Barcelona

Barcelona is a very popular tourist destination and we’ve visited this city many times now since Aaron’s parents emigrated to Catalunya over 20 years ago. We’ve put together a city tour of some of our personal favourite locations and photo spots and you'll recognise that an artist and two events are the main reasons why Barcelona today is one of the most visited cities in Europe.

Gothic Quarter

Starting in the heart of Barcelona - the Gothic Quarter, this area’s full of narrow alleys and a different world compared to the rest of Barcelona. Here you’ll find some great tapas bars – an absolute must to try out!

Even though it’s the oldest part of the city, today it's a mix of old and new. There are some ruins of a Roman wall but the present-day ‘gothic’ vibe comes from the times before the International Exposition in 1929 when this quarter was completely transformed for the event. Several buildings were modified to get the neo-gothic style. Even the old gothic cathedral received an upgrade of its façade. A great place to enjoy a drink around sunset with an amazing view of the cathedral is the roof terrace of the Hotel Colón.

Montjuïc The area of Montjuïc - a small hill of 173m altitude - is easily accessible and offers many highlights. For a base to discover this district we recommend the hotel Catalonia Barcelona Plaza. There’s a rooftop terrace with a pool bar and great view down to the Plaça d’Espanya with the two Venetian towers and the Palau Nacional in the background. This is where the International Exposition took place in 1929 and all these beautiful buildings were built for this event.

From the hotel and crossing the busy avenues you’ll find another interesting angle of the towers with the Fira de Barcelona - still one of the biggest exhibition districts in Europe - in the foreground.

The Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina starts from the towers and leads up to the Palau Nacional, where today the National Art Museum of Catalonia is located. Just at the foot of the hill is the Magic Fountain and the 4 columns. Try and get the right timing to see the spectacular water and light show. Unfortunately, we missed it but it’s also nice just to come back to this peaceful area.

From the top there is a short walk through part of the botanical garden taking you either to the outdoor museum ‘Poble Espanyol’ or to the site of the 1992 Olympic Games - the second event that had a very strong impact to modern Barcelona. The view from the stadium down to the Greek columns and the Plaça Europa is another splendid photo motive.

Walking past the Olympic stadium along the shallow hill you’ll arrive at the Cable Car station ‘Telefèric de Montjuïc’ from where you can enjoy the view over the harbour. Glide downwards above the boats, yachts and ships. On the way down there’s a good view of the famous tree-lined promenade ‘La Rambla’ and the beach of La Barceloneta.

La Barceloneta The beach area in the quarter of La Barceloneta was very nicely upgraded for the Olympic Games. The then run-down harbour of Port Vell was beautifully restored and is now a very popular tourist area with an amazing yacht marina. The W Hotel really stands out at the start of the beach. Not far away and right on the beach is the sculpture of L’Estel Ferit. This is a great photo spot at sunrise.

A stroll along the beach is another great way to escape the hectic und noise of this huge city. You really get a good beach vibe here and there are some nice beachfront restaurants. Running along the beach in the morning is a perfect start to the day before heading into the city. From the top floor of the Hotel Arts you can get a good view of the beach and the quarter of La Barceloneta, the harbour and the hill of Montjuïc in the background.

Poblenou Further north is the Olympic Harbour and the quarter of Poblenou. This area was once called Manchester of Catalonia and was an old industrial area. They then transformed this area into flats, lofts and galleries for the Olympic Games.

One place to visit is the cemetery of Poblenou, giving you something totally different. Entering this huge cemetery, you’ll see 6 levels of burial niches on your right and left - it is a bit of a ‘goose bump’ experience! The highlight there is a marble sculpture called "The Kiss of Death".

Parc de la Ciutadella Close to the Olympic Harbour and away from the beach lies the Parc de la Ciutadella and the Barcelona Zoo. The park is the product of the very first International Exposition in 1888 and the Arc de Triomf became the entrance gate to the world fair.

Catalan Modernism

The architect, Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926), is definitely a big reason why Barcelona became so popular with tourists. He is also the most famous representative of Catalan Modernism. There are 6 buildings in Barcelona that received the listing by UNESCO as World Cultural Heritage. Visiting these places are definite must-sees among the highlights in Barcelona. The Segrada Familia is probably the most famous building and will soon be the biggest church in the world. But… it’s a never ending construction site!

It took 137 years for the city of Barcelona to release a construction permit which finally went through in 2019! Another interesting fact is that it took over 150 years for the Gothic cathedral to be built (1298-1448 and 1882-1913 for the new Gothic façade). Shooting a good photo of this huge building is a real challenge due to the many cranes in the way.

Despite being built from 1904 to 1906, the Casa Batlló does look quite modern so no wonder the architectural style is called Modernism! The house and its roof terrace is a well-known museum nowadays.

Park Güell is located on a bit of a rise and it’s best to get there around sunrise to catch the golden hour. Getting there early is important too, if you want to avoid the crowds: this park is the second most visited place in Barcelona after the Segrada Familia. The original idea was to build a whole housing site in Gaudi style around 1900. However, this didn’t work out because it was commercially unsuccessful and as a result the place was turned into a park.

Tibidabo Behind Park Güell the Tibidabo mountain begins to rise which works as a natural border for the city. Up there at the top the church ‘Temple of the Sacred Heart of Jesus’ and the Tibidabo Amusement Park clearly stand out. When we stayed at the Gran Hotel La Florida we were booked into room number 601. Instead of going out for dinner we had room service on the large terrace overlooking Barcelona because the view was just amazing! When they brought us the tapas, we were told that Shakira and Piqué once did that too!

The next trip to Barcelona will be around Sant Jordi day next April… stay tuned…

"One crowded hour of glorious life is worth an age without a name"

(The Call - Thomas Osbert Morsdaunt, 1730-1809)

© Aaron Matzinger & Clare Walker

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