Barcelona International Community Day draws 5,400 visitors

The Barcelona International Community Day attracted 5,400 registered visitors on Saturday to the Maritime Museum, located in the former Royal Shipyards.

The event is the main welcome space for newly arrived international professionals and an important meeting point for all members of the international community living and working in Barcelona. 

However, it is open to anyone interested in engaging with this diverse group of people who enrich the city. Barcelona City Council organized it through its Directorate for International Economic Promotion. 

The Barcelona International Community Day event features a trade fair with companies and organizations offering products, services, and initiatives targeted at international talent.

On-site, attendees can participate in one of the dozens of free activities, workshops, and talks of interest to the community, including a news and current affairs quiz led by Catalan News journalist Cillian Shields.

The venue opened at 10 a.m. with thousands attending after registering Barcelona.cat/internationalcommunityday. 

This year, the fair featured 77 exhibitors, including 17 public entities, 33 companies, 14 associations and non-profit organizations, and 14 educational entities, including international schools and higher education institutions. Around one quarter of all exhibitors showcased their services for the first time.

This year, to foster the international community's integration, connection, and involvement in the city, the emphasis was on spotlighting Catalan and knowledge of Catalan culture. The year's motto was: "I’m barceloní by choice," "I’m barcelonina by choice," "We’re barcelonins by choice."

"Great opportunity to know what's happening in the city"

Throughout the day, dozens of visitors approached the Catalan News stall to find out about what we do, say hello to the journalists they may recognize from our videos, and chat about their visit to the Barcelona International Community Day.

Joseph from Canada explained that he moved to the city only two months ago to study a PhD, and his experience has been "a bit complicated with visas" and then looking for housing, but now he's more "settled" into Barcelona. 

He particularly enjoyed the tax workshop organized in the morning.

Meanwhile, Silvio told us he's been living in the Catalan capital for three years and thinks Saturday's event is a "great opportunity to get to know what's happening in the city."

Lynne, a US national who arrived in Barcelona in May 2024, said it was her first time at the International Community Day. "I felt I would probably learn about services and organizations that would benefit my life here," she told Catalan News.

Her daughter has lived in Catalonia for nine years and had a baby two years ago. "I retired to come and spend time with them and help out."

Another American, Michel, has been in Barcelona for just under a year "because I wanted to experience a different culture and live in a different place." He says the Catalan city was "welcoming," and that's why he wanted to live here.

2024 Edition

In 2024, 5,122 people registered for Barcelona International Community Day, 56.3% of whom were first-time attendees, while the others were repeat visitors. This major international event attracted students, entrepreneurs, research team members, business owners, artists and families. 

Regarding the provenance of visitors to the event, 72.8% were from abroad and 27.2% were from Spain. Visitors from 127 countries came, with France, the United States, Italy and the United Kingdom as the four countries with the most visitors. Nearly 45% of all attendees had been living in Barcelona for under three years.