The European city of entertainment. That’s for sure!

But Barcelona is also much, much more. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been to Barcelona since I was young but it never ceases to amaze me.

In most of the cases we won’t probably get a lifetime to see this amazing city, unluckily.
So, here some tips I’ve tried to summarise about what it’s better to visit before leaving Barcelona.

La Sagrada Familia

Quite obvious? I know. But even if you already visited it, go again! It won’t ever be like the previous time, really.

The first time I visited it, half of it. And today? Today is almost complete! Maybe, finally!

If you find it beautiful from the outside, step inside you’ll consider it even more amazing.

Inside you’ll twirl in circles under the soaring towers.

Take a couple of hours to fully enjoy it. Try to get the most you can, because it’s really so big and amazing.

And consider that it’s just funded by donations and tickets from tourists like you and me!

(One tip: book the ticket here in advance if you don’t wanna loose a whole day out there.)

El Barri Gotic

What comes its name from? Simply because it was born as a Roman village and still preserves some remains of its glorious past.

The winding streets create a labyrinth, which means you’ll need some time to find your way around. Lift your eyes and look around or you may miss some of the most interesting things.

El Barri Gotic has so many quiet and lovely squares and where you can relax. But the heart of the district is also the hub of important attractions as the Gothic Cathedral, The Museum of Picasso and the Barcelona History Museum.

The Gothic Cathedral

Right in the heart of the Barri Gotic, there’s the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia, known as the Barcelona Cathedral.

Although often overlooked in favour of the Sagrada Familia, which dominates the city, the Gothic Cathedral  is still one of the largest and most impressive religious edifices in Spain.

What shines the most is the stunning Gothic façade beautifully decorated with statues, pinnacles, and arches. But it’s just as impressive inside as it is outside.
The interior entails a spectacular nave flanked by 28 chapels and exquisitely brightened by some remarkable stained-glass windows.

Park Güell

If you’d like to spend a nice afternoon in a fairly tale, that park is made for you!

Park Güell is one of the major artworks of Antoni Gaudi and probably the city’s most striking symbol alongside the Sagrada Familia.

As a symbol of the eternal synergy between nature and creation, this colourful park is also an architectural treasure, proudly included in the UNESCO World Heritage.
It offers visitors an amazing cultural experience, complemented by stunning views over the city and the Mediterranean beyond.

Park Güell is free to enter and walk through, but if you want to sit on the mosaic tiled seat that winds like a ribbon around the edge of a huge flat ground, you’ll need to pay.

Passeig de Gràcia

Passeig de Gràcia is the street of modernism and where there are the most famous and interesting buildings of Gaudí, as Casa Batlò and La Pedrera.

Casa Batlò

It’s really easy to find it. Where you’ll see a lot of people taking picture from the other side of the street, look at the building in front of them and you will be amazed.

The inspiring façade made of sandstone and glass is dominated by curvilinear undulations, wrought iron balconies, and colourful ceramic mosaics, giving the impression of a fantastic spectacle, just like Gaudi’s other masterworks.

The rooftop and the interior are equally gorgeous.

It’s also called House of Bones – Casa dels Ossos – due to its organic allure so noticeable in the works of Gaudi, the house was intended as an apartment building and the residence of the Batlló family, who lived on the lower floors.

Casa Batlló is open to the public and can be visited every day.

La Pedrera

It’s known as Casa Milà and it’s probably the best example of Catalan Art Nouveau.

Obviously designed by Gaudì, the structure was built between 1905 and 1910 for Roser Segimon and Pere Milà.

It has such an eye-catching façade and a special roof, where lie architectural marcels, like “The Warriors”, the stairwells, and a series of sophisticated arches that envelope the place in mystery and sophistication.

On la Pedrera, there’s also an elegant cafè, but as you can imagine is one of the most expensive of the city!

The Ciutadella Park

It’s the biggest park in Barcelona and it has plenty of interesting places to visit as the Barcelona Zoo (but I am not a super fan of any kind of zoo..), the lake where to have a relaying picnic or where to rent a boat.

There’s also space for museums in this amazing park: the Museum of Zoology and Geology, both part of the Museum of Natural Science. It features a permanent exhibitions of palaeontology and the animal kingdom.

But the park is mostly famous for sports, healthy lifestyle and leisure activities.

Las Ramblas

Whenever you wanna go there, you have to.

During the day it’s mostly a place for shopping, eating and walks.
During the night, it completely changes it’s aspect and it becomes a place for drinking and clubs (Dozens of people on the street will come to sell you cans of all sorts of drinks for just a few euros).

La Boqueria

If you are visiting La Rambla during the day, you should absolutely go to el Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria (the Boqueria Market) and eat here.

What can you eat here? Definitely, what you want. More than 200 traders roll up their blinds, ready to offer you the choicest local and international gastronomic products.

I don’t know how many times i’ve been there and I can definitely say that it’s the best place in time for lunch or for buying any kind of fruit, juice, and any sort of herbs and spices.

Camp Nou

As a super football fan, I couldn’t mention one of the greatest stadium in Europe and maybe worldwide.
I am not a Barça supporter (AC Milan took my heart time ago..), but you should definitely visit the house of one of the greatest European Clubs and even better: you should watch a game here.

Why? Because Spanish Clubs and supporters are amazing!

La Barceloneta

Barceloneta is the smallest part of Barcelona city and forms a triangle between the Port Vell, the old port and the Platja de Barceloneta.

Don’t think it’s only about the beach. Nope, it’s also one of the greatest places where to go for a paella, for a drink, but also for museums and other attractions.

Yes, exactly. First, here there’s the Historical Museum of Catalonia and then, it’s the place where to go up to the Monjiuic by cable car and funicular. And as soon as you’ll be on top of Monjiuic, you will definitely understand why you had to reach it.  Here a small taste of the view from up there:

There’s a lot more that I have mentioned? Sure! There’s always something more to visit in every city. Here below some pictures of all the other things to see in Barcelona. 
But remember, that’s my journey into Barcelona. Go for yours and let me know!

The use of traveling is to regulate imagination with reality, and instead of thinking of how things may be, see them as they are.  – cit. Samuel Johnson (& me)