I have a trip booked to spain and will be leaving next week. I will be heading to Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, and Seville. I am having some reservations now due to the austerity protesting I have been seeing recently and have been reading it is only going to get worst in the coming weeks. My concerns are mostly in Barcelona and Madrid. I would hate to cancel my trip, but have some safety concerns. Anyone have any thoughts/comments/recommendations on the situation currently? Do you feel it is still safe for to travel there?
Seriously, its probably more dangerous to stay in the States,,
I was in Spain a month ago, loved it, didn't end up being stoned to death,, so guess its ok, I am sorry I am being a bit flip but I am always surprised how nervous some people get over the words "protest". Tourists can almost always avoid protests by simplly walking the other way, its not like the Spanish people are going to see you ,, a tourist and grab you and drag you into their riot and burn you at the stake. Suggest you go on tripadvisor.com Spain forums, they have expats on there that can give you a locals perspective. Cancelling is a complete over reaction .
Next week is the biggest festival of the year in Barcelona. It's the Le Merce festival from 9/21-9/24. Hopefully, you are there then. Non-stop parades, music and tons of people. You will not see signs of austerity during this period. We were there during the festival last year. Just fabulous and not to be missed. Can't comment on the rest of Spain.
Protests, even when they turn violent or into riots (rare), are almost always localized in specific areas. Sometimes these are also where tourists like to visit, like major plazas or wide boulevards. But they are easy to avoid. Your hotel can appraise you of any protests and areas to avoid if you are concerned. Otherwise, life goes on for Europeans just the same as it does for Americans when we have large marches and protests (Occupy Wall Street, Chicago teacher strike, political convention...).
I was in Spain in May and ran into a couple of protests, but they were self-contained, there was plenty of police presence standing by in case of a problem, and they were over quickly and peacefully. Madrid is the capital city, so you will see more of those kinds of things there. But it doesn't impact the tourist areas and there is no danger.
Erika, Your reservations/concerns/worries are based on little but media reporting of local and rare protest. There is little likelihood you will come across any demonstration and all you do if you should is walk around the minor difficulty. Lighten up, unless you are a banker with a guilty conscience.
I doubt people will be chanting "Death to America" in Spain at the moment. "Death to Germany", possibly.
I was gonna say, I might feel a little nervous as a German in Spain, but as an American? Nah. The protests happening in some Islamic-majority countries is not at all connected to the European austerity protests. In Europe, protesting is an art and a way of life. Yes, sometimes things do get out of control, but generally as others have said, these protests are easy to avoid and you're not at risk unless you are hanging out in the middle of the protest.
We arrive in Madrid Oct 2 and will depart Oct 14 and would enjoy seeing a demonstration. Seriously, your concerns are not valid, but I do respect that you are entitled to have your own concerns. I encourage you to make the trip and NOT ONCE mention to anyone your concerns about safety. Why? By setting these concerns out of your mind I have confidence you will enjoy a great time. Just open your heart and mind up to the people of Spain, they are great folks! Now one tidbit of advice, do be uber cautious about pickpockets (not fearful, just cautious). There are plenty of places on the RS site to define how to prevent pickpockets and I suggest you follow the RS guidance. This will be our third trip to Spain and we are looking forward to another great time. Finally, several years ago we did get caught up in a street demonstration while in Barcelona and felt energized by the passion of the people who marched on the streets to voice their opinions. We were safe, they were courteous and I only wish someone had taken a photo of us in their midst. Safe travels!
Steven
"I doubt people will be chanting "Death to America" in Spain at the moment. "Death to Germany", possibly."
How true. Or maybe: "Death to our leaders." Seriously, though, I wouldn't worry. As others have said, if you see a street closed because of a protest, turn the corner.
Spain has been in serious trouble - street demonstrations and all - for years before the rest of the world imploded. They were the yellow alert warning alarm... Go on your trip and have a great time!
Thanks for the feedback everyone. I am still going and looking forward to it.
I've seen firsthand security issues with sports hooligans in Britain and the Netherlands, as well as destruction of property by anarchists sprinkled amongst protesters in Athens. All can be avoided by using common sense as noted above. As for..."its probably more dangerous to stay in the States," if you use proper bear proofing techniques where I live, you'll be OK.