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Barcelona’s most famous street
La Rambla is lined with touristy shops and restaurants and often packed with people, but it remains a quintessential part of Barcelona. Take a stroll early in the morning to admire the broad pedestrian boulevard and its lovely architecture. Hawkers and street performers set up shop later in the day.
Photo courtesy of Lydia Schrandt
A feast for the senses
Barcelona is home to one of the world’s most famous food markets, Mercat de la Boqueria. Housed in a Modernista building, the market is known for its fresh fruit and vegetables, seafood, meats and cheeses, and colorful candies. The lunch counters in the market, like El Quim and Bar Pinotxo, serve up typical Catalan specialties.
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The atmospheric Gothic Quarter
At the heart of Barcelona lies its Gothic Quarter, El Gotic. This historic neighborhood is popular for a reason – its narrow, maze-like cobblestone streets are lined with bars, shops, restaurants and historical treasures. It’s one of the best places in the city to get lost.
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Plaza Real
Among Barcelona’s most beautiful public squares is Plaça Reial, located in the Gothic Quarter. This sunny, palm tree-lined square features street lamps designed by Antoni Gaudí and a sparkling fountain at its center. Enjoying a coffee at one of the cafes lining the plaza is a perfect perch for people watching.
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Square of Sant Felip Neri
There’s something magical about stumbling upon this quiet square with a small fountain in the middle of the otherwise busy Old City. The baroque church of Sant Felip of Neri overlooks the space; you can still see scars from 1938 bombings etched into its façade.
Photo courtesy of Lydia Schrandt
A journey to the New World
This imposing column depicting Christopher Columbus was erected in 1888 at the site where Columbus returned to Spain after his journey to the Americas. Notice that the statue points east toward Genoa, Columbus’s hometown.
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The spirit of Catalonia
Catalans are fiercely independent, and while part of Spain, they celebrate their National Day of Catalonia each September 11. Celebrants dress up in traditional Catalan colors and take to the streets, particularly around the red brick Arc de Triomf.
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Antoni Gaudí’s masterpiece
The city of Barcelona is dotted with works of famous Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, perhaps none so famous as the Sagrada Familia. This UNESCO-listed grand cathedral, still under construction, has ornate sculptural detail as well as spectacular and nontraditional stained glass windows.
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Postcard perfect park
Antoni Gaudí’s imagination truly ran wild when he designed the wildly popular Park Güell, a surreal landscape garden known for its colorful mosaics, twisted stonework columns and naturalistic motifs. Much of the park outside the ticketed Monumental Zone remains wooded and free to enter – one of the city’s best picnic spots.
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Plaza de la Musica
One of Barcelona’s best examples of Modernista architecture wasn’t built by Gaudí at all, but by Domènech i Montaner. The Palau de la Música Catalana boasts a magnificent auditorium with a ceiling of blue and gold stained glass and tilted chandeliers. Tickets to a show include a tour of the facility.
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A surreal street festival
Gracia, one of Barcelona’s most colorful neighborhoods, also throws the city’s most colorful street party. The Festa Major de Gracia takes place each August, and each street goes all out to decorate better than the next in hopes of winning the grand prize. You’ll often see locals dining in the streets beneath the colorful canopies.
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Força Barça
Sports fans will know the Catalan capital as home of FC Barcelona, one of the world’s best soccer clubs. The team plays their home games at the Camp Nou stadium, the largest stadium in Europe.
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A day at the beach
No summer in Barcelona would be complete without a day at the beach, and there are plenty to choose from, with 60 miles of coastline in the province. Busy Barceloneta ranks as the most popular stretch of sand, though it gets less crowded the further you walk away from the Old City.
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A breath of fresh air
Parc de la Ciutadella, the green lung of Barcelona, was built for the 1888 Universal Exposition. The park is home to the Catalan Parliament, as well as the Barcelona Zoo and an impressive monumental fountain designed by Josep Fontsére.
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Sweeping city views
For some of the best views of Barcelona without all the crowds, locals head to the Bunkers of Carmel. These anti-aircraft fortifications from the Spanish Civil War overlook the city from atop Turó de la Rovira hill. While slowly making their way onto the radars of more and more visitors, the bunkers remain one of the city’s best hidden gems.
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Barcelona’s Treasure Mountain
Montjuïc, the hill just south of Barcelona’s city center, is home to many popular attractions, including a 17th century fortress, Palau Nacional (home of the National Art Museum of Catalonia) and the Magic Fountain of Montjuíc. Climb up the palace steps for one of the city’s most iconic photo ops.
Photo courtesy of Lydia Schrandt
Playing with fire
The hallmark of many a Catalan festival is the correfoc, or fire run. These parades take place after dark, when figures dressed as devils, demons and dragons take to the streets carrying spinning sparklers and fireworks launchers. Brave onlookers chase, duck and dodge between them. The most famous correfoc takes place during the annual La Merce festival, celebrating the city’s patron saint.
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On top of the world
Tibidabo, the highest peak in Catalonia’s Serra de Collserola range, towers over the city. People come here for the sweeping views from the small amusement park and the impressive Sagrat Cor Catholic church.
Photo courtesy of Lydia Schrandt
Magical holiday lights
The city of Barcelona pulls out all the stops at Christmastime. Just about every street in town is strung up with coordinated colorful lights, and Christmas markets pop up all over the city. Pictured here is La Rambla during the holiday season.
Photo courtesy of iStock / Mikhail Akkuratov
A mountain escape
One of the most popular day trips from Barcelona takes visitors into the heart of the Catalan mountains to the monastery of Montserrat. Rugged turrets of rock tower above the Benedictine monastery, which serves as the base for hiking in Parc Natural de la Muntanya de Montserrat.
The monastery itself is a pilgrimage site, thanks to a statue of the Black Virgin (La Moreneta) housed within.