I returned the other day from a weekend in Barcelona and needless to say, there were plenty of options of fun things to do there for the weekend! Personally, I loved how basically every corner that you turn, you’ll find one of Gaudí’s works of art! There were plenty of differences that I found interesting between where I live here in Alicante and Barcelona. The main difference being, of course, the language. While Spanish is widely spoken in both cities, Barcelona embraces the fact that it is the capital of Catalunya and speaks Catalan very commonly. This is just something to note for when you’re trying to search for things on a map or navigate the Metro station ~ most things will be written in Catalan, so be prepared. Needless to say, I had a wonderful weekend filled with some wonderful foods, sights, and sounds, and I can confidently say that I came back to Alicante with lots of great memories.
Without a doubt, you can fill up a weekend {or easily a longer amount of time} with all kinds of adventures that Barcelona has to offer. First things first though, if you’re coming to Barcelona from another place nearby in Europe, you should definitely try using Bla Bla Car, which Josh and I used. It was a great experience to get to and from our destination very economically, all the while practicing our Spanish with the driver and the other passengers. I would definitely recommend this experience!
Once we got to Barcelona, we headed to Port Olímpic, where our Airbnb was located. If you haven’t tried Airbnb yet, click HERE in order to save $20 off your when you take your first trip!
It was quite a unique experience for me to stay on a boat in the harbor right in the center of Barcelona! The harbor is absolutely beautiful to walk around and spend some time exploring.
- I would definitely recommend taking a stroll along Barcelona’s beaches and walk until you find yourself along the docks for the boats. There’s plenty of incredible restaurants surrounding the harbor and it really just is quite a picturesque view. I mean look at this, isn’t is beautiful? The boat in the picture below is actually the very one that we stayed on.
- The next thing that I would recommend doing {and beyond a shadow of a doubt my favorite thing in Barcelona} is La Sagrada Familia. The history surrounding La Sagrada Familia is incredible and was so fascinating to learn about. Josh and I paid 26€ per person in order to get entrance tickets as well as an audio guide in English, which was SO incredibly helpful. At every single different station, whether inside or outside of the church, there was an audio aid giving us the history and facts. Even though it cost several euros more, I would definitely recommend this option, because from my experience, you can truly appreciate something (a monument, cathedral, national landmark) 100x more when you truly can understand the importance behind it.
If you’re not sold even just based on these photos, you’ll just have to go see it for yourself. It is absolutely incredible. Antoni Gaudí spent a good 40 years of his life designing this church. Gaudí designed the church with three outside facades, the Passion Facade, the Glory Facade, and the Nativity Facade. Since Gaudí was a very religious man, it was said that he decided to depict every story in the Bible on the outside walls, however, since it took him so long, he eventually came to the conclusion that “just the stories from the New Testament will do”. So, you can literally follow with your eyes along the outer facades of the cathedral all of the different Bible stories depicted. It’s absolutely incredible.
Then, we headed over to Plaza D’Espanya for the Magic Fountain of Montjuïc. You’ll have to check into the times for yourself when you go, however when Josh and I were there last weekend, the fountain show lasted from 7-9. This free fountain show was a fun, spectacular way to spend the evening, sitting on a park bench and taking in the sights. Catchy music and flashy lights take over the plaza and you can either stop and watch for a few moments or make an entire evening out of it! This was such a fun, free, and spontaneous thing for us to do for an evening.
- La Boqueria Market was second only to La Sagrada Familia, was one of the best parts of this trip to Barcelona. If you’re strolling the iconic shopping road of Las Ramblas, you’ll find St. Josep La Boqueria Mercado right along your path, and you MUST stop in. The absolute array of fruits, fish, and other foods in this market make it an incredible place to stop. It will be nothing short of a sensory overload if you visit. My favorite thing that we did here was try lots of cups of fresh-squeezed juices. This is such a popular thing at all the stands, and most of the juices were 2 for 2€, so I had no problem grabbing up several different flavors. This was also my favorite place to eat lunch while in Barcelona, because you can get all kinds of breads, meats, and empanadas for an average of 1-2€ each.
- After tackling the market, we were ready for one final adventure. We headed to Parque Güell, yet another one of architect Antoni Gaudí’s incredible works (in case you haven’t noticed, Gaudí kind of owns Barcelona) for the last afternoon that we had before we had to come back to Alicante in our Bla Bla Car. Parque Güell was an absolutely quirky, wonderful park to get lost in for the afternoon. It didn’t feel like we were in a large, metropolitan city, it simply felt like we were in another world that was tucked away in a forest. Also, this was my favorite place to get a panoramic view of the city! It was beautiful!
Well, there you have it! In case you have any more questions about good neighborhoods to stay in, my favorite foods that I ate, or even more ideas of things to do, be sure to comment or email and let me know your questions and I would be happy to share more with you! But, in the mean time, much love y hasta luego!
Olivia