it wants to put a limit on the growth of its current dockside capacity of seven cruise terminals, including private ones built by the local port authority in partnership with several cruise lines. The MSC Barcelona Terminal, which was opened in early 2025, was the last brand to inaugurate its own berth in the port.

Reducing the number of cruise terminals,

As well as reducing the number of cruise terminals, Barcelona is planning to modernise its cruise ship infrastructure. This will involve demolishing three structures to make way for a new, larger terminal capable of hosting up to 7,000 passengers per day.

Source : Italy Media

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