By hosting the 1992 Summer Olympics, Barcelona in many ways changed forever; it became the tourist magnet it’s known today so far that by 2012 it was the world’s twelfth most popular travel destination and the fifth in Europe.
Whether you’re thinking about a vacation, holiday or just a visit to Barcelona, the Catalonia city has a lot to offer.
Tip:Save on taxi fares by booking the Aerobús Shuttle Between Airport and City Center ticket online. It costs around $11 only and connects Barcelona El Prat Airport terminals 1 and 2 with the city center, in just 35 minutes. The shuttle offers free WiFi and stops at most of the strategic points in Barcelona.
You can also save on public transport by ordering the Hola BCN: 48, 72, 96, or 120-Hour Public Transport Ticket which allows you to explore Barcelona with public transport, unlimited access to the transportation networks in the city and its suburbs!
1. Get a taste of Barcelona’s past in the present, Barri Gòtic
If there’s a place to view a historic center of Barcelona, it has to be around the Gothic Quarter that begins from around the area of La Rambla to just an earshot of Via Laietana within the district of Ciutat Vella. Barri Gòtic holds some of the oldest remnants of the city, such as a part of the Roman wall and diverse landmarks from the medieval era. Even so, Barri Gòtic isn’t really authentically ancient; most of the Gothic Quarter was reconstituted for tourist purposes between the 19th century and 20th century. You can actually see the Jewish quarter of the medieval times in the Gothic Quarter.
Largely spread in the heart of the city, the Gothic Quarter is lively and highly popular with visitors. It has a backdrop of medieval and Roman architecture and lines up diverse scenic plazas, clubs and bars, restaurants, shops and open-air cafes, among others. With so many plazas around you probably won’t be able to visit all of them.
If you visit the Barcelona Cathedral do stop by the Plaça de la Catedral, Plaça Sant Felip Neri and Plaça Reial for sights that still have scars of the Spanish Civil War bombing. If you intend to stay long at night to early morning hours Plaça Reial is a good spot to stopover as it tinkles with energy and life almost throughout the night.
Placa de Sant Felip Neri where you can see the scars of the Spanish Civil War bombing
You might also want to stop by Plaça Sant Jaume to see the place where the administrative seat of Catalonia has remained as far back as the Middle Ages. A visit to Barri Gòtic is a chance to enjoy authentic Spanish charm you probably will carry along with you.
In the quarter, maps hardly work and just taking charge of your adventure opens you up to lots of secret corners and lovely sections of the area. Be that as it may, a guided walking tour might be a treat to consider if you intend to learn as much history as you can of the entire breadth of Barri Gòtic.
2. Experience a touch of Antoni Gaudi in Barcelona, Park Güell
After his architectural college years were over characterized by unexceptional grades and only succeeded somewhat in experimental projects and sketches, Catalonia architect, Antoni Gaudi was informed at the awarding of diplomas during their graduation in 1878 that only time will convey whether he was a genius or a mere nut case. Today, tens to hundreds of works bear his imagination and some have been suspended in time as the ultimate city monuments and landmarks in Catalonia, especially in Barcelona.
One of this is Park Güell, a unique park open to the public made up of elaborate architectural tastes and unique gardens in Barcelona’s Carmel Hill. Construction of the park started in 1900 and ended around 1914 with the public formally allowed in the park in 1926. One Eusebi Güell commissioned Gaudi to design the park as a housing scheme for the wealthy but didn’t go as planned.
The building conditions weren’t really well-matched with the area but it didn’t stop the imaginative Catalonia architect from continuing to model Güell in innovative ways, mostly referencing English gardens he had interacted with and working with the natural rudiments of the area rather than destroying what he had started.
Tip: Benefit from the included shuttle bus that will pick you up from Alfons X metro station to the Park with this Park Güell Admission Ticket valid for one full day.
Currently, the park is spread over 42 acres and contains quirky props bearing Antoni Gaudi’s peculiar kinks. Walk along scenic paths criss-crossing lush green sectors and move down overlaid staircases and right through sharp tunnels and stone columns. Don’t miss the mosaic Sala Hipostila, which Gaudi intended to be the marketplace of the place.
The park also contains lots of worthwhile spots to visit, such as the old home of Antoni Gaudi, now a museum known as Casa Museu Gaudi. The visit to Gaudi House Museum is not included in the park admission ticket. It costs about 7 euros and can be booked online from Tiqets website with or without a guide. Do find the section where you can have an impressive panoramic view of Barcelona towards the park’s southwestern side. You might need a few hours to effectively experience Park Güell.
