site.btaAnalysis Compares Tourism Services in Barcelona and Athens

There are significant differences in the tourism indicators of Athens and Barcelona, the Greek news portal moneyreview.gr reported on Thursday, citing an analysis of tourism services in the two Mediterranean cities.

Barcelona is often used as a benchmark when assessing tourism activity in Athens and the wider Attica region, which includes the capital, as the two cities are large Mediterranean metropolises with coastal areas, numerous landmarks and a strong international presence, the publication noted.

According to the analysis, there is a difference in tourism scale, with the Catalan region recording 34.6 million overnight stays annually compared with 12.7 million in Attica, according to the latest data. The findings indicate that Barcelona has succeeded in developing a model that distributes tourist flows across the entire regional periphery through separate tourism zones, while tourist traffic in Athens remains heavily concentrated around the city’s historic centre.

Hotels in the Barcelona region register 13.1 million guests annually, compared with 5.7 million in Attica. Barcelona has 909 hotels and 147,516 rooms, while Attica has 716 hotels and 36,016 rooms. On average, a hotel in Barcelona has 162 rooms compared with 50 in Attica, the analysis shows.

Barcelona also has more high-category hotels. There are 64 five-star hotels and 335 four-star hotels in the Catalan capital and its region. In Attica, there are 57 five-star hotels and 151 four-star hotels.

The analysis notes that Athens has failed to fully integrate its coastal zone and the islands of the Argo-Saronic Gulf into the tourist experience. According to the data, 71% of tourists who did not visit the islands cited lack of time as the main reason, while 14% preferred other islands. The analysis also found that some visitors are unaware that Athens has a coastal area.

In terms of short-term rentals, Attica reports between 32,000 and 35,000 accommodation units, of which 16,000-18,000 are located in central Athens. Across the entire Barcelona region, there are around 24,000 such units, with 10,600 in the city itself.

According to the analysis, in 2025 Athens recorded a 2.5% increase in the average hotel room price and a 3.4% rise in revenue per available room. Barcelona registered a 0.8% decline in the same indicators, but maintained higher occupancy rates, particularly during the first quarter of the year.

During the busy month of August 2025, Barcelona reached 112,000 overnight stays by foreign tourists per day, compared with 42,000 in Attica.

The overall tourist rating for Athens is lower than that for Barcelona. However, Athens receives higher ratings for the attitude of local residents, the data show. According to the report, Barcelona scores higher in public transport, cleanliness, safety and information about events in the city. The analysis states that the management of tourist flows in the city remains one of Athens’ main weaknesses.

The analysis was prepared by consulting company GB At Consulting on behalf of the Union of Hoteliers of Athens, Attica and the Argo-Saronic Gulf.

The number of properties available for short-term rental in the central districts of Athens has fallen by 2,553 over ten months following the introduction of restrictions on new licences, Greek television channel Skai reported.