Barcelona, Spain — Where to Go
Barcelona Sightseeing Overview
Barcelona retains traces of its Roman remains but it is the medieval city in the Barri Gòtic that is the most impressive legacy of the ancient past. In the 19th century, as it expanded, Barcelona became a showcase for art nouveau architecture, known in Spain as Modernisme.
The leading exponent of the Modernista style was Antoni Gaudí, an eccentric recluse whose innovative and very individual style threw all design rulebooks out of the window in his quest to get architecture to mirror the curves and intricacies of nature. His achievements can still be savoured in a number of key buildings around the city. His masterpiece is the unfinished Sagrada Família cathedral, but his work can be seen all over town, even in the lampposts and fountains of Plaça Reial.
It was the hosting of the 1992 Olympic Games which completely transformed 20th-century Barcelona. In addition to sports arenas came major investments in both culture and infrastructure and today Barcelona is one of Europe's most popular short break vacation destinations.
Barcelona's city center is conveniently divided by La Rambla, the main artery of Barcelona life, which tumbles from Plaça de Catalunya southeast towards the Mediterranean and the recently reborn districts of Port Vell (the Old Port), and trendy La Ribera (the Waterfront).
The atmospheric Barri Gòtic (Gothic Quarter), the area to the right of La Rambla (heading in the direction of Plaça de Catalunya), is the charming heart of the old city, embracing the Catedral de la Seu and Museu Picasso amid narrow streets and hidden squares.
Plaça de Catalunya divides the old town from the Eixample (a grid of streets laid out in the 19th century) in which much of the city's finest Modernista architecture is to be found, including Gaudí's celebrated Sagrada Família. Passeig de Gràcia, the most stylish street in the city, is at the heart of the Eixample and intersects with the Diagonal - the city's main thoroughfare, at its northern end.
The Montjuïc mountainside includes the remaining Olympic installations, two world-class attractions in the Fundació Joan Miró and the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, as well as great views of the city.
Barcelona Tourist Information
BarcelonaTurisme
Plaça de Catalunya 17-S
Tel: (93) 285 3834.
Website: www.barcelonaturisme.com
Opening hours: Daily 0900-2100.
Other information desks can be found at the airport, Central-Sants station, Plaça Sant Jaume, Montseny, on the Ramblas, Mirador de Colom, and at the cruise terminal.
Barcelona Sightseeing
The Barcelona Card offers discounts of up to 50% and free admission to museums, entertainment and leisure venues, shops and restaurants, as well as free public transport and assistance insurance. Attractions include Museu Picasso, Casa-Museu Gaudí and Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona. The card is available for two, three, four or five days, from the main tourist offices at Plaça de Catalunya, Plaça Sant Jaume and the airport.
The ArticketBCN (www.articketbcn.org/ca) gives admission to seven of the city's main art galleries and museums, including Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC), Fundació Joan Miró and Museu Picasso. This pass is valid for six months and is available from any of the respective attractions, branches of Caixa Catalunya, or from the city's travel agencies.
The Arqueoticket offers entry to Barcelona's five most important archaeological collections: Museu d'Aqueologia de Catalunya, Museu Barbier-Mueller d'Art Precolombí, Museu Egipci, Museu d'Història de la Ciutat, Museu Marítim, and is valid for one year.
Barcelona Sightseeing
The Barcelona Card offers discounts of up to 50% and free admission to museums, entertainment and leisure venues, shops and restaurants, as well as free public transport and assistance insurance. Attractions include Museu Picasso, Casa-Museu Gaudí and Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona. The card is available for two, three, four or five days, from the main tourist offices at Plaça de Catalunya, Plaça Sant Jaume and the airport.
The ArticketBCN (www.articketbcn.org/ca) gives admission to seven of the city's main art galleries and museums, including Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC), Fundació Joan Miró and Museu Picasso. This pass is valid for six months and is available from any of the respective attractions, branches of Caixa Catalunya, or from the city's travel agencies.
