When I visited Barcelona for the third time, I did something I’ve never done before: prepare for a trip. Usually, I prefer traveling without a to do list and I like to be surprised by unsuspected discoveries, but now that I have a smart phone, a well prepared trip seemed a lot less of a hassle than before. So for the first time ever, I searched blogs (Sir Magazine, Why Not Monday, The Epic Guide and 12hrs) and asked friends (Lise, Lien, Hanna and Mariona) for tips and gathered all of them in one helpful guide. (When I do research, I do it well!) Because we had so much fun with this list of Barcelona tips, I decided to gather every place I’ve tested and approved in one blog post. In the list below, you’ll only find the places that have been approved by yours truly, while on the google map at the end of this post, you can find all the recommendations I found, including the ones I haven’t tested myself. I trust my friends and fellow blogger’s opinion, so these are still on my to do list for my next visit. I do think you cannot visit Barcelona without seeing some of Gaudi’s work, so I’ve included some of his buildings and some other touristic must do’s in this list as well. I’ll warn you: tickets to see these don’t come cheap and it’ll probably be crowded with tourists, but it’s worth it anyway in my opinion.
where to get some culture
- Sagrada Familia, Gaudi’s unfinished masterpiece. Carrer de Mallorca 401
- Casa Mila by Antoni Gaudi. Provença 261
- Casa Battló by Antoni Gaudi. Passeig de Gràcia 43
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Mercado de La Boqueria, the famous colorful market. La Rambla 91
- Barcelona pavilion by Mies Van Der Rohe. Architectural heritage! Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia 7
- Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona, where we saw an interesting exhibition on the world press photo awards. Montalegre 5
- La Virreina, also known as Centre de la Imatge, is focused on photography, audivisual works and anything concerning the image. When we visited, there was an exhibition on the work of Ai Wei Wei. La Rambla 99
- Museu Blau, the natural sciences museum by Herzog & de Meuron (see blogpost here) Plaça de Leonardo da Vinci 4-5
- Can Framis, the brutalist museum of contemporary Catalan art by Jordi Bardia. (see blogpost here) Carrer de Roc Boronat 116
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Torre de Comunicacions de Montjuïc, designed by Santiago Calatrava. (see blogpost here)
where to eat and drink
- Bacoa for your hamburger fix. They have one (very tasty!) vegetarian option and an endless list for meat lovers, all of them with fresh ingredients. Ronda de la Universitat 31
- Mama’s Café for their delicious brunch (try the avocado dish!) and lovely garden. Carrer de Torrijos 26
- Sopa, located in Poblenou, is a vegetarian restaurant and organic store, with soup as their main dish. Tested and approved. Roc Boronat 114
- Oviso is a snackbar where you can find cheap but healthy fast food. Whether you’re into burgers, sandwiches or pancakes, you’ll surely find something you like. And don’t forget to try the cocktails! Carrer Arai 5
- Bar Lobo unfortunately doesn’t have the most polite or devoted waiters, but their delicious tapas definitely make up for that. Pintor Fortuny 3
- Teresa Carles is a vegetarian and vegan restaurant. The food presentation is so beautiful and their surprising dishes are approved by both vegetarians and non-vegetarians. Carrer de Jovellanos 2
- Tucco Real Food offers a main course (pasta, empanadas or a burger), a drink and dessert for less than 10 euros. Enough said. Còdols 27
- Federal Café for great coffee and (so I’ve heard) brunch. It is one of those coffee places with a big table where everybody is reading or working. Carrer del Parlament 39
- Caravelle was my favorite place when it comes to interior and they were playing my favorite music so only thumbs up here! I’ve only tested the coffee here, but their food should be amazing too. Pintor Fortuny 31
where to chill
- Jardi Botanic for a walk among the most beautiful plants. (see blogpost here) Carrer del Doctor Font i Quer 2
- El Carmel for the most amazing view over Barcelona. (see blogpost here) Carrer del Turó de la Rovira, 61I
- Parc Güell by famous architect Antoni Gaudi. Carrer d’Olot
- Jardins fontserè i mestre, for its stunning greenhouses. (see blogpost here) Passeig de Picasso
where to shop
- Labperfum for beautifully designed (refillable!) bottles of perfume, inspired by well known scents but for a much more affordable price. Calle Santaló 45
- Grey Street sells all kinds of lovely stuff, one of my favorites being Wrap Magazine. Calle Peu de la Creu 25
- Nuovum is the place to be for upcoming designers. Their collection (ranging from jewelry to home decor) is gorgeous, but a bit more expensive. Pintor Fortuny 30
- Chandal for cute cameras and great stationery and travel guides. Here you can even borrow polaroid cameras to document your Barcelona experience in style! Valldonzella 29
Find all my blogposts on Barcelona here and all my instagram posts here.
Barcelona is a great city! Been there last January :)
Awesome places! I would love to see Barcelone someday, never been, and it looks so incredible!
It really is! And it is heaven for food and drinks, everything is so affordable and there are so many options!
Dju, had ik dit maar een jaar geleden gehad ;)
Haha, helaas! Maar je kan altijd nog eens teruggaan he ;) Ik ben er ondertussen 3x geweest en ik heb nog niet het gevoel dat ik alles al gezien heb!
Thanks for sharing this! I’ve been to barcelona just once and I missed some things (a weekend is not enough). I always do research but I don’t feel stressed If I don’t have enough time to see everything.
I’ve been to Barcelona 3 times now and I still feel like I haven’t seen it all! It’s definitely a city you can visit over and over again while still discovering new things!
Amai top! Net een paar dagen Barca vastgelegd dus dit komt super goed van pas! heel fijn kennis te maken vorige week! super leuke blog heb je. Keep up the good work!
xoxo
Steffi
Dankjewel! Hopelijk heb je er veel aan daar, heel veel plezier in Barcelona!