Travel Guide to Barcelona

Our Trip to Barcelona, Spain

As promised, today is the day I will share our travel guide to Barcelona. To recall, in mid-May, we took a big trip to Spain & Portugal. Our trip consisted of going to Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon, and Porto.   About a month ago, I shared a travel guide to Madrid since that’s where we started our trip in Madrid. From Madrid we flew to Barcelona.

Flying from Madrid was relatively affordable and it was about an hour and a half flight. Not too bad! We stayed a total of 5 days and 4 nights so we could be completely immersed in the city of Barcelona.

Things to Know

Before getting into the travel guide to Barcelona, I wanted to share a little background information. But feel free to skip further down if you are just interested about the travel guide. In our opinion, Barcelona is very different from Madrid. Barcelona is more spread out and a larger city. It also has a different vibe. It has more of a younger crowd and more night life.

If you are loving the free tapas from Madrid (Madrid gives out free tapas when you order a drink) don’t expect that in Barcelona. For some reason, it’s not their thing. At least the drinks are ridiculously affordable though. We couldn’t resist ordering a glass of wine every time we had a meal!

There are some similarities of course. I would highly recommend getting more familiar with Spanish. It will help you tremendously with communicating especially when trying to get around, using a cab, and talking to waiters. Keep in mind that Barcelona’s Spanish is Catalonian and slightly different than Madrid’s.

When eating out, tipping is not required but if you do want to tip it should not be more than 10% of the bill. If you are in a cafe or coffee shop and you want to tip, you would round up to the next euro.

They also take part in siesta. This happens around early afternoon. Therefore, a majority of restaurants and stores are closed during siesta. If you are not familiar with what siesta is, it is an afternoon break that usually starts around 2pm and ends around 5pm. However, for restaurants they’ll have siesta and will not open until dinner time which is around 8pm.

Speaking of dinner, Barcelona also starts dinner late (majority of European countries do). 8pm is for the early birds but most people have dinner at 10 pm. We dined early and went right when restaurants opened. So lucky for us, we didn’t have to think about making reservations!

If you are into art, then you may have heard of Antoni Gaudi. His work is all over Barcelona. Basically, Gaudi’s work is what makes Barcelona look the way it looks now.

Foods to Try

Overall the foods to try are very similar to Madrid. So definitely check out the list in that blog post. I would also add in Cava as something to try. This is more of a beverage than a food. Cava is Spain’s sparkling wine… like how Prosecco is Italy’s sparkling wine. Cava is more well-known in Barcelona because it is made there!

Alright, now it’s time to get into the nitty gritty of what we did in Barcelona. So here is the official travel guide to Barcelona!

Travel Guide to Barcelona

In this travel guide to Barcelona, I will go over places we visited, where we ate, and where we stayed.

Places to Stay

We stayed at Hotel Praktik Rambla. The location is PERFECT!! It’s right along Las Ramblas (the most popular street in Barcelona), but it’s not where all the tourist are. There’s still a decent amount of tourists (and locals too!), but the crowd level is nowhere near Las Ramblas closer to the water and Guell Palace. Restaurants were just a step outside which was so nice and convenient. I’ll admit a lot of places we ate at were right by the hotel. It was too easy especially during dinner time when we were exhausted from walking all day. It’s nice to know there were good options right in front of us.

The staff was very nice and the interior decor is really cool. It has a very old Spanish feel to it. We selected one of the smaller rooms (since we figured we won’t be in our hotel that often), and it was fine. I would prefer it to be a tad larger but honestly the size we were in was good enough. What makes this hotel amazing is the terrace! It is located on the first floor and it is beautiful! There’s a shared space too and the interior decor is major home goals.

What I love about the terrace is that it is peaceful and never crowded. It felt like we had it to ourselves. The most crowded was when there was 5 people up there at the same time. Even that felt like it was nothing. The terrace has different sections to rest so everyone pretty much had their own space! And every morning there were fresh croissants and chocolate croissants. They were delish!

Below are other hotels we were considering:

• Praktik Bakery
• Hotel Granvia
• Hotel Praktik Vinoteca

Places to See

• La Rambla
  La Rambla is one of the most popular streets in Barcelona. The street is about a mile long and at the end of the street is a Christopher Columbus monument. Along the streets are retail stores, restaurants, and cafes. There is a large median in the middle of the street where pedestrians can walk and restaurants can provide outdoor seating. It’s definitely a fun street to walk on. Most of the time we dined along La Rambla because we wanted to eat outdoors due to the beautiful weather!
  