The Arqueoticket offers entry to Barcelona's five most important archaeological collections: Museu d'Aqueologia de Catalunya, Museu Barbier-Mueller d'Art Precolombí, Museu Egipci, Museu d'Història de la Ciutat, Museu Marítim, and is valid for one year.
Key Attractions in Barcelona, Spain
Barri Gòtic (Gothic Quarter)
The maze of streets known as the Barri Gòtic or Gothic Quarter contains an exemplary collection of gothic buildings dating from Catalonia's Golden Age, in the 14th and 15th centuries, interspersed with Roman ruins, delightful squares and numerous bars and restaurants. Plaça Sant Jaume, at the heart of the district, is the epicenter of the city's political life. The square is overlooked on one side by the Renaissance-style Palau de la Generalitat (location of the Catalan government) and on the other by the Ajuntament (city hall). Nearby, the Palau Real on Plaça del Rei houses the Museu d'Història de la Ciutat. The remains of the Roman city of Barcino, beneath the palace, were uncovered in 1931; Roman streets are still visible in the vast cellar space that stretches as far as the cathedral. The museum admission fee gives access to the cellar and to a number of beautiful medieval buildings.
Basílica Santa Maria del Mar
Santa Maria del Mar is counted among the most beautiful churches in Barcelona and is considered a prime example of Mediterranean gothic architecture. It is located just to the northeast of the Barri Gòtic, at the heart of the fashionable La Ribera district. A 15th-century rose window adds color to the simple harmony of the columned interior.
Plaça de Santa Maria
Tel: (93) 310 2390.
Website: http://santamariadelmar.es
Opening hours: Daily 0900-1330 and 1630-2030.
Admission charge: N.
Disabled access: Y.
Casa Milá / La Pedrera
Casa Milá, also known as La Pedrera (the stone quarry), is an undulating apartment block on the corner of Passeig de Gràcia. The building, inspired by the ocean, is an incredible testament to Gaudí's ability to make stone malleable. Apartments (which are not open to the public) are arranged around elliptical patios with no square corners in sight. The roof terrace is watched over by sentry-like chimneys and offers an excellent view across the city to the spires of La Sagrada Família. The loft space of Casa Milá houses a beautiful museum, Espai Gaudí, dedicated to the architect.
Passeig de Gràcia 92 / Carrer Provenca 261-265
Tel: 902 400 973.
Website: www.lapedreraeducacio.org
Opening hours: Daily 0900-1830 (Nov-Feb); 0900-2000 (Mar-Oct).
Admission charge: Y.
Disabled access: Y.
UNESCO site: Y.
Catedral de Barcelona / Catedral de la Seu
Barcelona Cathedral, also known as La Seu, was built between the 13th and 15th centuries, on the site of an earlier basilica, although the spire and facade were not added until the beginning of the 20th century. Highlights include the carved choir stalls, the Capella de Lepanto (Lepanto Chapel) and the tranquil cloisters containing a pond of white geese. The cathedral was named after Barcelona's patron saint Santa Eulàlia. Its official name - Catedral de la Santa Creu i Santa Eulàlia - is Catalan for Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia. The commonly used name La Seu refers to the status of the church as the seat of the diocese (Seu meaning seat in Catalan).
Plaça de la Seu
Tel: (93) 342 8260.
Website: www.catedralbcn.org
Opening hours: Daily 0800-1930.
Admission charge: N (Y for visits to the roof, chapter house and cloister museum).
Disabled access: Y.
