amination of Spanish demographic, economic, and political data relevant to the problem investigated in presented in Chapter 2. Information relevant to tourism and the hotel industry is presented in Chapter 3. The findings of the investigation into the specific problems faced by the hotel industry in Barcelona are presented in Chapter 4, and the conclusions drawn from these findings are presented in Chapter 5.
4Stewart Toy, "Europe on Fewer Dollars A Day," Business Week, 31 August 1992, 42.
SPANISH DEMOGRAPHIC, ECONOMIC, AND POLITICAL DATA
Spanish demographic, economic, and political data that are relevant to the problem investigated in this study are presented in this chapter. Demographic and political data are presented together, while economic data are presented separately.
Spain occupies approximately five sixths (84.7 Percent) of the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Most of the remainder of the peninsula is occupied by Portugal, with a minuscule 6.5 square kilometers being occupied by Gibraltar. Spain is bounded on the north by the Bay of Biscay and the Pyrenees Mountains. The Pyrenees, for the most part, constitute the boundary between Spain and France, with a tiny interruption for Andorra, which lies between the two countries, and the sovereignty of which is exercised jointly by France and the Bishop of Urgel in Andorra.5 On the west, Spain is bounded by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. The Straits of Gibraltar, Gibraltar, and the Mediterranean Sea bound Spain on the south, and the Mediterranean also provides the country's eastern boundary.
In addition to its core on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain also includes the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, and five North African towns.6 The Balearic Islands are politically the
The climate in Spain is predominantly continental, with hot, dry summers and harsh, cold winters.7 A vast highland plateau constitutes most of the peninsula land ...