¡Hola! Here we are in Barcelona for a weekend at the end of May 2014. A stay up to our expectations. Barcelona is an amazing city! Only the weather made us miss (we almost regretted the 26 ° which softened the streets of Paris this same weekend). So, we unsheathed the camera at the slightest ray of sunshine to bring you beautiful images.
Let’s go for a guided tour of the main sights (or not) of the city with our good plans for a dynamic and rich in discoveries.
The harbor, the beach and Ciutadella Park
To begin this Catalan stay, we head to the port and the beach of Barcelona. From the top of its column (located Plaça del Portal de la Pau), the statue of Christopher Columbus watches over the port activities. Just nearby, the Maritime Museum of the city was erected in the old halls of a shipyard. We take advantage of free (all museums in the city are free on the first Sunday of the month and the main are free every Sunday from 15 h to 20 h) to quickly visit it. We thus “sail” between the maritime history of the city and the imposing replicas of boats.
We then take the bridge of Rambla del Mar to reach, facing the city, the pier of Spain. This “arm” surrounds the old port and offers many leisure and tourism activities (Maremagnum shopping center, the largest aquarium in the world dedicated to the Mediterranean marine environment and 3D cinema IMAX).
Walking along the Marina, we continue our visit to the beaches of Barceloneta. Festive and friendly atmosphere at the rendezvous! 5 kilometers of continuous beach invite us for a break. Palm trees, popular bars, surfers and volleyball players surround us! At the end of the embankment (Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta), an imposing fish-shaped copper sculpture, the Peix, overlooks the street. It is today one of the emblematic monuments of the city recalling the Olympic Games that took place in Barcelona in 1992.
At the back of the Barceloneta beaches lies the Cuitadella public park, a huge green area located on the site of an old citadel destroyed in 1868. South of the park, the zoological park hosts more than 2,000 animals and 300 species. We stroll along the paths and contemplate the beautiful architecture of greenhouses and glass and wooden houses that once hosted a school of botany.
At the northern exit, stands a triumphal arch of red bricks that delineated the old entrance to the park during the World Fair of 1888.
Stroll along Las Ramblas, the historic center and El Raval district
We leave for a second day of visit by going up the emblematic avenue of Barcelona from the old port, in Plaça del Portal de la Pau where is the statue of Christopher Columbus. Bordered by many shops and street vendors, it ends 1.2 km further to Plaça de Catalunya.
In the middle of Las Ramblas, at number 91 (on your left coming from the port), we stop at Mercat de la Boqueria. This large traditional market attracts many tourists and locals for its local products. The displays are full of Catalan specialties (cold meats, nougats, fruits and vegetables, chocolates, spices, etc.). We do not resist fresh fruit juice for 2 small euros. Simply delicious! Do not hesitate to “sink” into the market to find more interesting prices (the first merchants take advantage of their strategic placement at the entrance to increase prices a little)
From Las Ramblas, we are now heading towards the historic district, El Barrio Gótico (to the right of Las Ramblas, still going up from the old port).
Plaça Reial is typical of Mediterranean architecture. It is a beautiful square surrounded by colorful houses and small breweries with a central fountain where it is pleasant to stroll for a moment. The two central lamps were designed by Antoni Gaudí in his youth.
Heading towards Plaça Nova, we take a shopping break at Art Montfalcon, a large art gallery-like souvenir shop. Prices are high but the interior architecture of the building is worth a look. We arrive then in the heart of the Roman city of Barcelona while strolling in the small narrow lanes of the city. The ancient Barcino letters are carved on the forecourt of the great Plaça Nova. We see the remains of the wall dating from the 4th century and, in the center, stands the imposing cathedral.
We then go down Las Ramblas to the El Raval district on the left (always from the port if you follow well). It is here that are gathered many shops and small restaurants very nice (see the “Y eat” at the bottom of this article). It is also a cosmopolitan and trendy place as well as a hipster and artists’ landmark. We land in the beautiful shady gardens of the old hospital of the city, now converted into a library.
Gaudí’s Barcelona
What would Barcelona be without Gaudí’s genius and Güell’s money? The two men, a rich Catalan industrialist and the other talented architect, have a good relationship of friendship and fruitful patronage. From this union were born the most beautiful works of Antoni Gaudí.
