The capital of Portugal is a top holiday destination, with the country itself seeing more than 18 million foreign foreign tourists in 2023, beating its 2019 pre-COVID 19 record
A local resident has claimed that Lisbon is becoming a “sad shadow” of its former self, following in the footsteps of Barcelona. Portugal’s capital city, a popular holiday destination, welcomed over 18 million foreign tourists in 2023, surpassing its pre-COVID 19 record from 2019.
Barcelona, Spain’s second largest city, saw 12 million visitors last year, leading to tensions with locals and sparking debates about overtourism. On Reddit, one user described Barcelona as an amusement park for tourists, while another claimed Lisbon was suffering a similar fate.
Reddit user PortugueseRoamer wrote: “As a Lisbon native, Lisbon is quickly following [in] the [foot]steps of Barcelona.
“It has lost character and it is a sad shadow of what it used to be as locals are kicked out and the culture is watered down to a theme park and with the same feel of any other city in the world.”
The user added: “Lisbon and Barcelona are still my favourite cities and both local Catalan and Portuguese culture… should be preserved and brought back into these cities.”
Another Reddit user, Pilo_ane, responded by saying that Porto, a city in northwest Portugal, is also “unfortunately going that way”.
Yet another user pointed out that “excessive” tourism is a problem, but not as severe as gentrification, where expats with high foreign salaries cause local house prices to “skyrocket so fast” that locals are forced out of their neighbourhoods, reports the Express.
Tourism, a vital part of Portugal’s economy, made up nearly 15 percent of its GDP before the pandemic hit, according to Reuters. The sector has been instrumental in driving stronger-than-anticipated growth for the country in 2023, the agency reported.
Lisbon’s Mayor, Carlos Moedas, acknowledged last year that despite a local housing crisis and increasing tourist numbers, the city could still expand its tourism sector. Speaking to Bloomberg, he remarked: “Tourism is 20 percent of Lisbon’s economy. Tourism is employment.”
In 2023, tourists splashed out over £21.3 billion (€25bn) in Portugal, with a surge in visitors from the UK, Germany, France, and the US.
During the peak summer period of 2023, he expressed his view to Bloomberg: “I think we’re still very far from over-tourism.”
He added: “We’re not at the levels of Venice or Barcelona. We should continue to bet on tourism, betting on quality tourism.”