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Barcelona, Las  Ramblas activities, Spain

Barcelona Travel Guide
Spain

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Barcelona,  Gaudi park bench, Spain

Why Travel to Barcelona?
The city has sensational architecture, led by gaudy Gaudi, a lively, walkable centre, truly great restaurants and bars at reasonable prices, culture stuff by the ton and good beaches nearby.
Traffic and petty crime temper the pleasure of Spain's funkiest city [pick-pockets love this city], but only slightly.

Barcelona climate:
Best: April-June, Sept, Oct.
Avoid: August [hot, humid, crowded]
It can be a bit wet and cool in winter, but survivable.

Main Attractions:
Amazing Gaudi and 'modernista' buildings like the Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera and the '[Manzana] Block of Discord' in the Eixample area make Barcelona an architectural fantasy land.
Then there's the busy and entertaining La Rambla pedestrian boulevard [which has become increasingly seedy and unsafe of late, even in the middle of the day. More], the medieval area [Barri Gòtic] including the stunning gothic La Seu cathedral and the Plaça de Sant Jaume [with weekly Catalan folk dances], Montjuïc hill with its great museums, Spanish Village and cable car.

Short Trips:
Sitges, 40km south, pretty seaside town favoured by gays.
Montsterrat, 40km NW, weird rock outcrops, caves and monastery.
Figueres, 90 min. north, for the fantastic Dali museum.
Tarragona, 90 min. south for Roman remains, medieval buildings, rocky views.
Girona, 80 min. north, pretty, mixed-up medieval river city.

Barcelona Festivals:
Feb/March pre-lent Carnival, [+ gay version in Sitges]
March-June, Guitar Festival
April, Contemporary Music Week
April/May, Ancient Music Festival
June, Dia de Sant Joan [dancing, music, fireworks]
*end of June-August, Festival del Grec [theatre, music, dance]
August, Festa Major de Gràcia [street music and events]
*Sept, 4 days, Festes de la Mercè, the city's biggest party, [parades, street music, human pyramids]
Oct -Dec, International Jazz Festival.

For some precise dates or more information see: European Festivals or Arts Festivals.

Barcelona Arts and Culture:
Museums and Galleries: A huge selection including: Museu Picasso [in beautiful medieval palace], Museu d'Art Contemporani, Centre de Cultura Contemporània [includes concerts & cinema], Museu d'Art de Catalunya, Fundació Joan Miró, Museu Marès and plenty more.
Classical Music and Opera: Palau de la Música Catalana[visually terrific too], Saló de Tinell [in Palau Reial, usually free], Sala Cultural Caja de Madrid. Also in many churches, and Festivals [see Festivals].
Theatre: mostly in Spanish, tho' Teatre Romea sometimes does English for foreign travellers.
Dance inc. Flamenco: Teatre Lliure, Las Sevillanas del Patio, Tarantos.
Live Rock and Jazz: lots on so check the weekly Guía dl Ocio or El Pais for listings.

Cuisine: Superb Catalan and Spanish food is all over Barcelona. Try La Boqueria food market just off La Rambla, with its attendant restaurants and overt whores, every day except Sunday, Barceloneta [the port area] for seafood, Barri Gòtic for little traditional eateries [though take care late at night] and Passeig de Gracia for larger, posher restaurants.
Don't forget that you can make a great meal just eating tapas snacks [especially good in Barri Gòtic], and Spanish people eat dinner REALLY late. 11pm is not unusual in Barcelona.

Shopping:
Not especially interesting or cheap, but..
Classy: The Eixample, esp. Passeig de Gràcia
Wacky: The Rambla area

Take Care: La Rambla is popular not only with tourists but also aggressive prostitutes [legal in Spain], pickpockets and bag-snatchers. Beware of 'distraction events' in particular. i.e. when some good/bad event takes place that everyone looks at, except for the light-finger types who will be otherwise engaged in investigating your handbag or pocket.
The British Consulate says: '...be vigilant in Plaza Catalunya, Ramblas and surrounding streets of the old city and be aware of the possibility of violent muggings in the Montjuic area. In the Ramblas, Old Port [Port Vell] and Olympic Port Areas thieves posing as police officers may ask to see wallets for identification purposes'. See the Safety page.

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Also check Bugbog's other compact Spain city guides:

Seville Guide | Madrid Guide | Barcelona Links | Walking Tours - Spain

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