We went to meet the emblematic (and unmissable) places of Barcelona designed by the architect. We absolutely recommend these three places described below: Park Güell, Sagrada Família and Casa Batlló. Admittedly, entrance fees are high (€ 43.30 per person for the three, not counting audio guides or visits extra) but they are well worth the incredible visit you will make! Our photos (taken more during a cloudy and rainy day) do not do justice to the real beauty of these places
Park Güell was built between 1900 and 1914 and was originally intended to be a residential area with 60 houses for well-to-do families and built on a large plot of land purchased by Eusebi Güell. After 14 years of work, the project is not viable and Güell decides to paralyze the site. After his death, his heirs sold the park to Barcelona City Hall, which opened it as a public park in 1926. From the main square, on the ceramic covered benches, the view of the city is just sublime! In short, it was a nice step of our stay!
For a long time, the entrance to Park Güell was free. Since 2013, entry is now payable (€ 7 via the park’s website with an arrival time of your choice or € 8 on site). You can then stay as long as you want inside. As an indication, by quietly going around and stopping to take pictures, we stayed 2 hours on site. To get there, we took the metro (line 3, stop Lesseps) then we continued for a ten minutes walk before taking the escalators (yes, it goes hard!) To enter through the door of the passage of Sant Josep from La Muntanya. To enter the main door (carrer d’Olot), it is the bus n ° 24 which will take you to the nearest (count still a ten minutes of walk on a road in rise). No matter which gate you enter, you will go all the way around the park in any case!
We continue our visit to the Sagrada Família. The construction of the basilica was begun in 1882 and is still not finished (date of estimate of the end of the works in 2026, for the centenary of the death of Gaudí!).
Its construction is financed only by the alms, the gifts and the income of the paying entrances for the visit of the interior. Directly on the spot, the tickets are to be bought on the side of Carrer de la Sardenya. By taking our tickets upstream, via the website of the site, we paid € 14.80 per person (€ 19.30 with the audio guide) with a fixed schedule for the arrival (and we do not have waited one second to enter). The entrance with these tickets is done by the opposite side (Carrer de la Marina). You can count largely 3 hours of visit if you remain amazed in front of the majestic interior architecture (and one bet that it will be the case!) And by counting the visit of the museum located under the building (just before the exit of the Carrer de la Marina ).
We end this special Gaudí day with La Casa Batlló, a special house of a wealthy industrialist located on Passeig de Gràcia. On an existing building, Gaudí transformed the facade and remodeled the interior of the building, increasing its area from 3,100 m² to 4,300 m²! The genius of the architect materializes to an ingenious system of lighting and ventilation. Everything is explained in an audio-guide included in the price of entry (21,50 € per person). The visit of the whole house lasts a little less than 2 hours.
On the heights of Barcelona
To conclude this stay in Barcelona, we now take a little height to admire the city from all angles. To go up to Montjuïc, at 213 meters, we take the funicular from the Paral-Lel station of lines 2 and 3 of the metro (price included with the metro ticket connection). This hill was built for the 1929 World Fair before being abandoned and then rehabilitated for the 1992 Olympic Games. We did not take the time to visit the former Olympic Village (but it is possible to do so) to we go directly to the point of view on the city of Barcelona.
Going down, we take the subway to the stop Espanya where we can see the opposite side of Montjuïc. The square was also set up for the 1929 World Fair. Just nearby, the bullring was transformed into a huge shopping center. It is possible to climb to the top to admire the city in 360 °. Nevertheless, do not do like us! We saw a lift, located prominently, outside the center. So we went to it and we paid the price (certainly ridiculous) 1 € per person to reach the top (it seemed reasonable). But when you enter the center, escalators take you directly to the top floor (and you will not pay a single penny)! 😉
Then we take the subway to the museum of the monastery of Pedralbes (5 € entrance at full price and free every Sunday from 15 hours). Cloisonné in a pretty village all stone and adjoining the church, the courtyard of the cloister is simply beautiful. We did not have time to explore the village but, with certainty, you can linger longer and go to the climb to Tibidabo which promises a beautiful view of Barcelona 500 meters high!
