Barcelona is yours to discover. Its barrios, the food, the people, and its history. When you’ve done with the city, or want to escape you will find medieval villages, some beautiful coastline, and a great variety of natural spaces, from rice lands to wetlands, vineyards to farmland, the volcanic landscape of the Garrotxa or the stunning mountains in the Pyrenees.
The gothic quarter and the old city
- Take a walk starting in Plaza Catalunya
- head down las Ramblas
- walk alongside the old port
- wander back along Via Laietana
- turn left at the Metro Jaume I
- wander into Plaza Sant Jaume
- take the narrow street to the Cathedral
- follow on along Portal d’Angel
- arrive back to Plaza Catalunya
- La Palau de la Musica – UNESCO world heritage site
- The Born and Santa Maria del Mar (on the other side of Via Laietana)
- Barceloneta and life by the beach (across the other side of Port Vell)
- Hidden treasures – art, history and narrow streets.
- discover little squares
- boutique shops
- hidden cafes and restaurants
- historic churches
Modernisme and L’Exiample
Until the end of the 1850s the city of Barcelona was confined to a very small area (Ciutat Vella). The Cerda Plan was approved in 1859 and the network of streets and blocks of apartment buildings that so characterise the city today were built over the next 50 or 60 years. From the 1870s onward the city attracted considerable investment and many of the Modernist buildings were commissioned in the period between 1885 and 1920.
Passeig de Gracia
Passeig de Gracia runs from Plaça Catalunya up to Gracia. It is home to some of the leading hotels in the city and the most exclusive shops, as well as some spectacular architecture – including La Pedrera and Casa Batlló, two of the best known buildings designed by Antonio Gaudi, as well as a number of other modernist buildings.
Hotel Casa Fuster, the Mandarin Oriental and the Majestic Hotel are three of the better-known hotels, but there are a number of other hotels and serviced apartments on the street, and on the adjacent streets.
Stores: Cartier, Armani, Lladró, Santa Eulalia, and Channel are just a few of the dozens of exclusive boutiques that can be found on this famous boulevard. as well as the larger international brands and sports brands close to Pl. Catalunya.
If you are hungry, there are plenty of restaurants – a number with terraces where you can sit out and watch as people walk by. El National offers a collection of bars and restaurants, at the end of an alley off Pg. de Gracia.
Click for the complete guide, but note that the map needs updating.
The buildings of Antonio Gaudi
Urbanism and street life
The Superilla or Super Blocks project is creating some pain right now as numerous streets around the city centre are being transformed. More space for pedestrians and traffic will be reduced to a single lane on many streets.
The picture shows an image that fits perfectly with its environment. A picture of what to expect – work in progress being sold to the citizens as a soon-to-be-delivered gift.
Whilst controversial, time will tell if the transformation delivers on its promise of lower emissions and more street life for those in the immediate neighbourhood.
