Spain Plans to Ban Smoking on Terraces, Beaches, and in Parks

The background to this is the high prevalence of smoking among the Spanish population. According to 2024 data from the Health Ministry, around 26 percent of Spain's adult population smokes daily. Tobacco consumption is responsible for 50,000 deaths per year in Spain, according to the ministry.

Further Measures: Advertising Ban and Youth Protection

In addition to the expanded smoking ban, the draft provides for a smoking ban for minors as well as a comprehensive advertising ban for tobacco and e-cigarettes. The government is thereby also responding to the growing spread of vapes, particularly among young people.

Eating and drinking outdoors, especially during the warm season, is a firm part of everyday culture in the country and an important economic factor for the hospitality industry. The extension of the smoking ban to terraces is therefore likely to be controversial within the sector.

Impact on the Hospitality Industry

Before the law can come into force, it must be passed by the Spanish parliament. There, the left-wing minority government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez does not have a majority of its own and is dependent on votes from other parliamentary groups. How the bill will be handled in parliament is currently unclear.

Next Steps in Parliament

With this move, Spain joins a series of European countries that have gradually expanded smoking bans in recent years. Health organizations have repeatedly called for stricter regulations for outdoor areas in order to better protect children, pregnant women, and the chronically ill in particular.

The government justifies its draft, among other things, with the right to clean air in publicly accessible areas. García pointed out that many people use terraces, beaches, and parks without wanting to smoke and are currently exposed to health risks through others' smoke.

It remains unclear for now how violations of the planned ban are to be punished and from what point in time the new rules could apply. The question of whether existing outdoor areas in the hospitality industry would need to be converted or redesigned has also not been conclusively resolved.