On the way back (via Avinguda de Pedralbes street), we pause before the majestic portal of the Güell family’s second home. We will not surprise you that this one was made by Antoni Gaudí! Then we continue on Avinguda de Diagonal to reach the Palazzo de Pedralbes Park, a royal residence built in the 1920s on a property of Count Güell. In the gardens, the parabolic pergola and the Hercules fountain are (again!) Works signed by Gaudí. We also spent time marveling (yes, we do not need much!) In front of small green parrots who have taken up residence in the park.
Our stay in Barcelona ends as well. We recommend you visit this city located between sea and mountains. But do not forget to go with the sun! This is our main regret at the end of these three days (we must find him a negative point, no?)!
To facilitate your location in the city, we summarized on the small map below, places and good addresses discovered during these 3 days of visit to Barcelona!
Good plans
Go. From Paris, direct flights to Barcelona are available from € 70 return with Easy Jet or € 100 return with Air France. The flight time is about 1 h 30. To reach the city, from the airport, take the line 2 of the train (4,10 € one way for 30 min of journey) which will take you directly on the Passeig de Gràcia. By train, Barcelona is at 6:30 from Paris. The return trip starts at 118 € per person. Barcelona train station is located 20 minutes walk from the historic center.
To sleep there. We discovered Salsas & co guest rooms via the website les-bons-plans-de-barcelone.com. Seduced by the world of this French bed and breakfast, we booked a room right away. And we were not disappointed. The reception (in French so) is very friendly (and they will give you a lot of good plans or good addresses). The breakfast is homemade and is simply delicious (in addition to being hearty). Wifi is available for free. Room rates start from 60 € (double or triple room). The 4 bedrooms also share 2 common bathrooms. The only downside is perhaps the location a little out of the center (10 min walk to the nearest metro station) but bus lines also pass just down the street.
Eat there. Here is a small list of tested (and approved) restaurants during our stay:
. Lobo restaurant (3, carrer del Pintor Fortuny near Plaza Catalunya), a high price / quality ratio for the selection of tapas but a menu of the day is proposed at 12 € (starter + main course + dessert) between 13 and 16 hours. A beautiful interior decoration and a nice atmosphere complete all for an address to remember.
. Teresa Carles restaurant (2, Jovellanos near Plaza Catalunya), good service and value for a vegetarian restaurant. A nice selection of fresh products and a varied choice. In short, a very good address!
. tapaTapa Xiringuito restaurant (56, Pontevedra in front of Barceloneta beach), decent service and great value. We had a very good lobster paella for 15,50 euros for two.
. Emporio pizzeria (441, calle Provença just next to the Sagrada Familia), good service and prices. The pizzas are about ten euros and the pasta dishes are around 12 €. Attention, small (and appetizing) cakes are brought on the table after taking your order and are billed without your knowledge (1.30 € per person).
. Snömelk Glacier (6, placeta Marcus) for a gourmet break with very good homemade ice cream!
Small point on one of the specialties of the region: crema catalana. Renowned for being more tasty than the creme brulee (of which it is the origin), we less appreciated this version. We reiterated our taste experience twice to be sure! You will tell us what you think 😉 By cons, do not miss the churros con chocolate that you will find in the breweries of the city! Yum !
Another small point about the schedule because Barcelona eat later: lunch is served between 13:30 and 16:00 and dinner between 21:00 and 23:30. Arriving at the more “traditional” times, you will have more chance to have a table in the popular restaurants but you will be surrounded by tourists!
To move there. Barcelona is squared by a network of 6 subway lines. If the historic center and the port are within walking distance, some tourist attractions such as Park Güell or Sagrada Familia are more easily accessible via the metro. Per unit, the ticket costs € 2 (valid for 1 hour 15 minutes). For several days, it is more profitable financially to buy a T-10 card for € 10.30 which allows 10 trips on the entire network (metro, bus and tram). A pass (Hola BCN!) Is also available from 2 days (14 €) to 5 days (30,50 €). Many yellow and black taxis circulate in town. The support varies from 1.80 to 3.99 € and the minimum amount of the race is 7 €.
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