Every time I am leaving London, I am always thinking I am leaving the best city in the world and don’t get me wrong, I truly think it is. It is the best place where to be, at least for me and at least in this period of my life. My main worry whenever I am travelling to a new place though is that the new destination won’t be as interesting as my favourite city, London.
The same thought hit me while I was flying to Barcelona, at the beginning of June. It was my very fist time heading there and despite the fact most of my friends were telling me about the beauty, how fun and how full of history the city is, I still wasn’t 100% sure about it.
Let me admit though that after a few hours spent exploring Barcelona the only thing I could think about was: “What. A. City.”
There is something special about its people, the mind-blowing architecture, the incredible weather and the utterly delicious mediterranean food that make this place simply unique and extremely fascinating. So gorgeous that I am already planning my next visit! 🙂
Here is a quick guide of what to do and the best spots in Barcelona – no matter if you are staying for 48 hours only or if you are lucky enough to spend a longer time visiting, drinking Sangria and eating paella. 🙂
First thing first have a walk around the beautiful streets of the city centre. La Rambla, possibly the most famous one, it is a buzzing tree-lined avenue that stretches for almost a mile. It is a very busy and a very touristy spot connecting the seafront with Plaça de Catalunya where you will find lots of cafes and kiosks.
Right next to La Rambla, hidden in-between the beautiful alleys, you will find La Boqueria: the best food market I have ever been to. Over there you will find everything you can possibly think of: from the freshest oysters and sea food to the most tender Spanish meat, from the yummiest desserts to the most colourful and juicy fruit ever. It is heaven for food lovers like myself so if you are one of those too, get ready to spend at least a couple of hours trying to make up your mind and decide what to have for lunch – because a little too much choice is just about right! 😉
Continue to walk along La Rambla, enjoy the beautiful sunshine passing through the leaves of the tall green trees, cross Plaça de Cataluña and head towards the Passeig de Gàrcia.
In less than 20 minutes you will find yourself in one of the major streets in Barcelona and in one of its most important shopping and business areas. Here you will be surrounded not only by incredible Designer boutiques but by marvellous historic buildings too among with Casa Batillò and La Pedrera, both Antoni’s Gaudì masterpieces and both candy for your eyes.
La Pedrera got my heart. If you follow me on Instagram you will know I am a sucker for views, no matter the city I am visiting. Let me confess that, despite the fact the building itself is full of history and splendid interiors I spent the majority of my visit at the roof terrace. The views from there are just *unreal*: you can see the whole Passeig de Garcia, the whole city centre and, If you look well, you can even spot La Sagrada Familia looking fabulous in the distance.
Did I say La Sagradra Familia?! Did I say it is a must visit – no matter what? Absolutely one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen: its architecture, its details are just astonishing and I am 100% sure it won’t disappoint you as well.
Don’t forget to check out the Parc de la Ciutadella too: it is the perfect spot for a late afternoon walk. Here you will find pretty gardens with beautiful fountains and you will be even able to hire a small boat so that you can see the park from a different perspective. It is just a truly relaxing place and what you need after a long day of exploring.
A spot you cannot miss if you are looking for unforgettable views is the Bunker del Carmel. The place is wonderful and yet not too much touristy. It is the perfect place to have a picnic while enjoying the beautiful Spanish weather. From here you can actually see the whole Barcelona: you will be able to spot the most iconic places and you will definitely realise how huge the city is. Before heading here I didn’t realise how big this city is. It is definitely massively beautiful.
The picnic we had here was just spot on, reason why I will leave you the link of the company that organised it here so that you can check them out if you would love to do the same and want to do something a little bit different and truly unforgettable.
I have to admit the only downside of the Bunker del Carmel is that is a little bit far away from the city centre. The easiest way to reach it is to take a taxi and it will take you probably something in between 30-40 min.
The long way is definitely worth it though and you will be rewarded by a view that will leave you speechless.
I did try to make the most of my time while there, trying to visit as much as I could possibly do. It is a massively beautiful city and there is way too much history to discover, too much beauty to see and too much food to taste and 48hours are definitely not enough. In so little time I had so much fun that I am already planning my next visit. Can’t wait! 🙂
What about you Lovelies? Have you ever been there? If so, what are your favourite spots? Share them in the comments below so I can add them to the “must see” list for my next Spanish expedition. 😉
Also, find here the link to my YouTube channel where you can find a short video about my time there! 🙂
Love
Alice X