Barcelona authorities on Tuesday cut the number of people allowed on to the city’s beaches to 32,000 from 38,000, after crowds flocked to the sea at the weekend despite advice to stay home to curb a local rise in coronavirus infections.

Barcelona, Spain’s second largest city and one of Europe’s most visited destinations, would typically have around 40,000 people on its ten beaches at this time of year, a city spokeswoman said.

However, it is at the heart of an increase in coronavirus cases that followed the end of Spain’s national state of emergency one month ago.

In response, local and regional authorities have imposed a string of restrictions, to the fury of some businesses which have been told to close their doors again, including cinemas, nightclubs and gyms in Barcelona.