• Catalonia Square (Plaza de Cataluna/Placa de Catalunya)
  This is a large square (plaza) in central Barcelona. It’s known for its fountains and statues and the close proximity to Barcelona’s most popular attractions.
• Gran Teatre del Liceu
  This is Barcelona’s opera house. We didn’t get a chance to go inside (which we’ve heard is beautiful), but it has a charming exterior as well. It’s located along La Rambla, so it is hard to miss!
• Guell Palace (Palau Guell)
  This is the mansion of the Guell family (when you are in Barcelona you will easily learn how the Guell Family & Gaudi has influenced Barcelona) which was designed by Gaudi. It was a fun tour to see what the home of Barcelona’s highest society was like. And don’t forget to check out the rooftop! It is one of Barcelona’s main attractions and it is worth seeing!
• Columbus Monument (Mirador de Colon)
  It is a very tall monument of Christopher Columbus at the end of La Rambla. The monument is a reminder that Christopher Columbus reported to Queen Isabella I and King Ferdinand V after he discovered the new continent (North America).
• Park Guell (Parque Guell)
  A popular park designed by Gaudi and owned by Eusebi Guell. This is the location of the popular colorful music bench. If you plan on going here, I highly recommend getting your tickets ahead of time. There is no wait when you purchase your ticket in advance.
  
• Plaza de Tetuan (Placa de Tetuán)
  A major square in Barcelona. Just a nice place to sit and relax and do some people watching.
• La Sagrada Familia Park (Placa de la Sagrada Familia)
  This is a large park adjacent to the La Sagrada Familia. You can get an incredible view of the Basilica from here. Especially if you are there to see the Basilica instead of going inside. There are benches and playgrounds there.
• La Sagrada Familia
  This is the infamous Basilica that has been under construction for 100 years. It is anticipated to be completed by 2026. If you plan on visiting inside (which I think is worth it!), get the tickets in advance. The wait line for tickets is crazy long! When you purchase the ticket ahead of time, you just line up and go right in (at your designated time). Also, make sure your back and shoulders are not exposed. In a traditional Catholic church, those parts of your body should be covered. My jumpsuit had an open back (more like it had a criss-cross), and they would not let me in! So I went across the street and bought a scarf from one of the vendors for 3 Euros. If you want to go up in one of the towers, there is a separate ticket for that.
• Pond Park (Placa de Gaudi )
  This is another park across from La Sagrada Familia. There is a large pond in this park and it is another famous location in Barcelona. It is where everyone takes photos of the Basilica with the pond.
  
• Gran Via
  This street is the second major business district in Barcelona.
• Palau de la Generalitat
  It is a historic building in Barcelona where it was a palace for the presidency of the Generalitat de Catalunya. It is a pretty building and it is located right by the Gothic Quarter. So if you are heading there, you will definitely see this building in the square.
• Gothic Quarter
  A popular attraction/location in Barcelona. It used to be the center of the old city Barcelona. It definitely has a gothic feel to it and reminds me of Diagon Alley (from Harry Potter). There are different shops and cafes.
• Palau de la Musica Catalana
  This is Barcelona’s concert hall and it is beautiful! Definitely one of my favorite places in Barcelona. The details and colors are stunning. I recommend for sure doing the tour!
  
• Ciutadella Park (Parc de la Ciutadella)
  This is Barcelona’s Central Park (NYC). The fountain is beautiful and very grand! This park also has a zoo and people can rent row boats at one of the ponds.
  
• La Boqueria
  It is Barcelona’s largest public market. I LOVED the fresh fruit juices. It was so delicious and refreshing! There are definitely a lot of authentic Spanish goodies there! It does get very crowded. So I recommend to try getting there early.
• Passig de Gracia
  This is the shopping district of Barcelona. I shared my favorite places to shop in my Madrid travel guide.
• Casa Batllo & Casa Mila
  They’re well known houses in Barcelona designed by Gaudi. I believe you can tour them, but we just viewed them from the outside. Definitely worth seeing it because Gaudi’s work is so unique.
  
• Barcelona Cathedral (Barcelona Catedral)
  This cathedral is so worth going to. It’s a large cathedral in Barcelona (not as massive as La Sagrada Familia) and it doesn’t get too crowded. The rooftop is worth going to as well. It’s free to go inside, but if you want to go to the rooftop (the views are beautiful!) it is only 3 Euros.
  
