The Plaza de España in Seville has come into focus this week after learning of the Seville City Council’s intention to restrict access to the space and charge entry for visitors from outside the province, something rarely seen in our country.
The Government has cooled the issue by rejecting the plans proposed by the mayor of Seville, but the debate is on the table and the truth is that there are hardly any parallels in terms of closures of integrated spaces in the cities.
Paying an entrance fee to access a museum or a church is fairly common in Spain, as is the case to enjoy protected natural spaces. Something much more unusual is finding spaces that organically belong to the city – such as avenues or, in this case, squares – for which you have to pay to enter.
This is why there are many free tourist attractions for locals that in turn have a price for the visitor, despite the fact that there is European jurisprudence that rejects the establishment of differentiated rates based on nationality or residence.
A case that deserves mention is that of Park Güell, one of the masterpieces of the renowned architect Antoni Gaudí. Since 2013, the entrance to its monumental part – declared a World Heritage Site – has been regulated to avoid overcrowding.
In theory, anyone can get a free ticket, but to do so you have to apply in person to the City Council or register on a website and the procedure does not become effective until after a week, so in practice it is useless for tourists, who In most cases you get the ticket at the park entrances or online, at a cost of 10 euros.
On the other hand, residents registered in the neighboring neighborhoods and the students, teachers and staff of the schools in the park and its surroundings have the right to a free access card, which they must request from the City Council.
In Galicia, the cases that may most remind us of the Seville proposal have to do with natural spaces that have been restricted for reasons of sustainability and security, even though access is free, such as the Atlantic Islands National Park – only the fee is paid. transport from the shipping company—or the Cathedrals beach—in high season you have to ask the Xunta for authorization.
On the other hand, in Lugo locals are exempt from paying the tourist entrance fee to the Cathedral.
In the Canary Islands there is a case similar to the one that the people of Seville are considering. The so-called Art, Culture and Tourism Centers of Lanzarote are managed by the island’s Cabildo, and include the Jameos del Agua, the Cueva de los Verdes, the Mirador del Río or the Montañas de Fuego, in the Timanfaya National Park. There is a fee to visit all of them, but residents of the Canary Islands have a 50% discount.
Furthermore, in Tenerife there is a debate about whether or not to charge for access to the Teide National Park, which is managed by the Cabildo.
In Mérida, residents of the city can access free of charge to the different historical sites and places managed by the Mérida Monumental Consortium, including the Roman Theater and Amphitheater, the Casa del Mitreo, the Casa del Amphitheater and the Funerary Area of the Columbariums, among other monuments.
Also in Plasencia (Cáceres), those born and residents can enter the Cathedral for free.
In Castilla y León, access to streets and squares in the cities is free, but in certain monuments there are differences in payment between those who prove their residence in the city and visitors from outside: this occurs in five Romanesque churches in Zamora, in the Alcázar and the Cathedral of Segovia, in the Cathedral of Salamanca, in the walkway of the wall of Ávila and in the hermitage of San Saturio, in Soria, once it is rehabilitated.
In Aragon there are no spaces that have been closed to the public, but there are monuments with different prices. For example, the visit to the Palace of La Aljafería – five euros – is free for “host” people, that is, those born or residing in Aragon who visit the monument with family or friends from outside the community.
In the Balearic Islands, the tourist visit to the Cathedral of Mallorca and its Museum of Sacred Art is paid for in a joint ticket that costs 10 euros; On the other hand, residents and natives of Mallorca do not pay to enter the cathedral and must only pay two euros to access the museum.
In Seville itself, there is the example of the Real Alcázar, where entry – with a general price of 14.50 euros – is free for those born, residents of the city and for the unemployed throughout the province.
In Córdoba the general public pays 13 euros to visit the famous Mosque, but those born and residing in the area covered by the Córdoba diocese can access it for free.
