Barcelona Travel Guide | My Life Trips

Barcelona

Information

Barcelona is the capital and largest city of Catalonia and it is also the second largest city in Spain, with a population of over one and a half million inhabitants. This city is located right on the northeast coast of the Mediterranean and is one of the most touristic cities in Europe, as beyond its beauty, the city also has a wonderful nightlife. Barcelona has a Mediterranean climate with a very good quality of life and rich cultural past, thanks to some famous personalities such as Salvador Dali, Juan Miro and Antonio Gaudí.

In 1992, the Catalan capital organized the 25th Summer Olympics, and so Barcelona won international recognition by hosting the Olympic Games, which had a massive upward trend in the tourism industry.

What To See...

Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia is undoubtedly a trully unique church one of its kind. The original idea was the inspiration of a bookseller, Josep Maria Bocabella, who, after a visit to the Vatican in 1872, returned from Italy to build a church. The Arch of the Church, funded by donations, began on March 19, in 1882, with the design of architect Francisco de Paula del Villar. In 1883, after the resignation of Villar, she assumed responsibility for her design, the famous architect Antonio Gaudi, and so the design changed radically. Five generations have so far watched the progress of Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. Today, more than 135 years after the first stone was built, construction is ongoing and is expected to be completed in 2026.

Park Güell

Güell Park is one of the masterpieces of Antonio Gaudi. Inaugurated as a public park in 1926, it was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, reconstructing its heritage and cultural value as a symbol of modern architecture. This urban park is characterized by picturesque trails and many sculptures and mosaics designed by Gaudi himself.

La Rambla

Las Ramblas is usually the first spot that most tourists visit to get to know the city. It is the most central street and the heart of the city. A magnificent huge pedestrian street filled with life in the center of Barcelona. Here you will find several tourist shops and restaurants as well as talented street artists.

Barcelona Cathedral

The cathedral of Barcelona is a very beautiful Gothic church and is home to the Archbishop of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. Its construction began in the 13th to the 15th century and is located in the Gothic Quarter. If you want to admire the wonderful art and history of the Middle Ages it is worth your visit. The entrance ticket to all the rooms of the cathedral costs 7 euros.

Plaça de Catalunya

Placa de Catalunya is a huge square in the center of Barcelona where the old and the new city meet. It is well known for its fountains, beautiful statues, and the pigeons that gather here. Around Placa de Catalunya is the best place for shopping, especially if you like the famous brands.

Mercado de La Boqueria

La Boqueria is the most well known food market in Europe. The Mercat de la Boqueria market is on our favorite La Rambla street and is one of the city’s major attractions. Here you will find a huge variety of products from all around the world. This wonderful marketplace is visited daily by tourists and famous chefs who want to buy high quality products. By the moment you enter the market, you will travel to all the continents of the earth with just the beautiful flavours and aromas. The opening hours of the market are Monday – Saturday from 08:00-20:30.

Ciutadella Park

Ciutadella Park is a wonderful park in Ciutat Vella district and is a green oasis in the city of Barcelona. The park has an area of 70 acres and includes the city’s zoo, a beautiful lake, magnificent sculptures, a museum and the huge fountain of Josep Fontsere. In this park you will have the opportunity to enjoy activities such as lake boating and cycling as you will find boats and bikes available for rent. It is a wonderful place in the city where locals and tourists can have fun and spend their time with quality. Entrance to the zoo costs 21.40 euros for adults and 12.95 euros for children.

Casa Batlló

We will refer once again in the creations of the ingenious architect Antonio Gaudi. His name was taken by the owner of Josep Batlló, who wanted his home not to look like any other. Antoniu Gaudi undertake the redesign of the building and the creation of its furniture. Its shape is particularly distinctive and impressive, so we highly recommend you to visit it.

Casa Milà

This building is another great creation of our beloved Antonio Gaudi. The name of this house is also known as La Pedrera, because of its stone facade. Gaudi took care even of the smallest detail of the building, from the door knobs to the lights and we can clearly see his intelligence. The combination of the eccentricity of the building with the classic furniture inside, creates an interesting contrast to the 19th century conservative era. It was the last project of Gaudi before dedicate himself exclusively to Sagrada Familia.

Gothic Quarter

The charming Gothic Quarter includes some the oldest parts of the city, including the ruins of the Roman city wall and some notable medieval attractions. Here you will also find some beautiful scenic streets leading to large squares. In the medieval alleys you will find modern bars, Catalan restaurants, museums and the imposing Basilica de Santa Maria del Mar gothic church.

Aquarium Barcelona

The Aquarium of Barcelona is one of the largest in the world! What impressed us most was the 80 meter transparent tunnel, where huge sharks swam around us. The space is designed to provide absolute security to visitors. The entrance to Barcelona Aquarium is 20 euros for adults, 15 euros for children 5-10 years old and for children 3-4 years 7 euros.

Barceloneta

Barceloneta was formerly the neighborhood that is mostly visited from Barcelona’s fishermen. Today, this whole area, along with the huge beach, is one of the most famous districts of the city and is definitely worth a visit.

Camp Nou

This legendary stadium is the home of one of the most famous teams in the world, the historic FC Barcelona. At this stadium you can admire the huge trophy collection of the team and tour it with a fairly expensive ticket that costs 26 euros per person.

Montjuïc Castle

Montjuic Castle is a famous Barcelona sight built in the 17th century. From here you can admire the tremendous views of the city and visit the museum hosted in it.

Nearby Excursions

Barcelona is a huge city that will take several days to see its numerous sights. However, if you have a little more time, we recommend you to visit Tibidabo Park just outside the city center on the top of a hill. Beyond the incredible views to the city, you can spend several hours in this theme park, and try out some of the famous games which exist in it. Entrance to the park costs 28 euros for adults and 10 euros for young children.

What To Eat

In Barcelona you will find a huge variety of restaurants, some of which are very famous with many Michelin stars such as the famous Lasarte. As you will easily understand, we are not fans of gourmet cuisine and so we preferred something much more traditional and affordable and fortunately we did not regret it. The Salamanca restaurant that we visited at Barceloneta, is one of those that impressed us in Barcelona and we highly recommend it to you.

In this restaurant you can taste excellent paella’s in various versions, fresh fish, and the delicious Crema Catalana, which is one of the desserts that you have to try in Barcelona. Salamanca’s prices are normal compared to other restaurants and the quality is excellent.

How to move

To see all the attractions that we mentioned above, you will definitely need to use some of the city’s means of transport. Even if you walk a lot on your trips like us, it is almost impossible to visit them just by walking. The best option is Barcelona Metro where it is almost everywhere and leaves you within walking distance from the most famous attractions. The best choice is to buy the Barcelona Travel Card which is enough to get you everywhere with just 20 euros per person for 3 days or 13 euros for two days. Barcelona Airport is about 15 km away from the city center and is very easily accessible by car or by taxi.

Where to stay

Fortunately in Barcelona, as in most of the big cities in Europe, the options for your stay are endless. Depending on the budget you have for your trip you will surely find something to stay. From very expensive choices of fivestar hotels to very cheap hostels that we do not recommend. At a very reasonable price around 50-70 euros you can find excellent rooms in very central spots of the city. You can make your reservations via Booking.com

Booking.com