The boom of tourist flats extends to Vallès. Sant Cugat temporarily suspends new licenses after requests are fired while Sabadell sees a business opportunity.

The increase of tourist flats in the Vallès Occidental begins to worry, at the same time that, in some municipalities, it is interpreted as an opportunity for economic growth. While in Sant Cugat the licenses for this type of activity have just been suspended temporarily, in Sabadell the phenomenon is analyzed to promote, in an orderly manner, this new business.

The proximity to Barcelona and the tourist possibilities offered by the Vallès Occidental invite tourists to stay in the region. A recent study of the Consell Comarcal del Vallès Occidental, prepared by the Escola de Turisme i Direcció hotel of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), shows a remarkable growth of the houses destined for tourist use in the area. In particular, the figure has doubled. According to the Tourist Accommodation Plan of the region, in this area there are 452 accommodations for tourists of which 86% (388) are homes. Only 11% are hotels or aparthotels (52) and 3% are residences. Tourist accommodation places are mainly concentrated in three municipalities: 22.2% in Sabadell, 18.4% in Sant Cugat and 16.6% in Barberà del Vallès.

Valles experiences tourist flats boom

The plan of the county organism also points out that 70% of accommodation places are concentrated in the cities of Sabadell, Sant Cugat, Cerdanyola and Barberà del Vallès. As for the houses for tourist use, the activity is regulated. It is considered that an accommodation is tourist when its owner gives it in exchange for an economic consideration for less than a month. It is mandatory to register them in the Tourism Registry of Catalonia. They can be motor homes, apartments, houses or studios, among others, in full or shared rental modalities with private or shared rooms.
Western Vallès

Almost half of unregistered tourist apartments

In the Vallès Occidental there are all these modalities although there is a notable amount that are not registered. Anna Sanchez Coloma, technical coordinator of Tourism of the Consell Comarcal, explains that in spite of the important increase of the accommodations, "in the region the 62 percent are places of tourist establishments" like the hotels. "The growth of tourist housing responds to an international current, to the strength of the different marketing platforms and because legal imperative have had to register and, therefore, have surfaced those that were not legalized," acknowledges Sanchez.

In fact, the county data indicate that in December 2018, a search of houses of this type was carried out on different platforms and almost half (48.5%) did not have a registration code. Of the total of 388 accommodations for tourist use, there are 200 registered and 188 that are not. By places, the percentage is lower, 3.7% are not registered.

The regional analysis reveals that the level of regularization varies according to the municipalities. In Sant Quirze most are registered while others such as Badia del Vallès or Castellbisbal do not have even one registered of those who are in the market. The data has alerted cities such as Sant Cugat where the municipal plenary session approved the temporary suspension of licenses for one year due to the significant increase recorded.

According to the City Council, there has been an increase of 230% in requests for licenses for tourist homes during the first quarter of this year compared to a year earlier. In addition to this growth, the Consistory is also concerned about the concentration of these floors in a specific area so it believes necessary to regulate its implementation. It considers that the modification of the PGM will contribute to "anticipate and avoid possible distortions and negative effects on the housing market in the city as a whole and on the neighborhood communities of multi-family housing buildings".
Temporary suspension

Increase by 230% requests for licenses for tourist apartments in Sant Cugat in the first quarter

In Sant Cugat the School of Tourism of the UAB has located 110 houses for tourist use, of which 52 are registered and 58 are not. This city offers a total of 2,212 places, of which almost one thousand (998) belong to establishments; 469 to homes, and 745 to residences. In Sabadell, another of the cities with the highest concentration of housing are counted 85, 50 registered and the rest not. The councilor of Promotion in functions, Marisol Martinez, considers that tourism is an opportunity for the city and for that reason they have elaborated their own plan. "Sabadell is a city that welcomes tourists and we have to know how to order the offer and how we control the evolution of tourist homes," he says.

Since January, the licensing department is monitoring the conditions of the flats that are offered and under what conditions the accommodation is offered: "We have to know how many people can be accommodated, what state it is in and what security they offer to tourists", says Martínez He adds that "the tourism floor does not have to be a problem", but considers that "it is an activity that must be controlled and know what type of accommodation there is to offer". The person in charge of Promotion of the city inclines to foment the accommodations for students although at the moment no fine has been imposed. "Registered homes already have the will to do well. Our challenge is to reach those who have not registered since they are difficult to detect, "says Martínez.

"The vast majority of these floors were empty and their owners have decided to give them a use," says the councilor, who sees a local strength to meet the needs of people who spend the night there. They are concentrated mainly in the center and south of the city, in the areas of Creu Alta and Castellarnau.
Four day visit

The profile of the tourist from Sabadell

The profile of the tourist who visits Sabadell responds to that of a person who arrives for business reasons or to participate in sporting events. The visit lasts an average of four days and the cost it makes in the city is higher than that made by tourists in Barcelona, ​​the councilor points out. A fact that supposes "an opportunity" of economic growth. Throughout the year 2017 more than half a million tourists visited the region, according to the study Profile and Habits of tourists in the Barcelona area, prepared by the Diputación de Barcelona.

Regarding the profile of the tourist who visits the region, the coordinator of Tourism of the Regional Council speaks of a majority of men (74.1%) and less than half (43.2%) of Spanish nationality. They are followed by French, British, Italian and German tourists. Most of them spend the night in the western Vallès for professional reasons, followed by leisure and personal reasons. Sanchez Coloma also highlights that the tourist has an average age of 43.8 years so "are part of the so-called generation X or children of baby boomers that is characterized as the first generation that has worked with computers and technological devices "
In accommodation and restoration

An average cost of 477 euros

These data "give us clues to know how they find us and through what means they contract the accommodations". Regarding the expenditure they make is 447 euros on average and most of this money goes to pay for accommodation and catering. The average stay is 4.3 nights. And those who spend more and more are American tourists, especially in Sant Cugat, says Sanchez Coloma. "What we have to do is once they come to show them the tourist potential so they can return to their families," he warns.

Regarding the growth of tourist housing, the technique indicates that they have decided to offer councils tools to locate homes that are not legalized. "Hopefully next year most have been registered," says Sanchez Coloma. Considers that it is also important that this tourism is sustainable and affordable for the region. In these moments the pressure that supports the Vallès Occidental is below what can be considered a critical level, so there is still potential to grow.

They expect a tourist who values ​​the environment because there are also indicators that show that the visitor to Barcelona is repeating, so when he returns he looks for something different. "Here we have great potential with the natural and heritage resources that the region has," says Sánchez. Given this forecast, the County Council is prepared with new services and modes of accommodation in the area as areas of motor homes, shelters and campsites.