3. Pick some Catalan memento and experience real Spanish charm in a busy pathway, La Rambla
From a stream once filled with sewage filth, La Rambla has come full circle. Named after the Arabic term for “sand”, in 1377 the city was on the way of being what it’s today after a major extension of walls around Barcelona, which included the suburb of El Raval and La Rambla. With the diversion of the stream that brought filth into it in 1440, which was moved towards the outer walls, La Rambla almost immediately became a busy street.
Centuries later, the thoroughfare established itself as a vital part of Barcelona, especially at night and the long and wide-street pathway became the location of sports, open-air markets and festivals. Due to the busy life on La Rambla religious buildings came up, such as the 1553 Jesuit Bethlehem institution of higher learning and monastery that’s now a mere church. The trees along the street were planted around 1703.
La Rambla has suffered its fair share of hegemony characterizing the evolution of Hispania over millennia, such as the 1835 riots where revolutionaries killed and razed churches and monasteries, including bombing and artillery attacks during the Spanish Civil War that saw more destruction, loss of life and attack on religious infrastructure.
A busy street with tourists and visitors to the city, it’s almost impossible to visit Barcelona and not find your way there. Busy at night and during the day, you can spend hours there watching street performances of all kinds or buy some creative art pieces on the thoroughfare. You can also find a cool place to sit down with a cold drink or snack in the open-air cafes around or take some light meal.
With the coming of dusk La Rambla gets a new life and the clubs and bars around become a haven of merry activity. Even so, you might want to be careful as pickpocketing has been reported, especially when the street is exceedingly crowded.
4. See and explore another of Gaudi’s masterpiece in Barcelona, Casa Batlló
While Antoni Gaudi of the Catalans requires no introduction, finding some of his masterpieces around the city is an adventure in itself. One of his masterworks is Casa Batlló, which has been reviewed as arguably the work of the Catalan architect in his prime. Located just around Casa Mila, the vivacity of Casa Batlló is hard to miss with its skeletal terraces and careful tile handling.
With Saint George inspiration obvious throughout, the unusual façade of the apartment by Gaudi is more than a saint on a horse out to slay a dragon to save a damsel in distress. Redesigned around 1904 by remodeling an old building, the renovation was exceptional and incorporated other people to bring the project into fruition. Casa Batlló is locally known as the ‘House of Bones’ (Casa dels ossos) due to its skeletal primeval outlook.
A mosaic in different shades decorates the façade harnessed using trencadis or ceramic tiles that seem to have been crashed. Some of its most unusual indoor tastes include the loft with simple shapes, walls in white and catenary arches as well as a museum and a room known as the noble floor.
It wasn’t until 2002 when the public were allowed to enter Casa Batlló, particularly on the noble floor. Clearly a genius of architecture with visceral influences particularly its dragon design, the harmonious integration of the outer façade is excellent to view. The roof clearly looks like a dragon’s sharp spine while the noble floor’s stained glasses and surface, chimneys of Casa Batlló, rooftop, inner and blue light wells, catenary arcs, dragon stairs, fireplace, among others are just delightful to gape at.
Visitors who just see it from the outside do enjoy the view but paying something little to visit the interior completes the exceptional experience courtesy of wowing architecture and exceptional design work. Casa Batlló always has crowds waiting to enter and can be draining just queuing for hours at times. To be on the safe side and to save time, book a ticket online before you arrive to skip the queue. You can also get there early to avoid jostling with people to enter the building.
5. Taste seafood, fruits, cheeses and more at a Barcelona public market, Mercat de Sant Joseph de la Boqueria
La Boqueria Barcelona
Known simply as La Boqueria, the public market of Mercat de Sant Joseph de la Boqueria in Barcelona offers all manner of foods, from cheeses, fruits and vegetables to seafood. La Boqueria isn’t a new market per se and has been around way before 1217 when old documents report of the installation of additional tables for meat selling. The site of the market was the area’s pig market for a while around 1470 when it was locally called the Mercadi Bornet.
Initially, La Boqueria was an open-air market and not enclosed with zero official recognition. Later on “Boqueria” was adopted as the new name, perhaps from the term for goat (boc) in Catalan since goat meat was on sale there. However, with the opening of La Rambla in Barcelona and recognition of the thoroughfare as a market, butchers, meat sellers and fishmongers moved there.
La Boqueria market fruit smoothies
La Boqueria was only formally recognized in 1826 and the creation of the market’s current structure commenced in 1840. Modified a couple of times, it was finally inaugurated around 1853 with a fresh fish market commencing in 1911. The metallic enclosure was added around 1914.
