En un acto de protesta contra la saturación turística en Barcelona, turistas que se encontraban cenando en la ciudad fueron empapados con pistolas de agua por multitudes enojadas de manifestantes antimturismo que marchaban por las principales avenidas.Several thousand demonstrators rallied through hotspots including the famous La Rambla, carrying banners that said “Tourism kills the city” and “Dear Tourist: Balconing is fun!” – alluding to the practice of jumping from hotel balconies into swimming pools, which often ends in serious injuries for intoxicated tourists.Protesters shoot water from water pistols at tourists during a protest against mass tourism in Barcelona.Credit: ReutersSome of the demonstrators called out insults at tourists who took photographs of the march, while others taped off hotels and restaurants in a symbolic protest at over-tourism in the Catalan capital.The use of water guns by some protesters against onlooking tourists prompted heated verbal exchanges, but order was maintained by police escorting the march.Some diners, including families, were forced to leave their tables that looked onto the street where the protesters were gathering.Barcelona police said 2800 people had taken part in the demonstration but organisers claimed seven times that number attended.According to city council figures, Barcelona last year received more than 12 million tourists, 81 per cent of whom were from outside of Spain.They spent a massive €9.6 billion in the city, but many locals have concluded that the overall impact of so many visitors is warping the local economy to their detriment.Some protesters chanted “tourists out of our neighbourhoods”. The rise of tourism rental properties is partly blamed for a 61 per cent rise in property prices between 2013 and 2023 across the city.