Cruise ship passengers disembarking in Barcelona will no longer be
able to step off the ship and take a 10-minute walk to the city’s famous
Ramblas entertainment boulevard.
As part of an effort to reduce emissions, authorities are moving ships from Barcelona’s most central port adjacent to the World Trade Centre.
Ships are now being directed to the southern port of Moll Adossat, from
where passengers will be shuttled into the city centre, half an hour
away.
The change will be felt by passengers on mid-size and small ships
from lines such as Azamara, Oceania, Regent Seven Seas and Virgin
Voyages, which will now have to dock at piers south of the city centre.
In addition to the change in docking locations, a new limit has been
set on the number of cruise ships that can dock at Barcelona's ports.
The available docking areas for cruise ships has been reduced from 10 to
seven.
The partial ban on cruise ships in Barcelona follows similar measures introduced in other European tourist destinations, such as Venice and Amsterdam, to limit or ban cruise liners as part of their efforts to address environmental concerns.