The kind of Spanish market to douse your senses with food fragrances and lovely freshness, locals and tourists swarm into the market for meats, seafood, cheeses, olives, fruits and much more. Don’t leave the market without dipping down a fruit smoothie made from fresh fruit of your own choice flavor.
Tip: For foodies, loads of food tours are available. However, if you are like us, why not combine a food tour or a tour to the market with some Spanish cooking classes? Going back home with you being able to cook what you have tasted and enjoyed is an experience by itself!
This Paella Cooking Experience and Boqueria Market Tour will join you with a professional chef who will guide you through the market, inform you about Spanish cuisine and at the same time buy the items need to cook Paella! Once done, you will go to a dining room near the big kitchen and learn from the chef while cooking it!
6. Mesmerize yourself in the largest soccer stadium in Europe, Camp Nou
It’s almost a crime to visit Barcelona and leave without visiting one of the most renowned and popular soccer stadia in the world, Europe and Spain where some of the big names in the world of football have displayed their talent to the enchantment of thousands of fans and millions globally. Camp Nou is the home ground for FC Barcelona with a capacity of 99,354.
In 1954, due to the fact that Barcelona FC’s previous stadium, Camp de Les Corts couldn’t be expanded above its then expanded 60,000 capacity, a new ground was needed to cater for the growing number of fans; construction started around the 28th of March the same year. Four years earlier in 1950, FC Barcelona had been able to sign up one of the greatest players at the time, Laszlo Kubala and the reaction of fans fueled the need for a larger pitch.
The construction of the stadium ended in 1957 and inaugurated the same year on the 24th of September. It has been renovated a couple of times, first in 1995 and 2008 with arguably one of the most expensive of the renovations expected to begin around mid-2020 up to 2024 to remodel the stadium and raise the capacity to a maximum of 105,000 people from 99,354.
Futbol Club Barcelona has been around since 1899 when it was created by a group of footballers with Catalan, English, Spanish and Swiss roots brought together by Joan/Hans Gamper after he had advertised his desire to start a football club in a local newspaper on October 22nd 1899; the first meeting took place on November 29th of the same year. The rest is history as the club has grown to be the richest soccer club in the world on the basis of revenue and annual turnover, valued at $4.06 billion and one of the top five most valuable sports teams globally.
You can book a tour of Camp Nou any day between Monday and Saturday from about 0930hrs to 1930hrs. While the tour of the Barca stadium is self-guided, audio guides are available. Ask for them while presenting your ticket. If you aren’t in a tour bus, you can use the metro up to Collblanc stop along the blue line and walk to the stadium about ten minutes away.
7. Visit the modernista Catalan concert hall, Palau de la Musica Catalana
Opened on 1908, the Palau de la Musica Catalana is the architectural work of Lluis Domenech i Montaner whose construction started in 1905. It was built to host the choral society of the Orfeo Catala of 1891 that had been a critical Renaixenca movement or the drive for the ‘rebirth of Catalan’. Launched around 9th of February 1908, the concert hall is outstanding in its own right, especially its architecture that won the 1909 City Council of Barcelona best architectural award.
Over the years, the Palace of Catalan Music has been remodeled, expanded and restored, especially in the 1980s and hosts over a million attendees annually to its diverse range of musical performances, such as authentic Catalan Canco, jazz and chamber music to various concertos. Its cultural significance was acknowledged by UNESCO World Heritage in 1997, a declaration that also covered Hospital de Sant Pau.
The mosaics are exceptional as viewed from the outside and offer a unique chance to take special photos, capturing busts on top of some of the pillars celebrating some of the world’s greatest performers, such as Beethoven and Bach.
Of course, the inside of the Palace of Catalan music is a must-see, one of the most attention-grabbing interiors around with its own sculptural art and mosaic pillars of their own grandeur, enhanced by windows with stained glass and flower motif. The mid skylight stained glass is huge and one you won’t easily miss as it juts out of the ceiling, furnishing the entire auditorium with lots of sun.
International performers, including Spanish and local ones, usually hold concerts occasionally in the Catalan Music Palace. An enthralling architectural masterpiece, ensure you get in whether theirs is a show lined up or not (of course, if you can get a show ticket the better the experience). Even sticking around Barcelona just to wait for a specific show happening at the auditorium is definitely worth it.
Enjoying glorious and incredible musical compositions in one of the most beautiful concert halls ever is magical in itself.
