Catalonia’s School Camps in Crisis: Bookings Plummet 53% Amid Teacher Pay Dispute
Barcelona, April 2026 – The educational landscape in Catalonia is facing a silent but devastating upheaval. As the 2026-2027 school year approaches, the Association of Camps in Catalonia (ACCAC) has sounded a dire alarm: reservations for school camps have plummeted by 53%. This sharp decline is not due to a lack of interest from families, but rather a strategic protest by public school teachers that has left the leisure sector as an unintended “bargaining chip.”
The Core of the Conflict: Unpaid Overtime
The root of the issue lies in a deepening rift between public school teachers and the Department of Education. For years, teachers have argued that the “extra” days spent at school camps—often involving 24-hour responsibility for students—are not properly compensated.
Teachers are now demanding that they be paid specifically for the hours worked outside of standard school schedules. “Many people don’t realize that we receive no extra pay for overnight stays or the immense responsibility of being away from home with students,” explained a spokesperson for the Maresme-La Selva Teachers’ Assembly. As a pressure tactic, hundreds of schools across the territory have voted to suspend all extracurricular outings and overnight stays for the upcoming academic year.
A Sector on the Brink
In a recent interview with 3Cat, the vice president of the Association of Camps in Catalonia highlighted the catastrophic economic impact of this boycott. For many camp facilities, school trips are not just a part of their business—they are the backbone.
- 85% of Turnover: School camps represent the vast majority of the annual income for these facilities.
- 141 Million Euro Risk: The sector warns of potential losses exceeding €140 million if the boycott persists.
- Job Losses: With 60% of the total educational leisure sector at risk, approximately 5,000 jobs—many held by young people—are now in jeopardy.
The ACCAC has compared the current situation to the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, warning that smaller, family-run facilities may be forced to close permanently if a resolution is not reached soon.
The Human Cost: Children in the Middle
Beyond the balance sheets, there is a significant educational loss. School camps are a cornerstone of the Catalan educational model, providing students with unique opportunities for social integration, environmental education, and personal autonomy.
While the Federation of Parents’ Associations (Affac) acknowledges the teachers’ right to demand decent working conditions, they describe the cancellation of these trips as “very bad news” for the children. Parents find themselves caught in the middle: supporting the teachers’ fight for fair wages while grieving the loss of a formative childhood experience for their children.
Looking Ahead
The protest, which began in regions like Maresme and La Selva, has now spread to over 585 schools across Catalonia. As the Department of Education and the unions remain in a deadlock, the leisure sector is calling for urgent mediation.
“Warning: this is getting out of hand, and no one is seeing it coming,” an ACCAC spokesperson warned. Without a government commitment to address teacher compensation for overnight stays, the 2026-2027 school year may be the first in decades where the traditional Catalan colonies fall silent.