• Magic Fountain of Montjuic (Font Magica)
  This is a must see. The fountain is massive and beautiful. At night, they do a light show. Although there are lots of stairs, definitely climb up those stairs. Every resting spot (leading up to the top) has a beautiful view and when you get to the very top, it is just incredible! However, if you happen to be injured or your body can’t handle all those stairs they do have escalators. In my opinion, climbing the stairs just makes getting to the top even more worth it.
  

Places to Eat/Drink/Snack

• Brunch & Cakes
  This place is so cute! It’s a more trendy place so don’t expect to get traditional Spanish food. This brunch place likes to play on food and the presentation is gorgeous! We went during off hours, which we are glad we did because it can get very crowded.
  
• Ciutat Comtal
  We loved eating at this place so much that we went here twice! Traditional Spanish tapas and Tre loved the Whisky biscuit for dessert.
• Caffe L’Antico
  This is just a regular cafe. We stopped in here for mierienda on one of the days. No frills in this place, just classic Spanish snacks.
• Granja Petitbo
  Such a cute cafe! It’s by La Sagrada Familia.
• el Fornet
  I believe it is a chain cafe, but it has a rustic / family-owned feel to it. The pastries were so delicious and I can see why it’s so popular in Barcelona.
• Black Remedy Coffee Shop
  This was a unique coffee shop in the Gothic Quarter. They actual served ice coffee and lattes. Any type of iced coffee beverage is more of an American thing so it is rare to stumble upon a coffee shop in Europe that serves such drinks but it looks like its more modern here.
• Piscolabis
  Another great tapas restaurant. Sooo good!
• La Fabrica
  This place serves empanadas only and has a large variety of empanadas to choose from. OH MY it is delicious. I could have made it my meal by eating several different kinds of empanadas.
  
• Casa Lola
  It’s such a cute tapas restaurant and it is hard to miss. The ambiance and decor are red and white polka dots. Definitely sticks out in a good way. It has a fun vibe to it.
• Forn de Pa Rambla 31
  Another cafe with a large selection of desserts! You bet we got some bocadillos and pastries!
• Nostrum
  It’s like a healthier cafe. The food is more healthy options or healthier versions of traditional Spanish food. They also have delicious ice cream! There are several locations in Barcelona.
• Forn de Sant Jaume Barcelona
  This place has a similar feel to el Fornet. Food is very delicious!

Quick Recap of Our Barcelona Itinerary

In this travel guide to Barcelona (and in most of my travel guides), I usually like to share what our day by day looked like while we were there.

Day One

• Lunch at Brunch & Cakes
• Walked around Las Ramblas
• Siesta at our hotel’s (Hotel Praktik Rambla) terrace
• Catalonia Square (Plaza de Cataluna/Placa de Catalunya)
• Gran Teatre del liceu
• Guell Palace (Palau Guell)
• Columbus Monument (Mirador de Colon)
• Dinner at Ciutat Comtal

Day Two

• Enjoyed the complimentary croissants at the hotel
• Park Guell (Parque Guell)
• Plaza de Tetuan (Placa de Tetuán)
• Snacks at Caffe L’Antico
• La Sagrada Familia Park (Placa de la Sagrada Familia)
• Placa de Gaudi (pond park)
• La Sagrada Familia
• Granja Petitbo
• Walked on Gran Via street
• Went into el Fornet
• Snacks at II Caffe di Francesco
• Palau de la Generalitat
• Gothic Quarter
• Black Remedy Coffee Shop
• Dinner at Piscolabis
  

Day Three

• Palau de la Musica Catalana
• Ciutadella Park (Parc de la Ciutadella)
• Went back to Gothic Quarter
• Snacked at La Fabrique
• La Boqueria
• Passig de Gracia
• Casa Batllo
• Casa Mila
• Dinner at Casa Lola
• Forn de Pa Rambla 31
• Ice cream at Nostrum

Day Four

• Barcelona Catedral
• Nostrum for brunch
• Magic Fountain
• More shopping 🙂
• Snacks at Forn de Sant Jaume Barcalona
• Walked around Barcelona one more time
• Dinner at Ciutat Comtal
  

Day Five

Left in the morning to head to Lisbon, Portugal. So stay tuned for that travel guide.

There ya go! Hope you find this travel guide to Barcelona to be very helpful. Barcelona is such a beautiful and fun city. If you ever go, please do let me know and share what you think!

xo RD