La Rambla
Barcelona's most famous street, La Rambla, is actually a seamless series of pedestrian avenues stretching from the Monument a Colom on the waterfront to Plaça de Catalunya in the center of the city. Lined with trees, cafés, restaurants, flower stalls and shops, La Rambla is the perfect place to soak up the unique Barcelona atmosphere. Attractions along the way include Gaudí's first major architectural project and UNESCO World Heritage site, Palau Güell (Güell Palace), in Carrer Nou de la Rambla, just off the main drag. Plaça Reial, also just off La Rambla, is one of the most attractive squares in the city - elegant 19th-century houses look down on palm trees, lampposts designed by Gaudí, and an eclectic mix of people enjoying the lively atmosphere at outdoor cafés. Other points of interest are the Gran Teatre del Liceu and the legendary Café de L'Opera opposite, as well as La Boqueria, Barcelona's wonderful, bustling food market.
La Ribera (Waterfront)
A stroll along the harbor side passeig (promenade) and wooden walkway is an excellent way to see some of the results of Barcelona's epic regeneration program. The focus of interest and activity in Barcelona, at least as far as visitors are concerned, has shifted back towards the sea, with the continued development of Port Vell (the Old Port). The waterfront now boasts a myriad of eateries and bars, a vast shopping mall and leisure center (Maremagnum) and the excellent L'Aquarium. Barceloneta, the 18th-century fisherman's quarter, still has some of the best fish restaurants in the city and is now also the gateway to Barcelona's cleaned-up beaches.
La Sagrada Família
Antoni Gaudí's unfinished masterpiece and the city's most outlandish landmark towers crazily above the grid-like streets of the Eixample. Despite being very much a building site, the Sagrada Família cathedral has a certain beauty that somehow emerges, despite the omnipresent cranes. However, it remains the subject of continual controversy over who should pay for its completion. The extraordinary structure has elicited cries of astonishment, awe, amusement and anger from visitors and residents alike, although it remains one of the city's most visited attractions. Gaudí's work on the Nativity facade and the Crypt of La Sagrada Família is listed as UNESCO World Heritage.
Carrer de Mallorca 401
Tel: (93) 208 0414.
Website: www.sagradafamilia.cat
Opening hours: Daily 0900-1800 (Oct-Mar); 0900-2000 (Apr-Sep).
Admission charge: Y.
Disabled access: Y.
UNESCO site: Y.
Mançana de la Discòrdia (Block of Discord)
A series of extraordinary houses by Montaner, Gaudí and Puig i Cadafalch make up the Mançana de la Discòrdia (Block of Discord) on the Passeig de Grácia, between Aragó and Consell de Cent. Gaudí's Casa Batlló, at number 43, looks rather like an underwater grotto, with blue-green tiles on the facade, frog-faced balconies and a reptilian roof. They are part of Barcelona's Ruta del Modernisme (check website for more details). Information and passes for this architectural tour can be obtained from the first floor of Casa Lléo Morera, at number 35. Regrettably, the interiors of all three houses are closed to the public. However Ruta del Modernisme pass-holders are permitted onto the roof of Casa Batlló.
Passeig de Grácia 35-43
Website: www.rutadelmodernisme.com
UNESCO site: Y (Casa Batlló).
Montjuïc (Mountain of the Jews)
The hill of Montjuïc has enough attractions to fill several days and was the main location of the 1992 Olympic Games. In addition to the Palau Nacional and the Fundació Joan Miró, visitors might also want to explore the Museu Arqueològic and the Poble Espanyol, which recreates landmarks and squares from all over Spain in superb detail, and also, rather incongruously, includes some of Barcelona's best nightclubs. Other attractions include the 18th-century Castell de Montjuïc (castle) and the Font Màgica de Montjuïc (‘Magic Fountain'), a dazzling display of lights, music and water that just can't be missed. Half the fun is the funicular ride up the mountainside and the outstanding views from the top.
Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA)
Looking rather incongruous in the down-at-heel surroundings of the Raval district, to the west of La Rambla, Barcelona's brilliant-white Museum of Contemporary Arts is at the forefront of efforts to regenerate this traditionally seedy area of the city. The museum opened amid a blaze of publicity in 1995 and houses a permanent collection of post-1940s international art, as well as various temporary exhibitions.
