It would be remiss to not take a day or two to go the tourist route - it's popular for a reason, you know. It means modernism; it means Gaudi; it means going up the hill to Parc Guell, and to gawk at Sagrada Familia, and to walk zig-zag through Eixample to see the most stunning modernisme architecture. It also means going down Las Ramblas, if nothing else, just so you won't have to again.
Or you could just spend a week on the beach. There's always something on, whether it's for the culture, the party or just relaxation that Barcelona beckoned.
Museo del Modernismo Catalan
Museum of Catalan Modernism
Carlos Sanchez Pereyra /
It is a relatively new museum. Locals themselves begin to know and has not fallen into the ...
Parc de la Ciutadella
The green heart of Barcelona
Hugo Da Costa /
The park is a great place for couples to have a relaxing time, or for families to celebrate a ...
22@
Rejuvenating the rejected
Jesper Kaufholz /
You'd forgive the locals that they might be a bit claustrophobic, but the "Catalan ...
Barceloneta Beach
Jesper Kaufholz /
The two beaches, Barceloneta and San Sebastia, are some of the city's oldest and most beloved ...
Carrer Maria Aguiló
Gastronomical delights
Jesper Kaufholz /
Adjacent to the Mercat del Poblenou, the pedestrianized Maria Aguiló runs parallel to the ...
Carrer Riera Baixa
Alternative shopping
Jesper Kaufholz /
Riera Baixa has become a sort of alterna-crowd shopping street, what with second hand ...
Fundació Joan Miró
Joan Miro and more
Jesper Kaufholz /
The Fundacio Joan Miro is dedicated to the famous painter of the same name. At the center of ...
Garraf Beach
The hidden beach
Edgar Fité /
Embedded between the rocky sierra of Garraf and the sea, this small settlement has been ...
Inercia
Don't walk - skate!
Jesper Kaufholz /
Barcelona is a great place for skating - most of the downtown area is flat with good asphalt ...
La Rambla
To walk the line
Jesper Kaufholz /
Most anyone in Barcelona has a love-hate relationship to Les Rambles. It's something of a ...
Mar Bella
Head for the beach!
Jesper Kaufholz /
The heat in summer here can be stifling, so everyone, who has not fled to the mountains, take it ...
Mercat de la Barceloneta
The art of grocery shopping
Edgar Fité /
Markets like Mercat de la Barceloneta are a key element to understand the urban and social ...
Montjuic
Up the hill
Jesper Kaufholz /
Montjuic is admittedly something of a tourist attraction, but don't let that put you off - it's ...
Montserrat
The Saw-toothed mountain
Jesper Kaufholz /
It sounds like something out of a Tolkien book, but Montserrat does really translate to "saw ...
Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona MACBA
Modern art in modern surroundings
Jesper Kaufholz /
MACBA is so modern, so hip, that it almost hurts. Well, only almost. The iconic building houses a ...
My Beautiful Parking
Everything for a bike trip
Jesper Kaufholz /
My Beautiful Parking started out as a parking, expanded with rentals and now it seems like ...
Palau de la Música Catalana
Palace of music
Jesper Kaufholz /
The casual observer would be forgiven for thinking this a work of that guy, Gaudi, but it is ...
Parc del Forum
Heavy industry
Jesper Kaufholz /
The locals call this Chernobyl beach - it's a sand-less beach, where the sea is heavily ...
Park Güell
Park. By Gaudi.
Jesper Kaufholz /
This is so over-run that the council even set up escalators to the top of the hill. But, and ...
Ruta del Modernisme
Gaudi and more
Jesper Kaufholz /
For the architecture buffs out there, the local government has helpfully provided the ...
Sagrada Familia
Iconic Barcelona.
Jesper Kaufholz /
This is it - the masterpiece of Gaudi and icon of Barcelona since construction started in ...
Sitges
Jesper Kaufholz /
Sitges is about half an hour away by RENFE, but a million miles away by attitude. There's a ...
Tibidabo
The fairgrounds aren't empty
Jesper Kaufholz /
Make no mistake - this is where Barcelonese families have gone on weekends for years and ...