Airbnb seeks Barcelona truce over too many tourists

Airbnb wants a truce with Barcelona. The home-sharing platform plans to limit the number of home rentals for tourists in central Barcelona, while separating professional landlords from regular users amid a backlash from local authorities concerned about mass tourism. 

The latest proposal follows similar steps announced in other tourist destinations like London and Amsterdam as the company responds to unease in European cities over the boom in informal accommodation services.

At stake for Airbnb is the future of its listings business in Barcelona, a city with 1.7m inhabitants that lured more than 8m foreign tourists in 2016 to visit sights such as the Gaudi-designed Sagrada Familia and the Camp Nou soccer stadium. For the city itself, its disputes with Airbnb and other rental platforms are part of a wider challenge to balance the economic benefits of mass tourism with preserving its character and quality of life.