Plaça del Angels 1
Tel: (93) 412 0810.
Website: www.macba.cat
Opening hours: Mon and Wed-Fri 1100-1930, Sat 1000-2000, Sun 1000-1500 (25 Sep-23 Jun); Mon and Wed 1100-2000, Thurs-Fri 1100-midnight, Sat 1000-2000, Sun 1000-1500 (24 Jun-24 Sep).
Admission charge: Y.
Disabled access: Y.
Museu Picasso
The Picasso Museum is one of the city's main tourist attractions, housed in two 15th-century palaces close to the Parc de la Ciutadella. The impressive permanent collection is devoted to the artist's early work, including a large number of childhood sketches, paintings from the Blue Period (1901-1904) and the Pink Period (1907-1920), exhibition posters, ceramics and cubist works. There are also two exhibition spaces for temporary exhibitions.
Carrer Montcada 15-23
Tel: (93) 256 3000.
Website: www.museupicasso.bcn.es
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-2000.
Admission charge: Y.
Disabled access: Y.
Parc Güell
With Parc Güell, Gaudí created a fantasy land that seamlessly combines the natural and the man-made, as well as offering good views over the city. The iconic park, originally conceived as an English-inspired garden city, covers a hill to the north of the city center. The gardens are enlivened by fantastic pavilions, stairways, columned halls and an organic plaza decorated with stunning broken-mosaic work (trencadís) by Gaudí's assistant, Josep Maria Jujol. At the base of the hill is a house designed by Francesc Berenguer, which is now a museum of Gaudí's furnishings and other memorabilia.
Carrer d'Olot
Tel: (93) 213 0488.
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1800 (Dec-Feb); 1000-1900 (Mar, Nov); 1000-2000 (Apr, Oct); 1000-2100 (May-Sep).
Admission charge: N.
Disabled access: Y.
UNESCO site: Y.
Further Distractions
FC Barcelona Museum and NouCamp
The FC Barcelona Museum, one of the best football museums in the world, is happily situated within the stadium of one of the world's most legendary football clubs. A visit to the museum, which contains a history section, an art gallery and one of the best private collections of football memorabilia in the world, can be combined with a tour of the Nou Camp stadium. This includes the changing rooms, tunnel, dugouts, TV studio, and directors' area, and culminates with a panoramic view of the entire facility.
Avinguda Aristides Maillol
Tel: 902 189 900.
Website: www.fcbarcelona.cat
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 1000-1830 (until 2000 Apr-Sep), Sun 1000-1430 (Nov-Mar), match days 1000-1500.
Admission charge: Y.
Disabled access: Y.
Fundació Joan Miró
Located on Montjüic, the Joan Miró Foundation is one of the most innovative galleries in the city. The foundation was a gift from the artist himself and houses a permanent collection of his paintings, graphics and sculptures.
Parc de Montjuïc
Tel: (93) 443 9470.
Website: www.fundaciomiro-bcn.org
Opening hours: Tues-Sat 1000-1900 (until 2000 Jul-Sep), Thurs 1000-2130, Sun 1000-1430.
Admission charge: Y.
Disabled access: Y.
Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC)
The Palau Nacional, on Montjuïc, was the focus of Barcelona's International Fair in 1929. It now houses the National Museum of Catalonian Art. The museum boasts a stunning collection of gothic, Romanesque and medieval treasures and religious artifacts. The museum also houses the collections of the Museu D'Art Modern, recently moved from the Palau de la Ciutadella in the Parc de la Ciutadella. The most impressive approach to the Palace is up Avinguda de La Reina Maria Cristina, from Plaça Espanya - the avenue is lined with fountains that are floodlit at night.
Palau Nacional, Parc de Montjuïc
Tel: (93) 622 0376.
Website: www.mnac.cat
Opening hours: Tues-Sat 1000-1900, Sun 1000-1430.
Admission charge: Y (free first Sun of month).
Disabled access: Y.
