Thousands of demonstrators hit central Barcelona over the weekend to protest against mass tourism in the city. Protesters carried signs reading “Barcelona is not for sale” and “Tourists go home” before some used water guns on tourists eating outdoors at restaurants. Rents rose by 18 per cent in June from a year earlier in two of Spain’s tourist cities, Barcelona and Madrid, according to the property website Idealista. Barcelona’s mayor, Jaume Collboni, announced a plan in June to phase out all short-term lets by 2028, an unexpectedly drastic move by the authorities who seek to rein in soaring housing costs and make the city liveable for residents.