NEW rules have come into which will ban ALL pub crawls in a major Spanish city.
The classic activity popular with locals and tourists alike is now totally banned, whatever the time of day or night.
The ban on promoting, organising or running pub crawls has been extended to cover the entire area of Barcelona at all hours of the day, and comes into force on October 29, 2025.
The move aims to “ensure peaceful coexistence, safeguard residents’ right to rest and protect public health“.
The new rule, which also prohibits advertising related activities in any form, has been agreed following a public consultation.
A spokesman for Barcelona city council. “Pub crawling is a business that takes customers on organised drinking tours to a series of establishments that offer discounted alcoholic drinks.
“It typically involves quickly consuming one or more low-quality drinks before heading to the next stop.
“This activity has been identified as a risk factor that causes disturbances in neighbourhoods, puts extra strain on public spaces and potentially leads to criminal behaviour or road safety violations.”
Organisers face fines ranging up to €3,000 (£2,641), while participants are exempt from fines, they could face them for other infractions like drinking in the streets or causing disruptions.
Until now, pub crawls were only banned in the districts of Ciutat Vella, since 2012, and L’Eixample, since June 1, 2025.
The restrictions here were mainly focused on nighttime hours, from 7pm to 7am.
The new rules that have been introduced are for a permanent ban that applies 24 hours a day, all year-round, rather than being only seasonal.
This has been approved and will be in force for four years.
According to the city council, data provided by the police indicates that the ban on alcohol routes in Ciutat Vella and L’Eixample has worked.
They say it has “contributed to significantly reducing the number of activities detected and has facilitated their prevention, thanks to the early detection of the offer through social networks”.
The city council says the ban has been well-received in the Ciutat Vella district, with only three fines issued last year, and authorities believe it will have a similar impact citywide.
Pub crawls have been hugely popular in Barcelona and have been widely promoted on the internet.
These have attracted hundreds of thousands of people every year and bringing in a huge income.
Most pub crawls lasted for at least six hours and others up to 24 hours, but now organisers have started to post “now unavailable” messages on their websites.
These aren’t the only rules that have been introduced, across Spain there are been lots of new sanctions put in place to stop bad behaviour.
New rules range from not wearing swimwear in towns or cities, to smoking bans, and monitoring noise complaints.
The next time you visit Spain, check out these tips by one man who visits at least 8 times a year and how to avoid the common tourist mistakes.
Plus, check out these 12 stunning and cheap destinations Spaniards love that Brits have never heard of.