8. Stop by the Picasso Museum and retrace some of his steps in Barcelona, Museu Picasso
Picasso Museum Interior
In this Barcelona museum dedicated to the Spanish painter, Pablo Picasso and his art works, visitors are able to interact with thousands of his pieces in a museum with one of the most outstanding and complete permanent artistic collections. When Picasso’s friend, Jaume Sabartes suggested that they create a museum dedicated to his works, the intention at first was creating the Museu Picasso in the birthplace of Picasso in Malaga. However, Picasso chose Barcelona due to the entrenched networks and friends he had in the city.
After an agreement with the city on July 27th 1960, Sabartes was able to launch the museum in 1963 after donating over 574 Picasso works the artist had given him over the years to add to his personal pool. The city of Barcelona had also received works from Picasso and they were added into the museum, including lots of other Picasso masterpieces from collectors, family and friends. Notably, the museum is located inside a historic city building with diverse rooms within the Born district of Barcelona where every room of the museum is dedicated to the formative timeline of the artist in over 4,251 art works.
Picasso’s lifelong connections and relationship with the city of Barcelona is also explored in his works, clearly giving a case for his choice of the city as the resting place of his most important collections after his death.
Buy admission tickets to the museum online in advance; they’re known to run out and queues are always long. The museum also has guided tours, audio guides and virtual tours available in French, Spanish, English and Catalan.
Tip: Fan of museums? Save by purchasing the Barcelona Card: 25+ Museums and Free Public Transportation which gives you free access to more than 25 unique attractions and museums (you can check the full list here, in the full description section). On top, you get free access to public transport to make it easier to navigate these attractions, as well as a map and a guidebook available in 6 languages. It is a bargain for what it offers. I would sure get it!
Feeling overwhelmed? Don’t worry … If you have no time, you can visit most of the attractions listed above in one day!
It is rare to find comprehensive tours that cover almost all of the attractions in a city. Check this One Day Walking Tour of Barcelona! This tours includes most of the attractions above with a knowledgeable guide. I have personally used this company before and I know that their groups are usually not big in number and they hire guides who will make you forget you are walking!
Feeling adventurous on the other hand? why to walk? why not to explore the city from above! This Barcelona: Helicopter, Walking, and Sailing 360º City Tour will give you the chance to explore parts of Barcelona by land, sea and air! The 6 minutes ride by helicopter will give you wonderful views of Port Vell, Barceloneta, the Olympic Port, Olympic Village, mouth of the Besòs River, and more.
Want to book a room in Barcelona? Check out these hotel options:
- Hotel Mandarin Oriental, the best luxury hotel in Barcelona.
- Hotel Royal Ramblas, Hotel Ciutat de Barcelona, and Hotel Grupotel Gran Via 678 for the best budget hotels in Barcelona.
- Hotel Iberostar Selection Paseo de Gracia 4 Sup, or Hotel Boutique Hotel H10 Catalunya Plaza, or Hotel Olivia Plaza for the best location in city center.
- Hotel Casa Camper is the best rated hotel by people at booking.com
- For those of you who prefer Hostels: Be Dream Hostel (Cheapest), Fashion House Hostel (Location), Fabrizzios Terrace Hostel (Best Rated)
- You can also check our other articles on The Best Luxury Hotels in Barcelona, The Best Budget Hotels in Barcelona, and the best Hostels in Barcelona.
Want to book a tour in Barcelona? Check out these tour companies that we personally use:
- Walks of Barcelona: Barcelona walking tours
- Get Your Guide: Barcelona tours
- Viator: Barcelona tours
- Tour Radar: Barcelona multi-day tours
- G Adventures: Barcelona multi-day tours
- You can also check our other articles on The Best Tours in Barcelona, and The Best One Day Trips from Barcelona
Want to read more about Barcelona? Check out these great guides:
- Barcelona guide: for a detailed guide on Barcelona
- Pocket Barcelona: for a concise and easy to use guide of Barcelona that fits into your pocket!
- Best of Barcelona 2020 guide: only the best of what you can do in Barcelona and updated for 2020!
- Barcelona pocket map: I do use Google Maps on my phone to be honest; however, this durable, easy-to-fold and waterproof map is the best for those who still prefer to use an actual printed map!
- Spain travel guide: for a detailed guide on Spain, including Barcelona.
Travel related services? We have personally used all of these services on and off!
- World Nomads for travel insurance
- Booking.com to book the best hotel deals
- Rental Cars for the best deals on car rentals
- Get Your Guide or Viator for day tours in your destionation
- Tour Radar or G Adventures for guided multi-day tours
- AirTreks for multi city airline tickets
- Kayak for the cheapest airlines tickets you can find online
- Omio for the best online train ticket reservation platrom. Also include bus and ferries reservations!
- Lonely Planet for well written travel guides
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