McDonald’s upcoming biannual convention in Barcelona from April 8-11, 2024, has sparked a furor in the city’s hospitality industry.
With the estimated participation of 15,000 company executives from 135 countries, the event is expected to fill the coffers of hotels and restaurants in the area for four days.
However, this news has once again raised questions about the capacity of the Catalan capital to host events of this magnitude.
Barcelona, already consolidated as a business tourism hub, has been chosen for the first time by McDonald’s to hold its convention outside the United States.
The success of previous events such as the Mobile World Congress or the Alimentaria trade fair has supported this choice, positioning the city as an important international gastronomic and business center.
Massive arrival of participants at McDonald’s biannual convention
Although Barcelona has been ranked first in the world in number of congress attendees, the massive arrival of participants for the McDonald’s convention presents logistical challenges.
The high hotel occupancy has led to the search for accommodation in the outskirts of the city and in nearby towns such as Sitges, Castelldefels and Girona. In addition, Barcelona’s most exclusive restaurants are already full, which has led the company to consider options in the metropolitan area.
This hotel and restaurant saturation raises concerns about Barcelona’s capacity to absorb all the tourist demand, especially during large-scale events.
In fact, some international artists have avoided passing through the city this summer due to high hotel occupancy, suggesting that promoters may opt for other destinations for future events.
Real commotion in Barcelona
While the celebrations will take place mainly at the Fira de Barcelona, the company is facing serious challenges in accommodating all the attendees in hotels and finding space in the most exclusive restaurants.
With almost 15,000 additional people looking for accommodation shortly after Easter, Barcelona finds itself in a complicated situation due to tourist saturation and the hotel moratorium that prevents the opening of new accommodation.
The high demand is also affecting the city’s most prominent restaurants, which are already completely full during the dates of the event. In view of this situation, McDonald’s is expanding its search to the Barcelona metropolitan area in search of available premises for its activities.
As every year during Easter Week there is a high hotel occupancy rate, this year the multinational’s convention will increase the number of tourists in the Catalan capital.
According to industry sources, Barcelona is having difficulty absorbing all the tourist demand.
