explore it yourself:
The journey and accommodations:
We arrived by train from Nice on the afternoon of August 17th and stayed until the morning of August 20th. We arrived in and departed from Barcelona-Sants Train station.
Below is what AI recommended for accommodations:
1. Hostal Operaramblas
2. Hotel Constanza Barcelona
3. Hotel Best 4 Barcelona
4. Chic & Basic Born
5. Hostal Grau Barcelona
After reviewing each of the above options we were not impressed by what was offered given the prices that were being charged. We did some more research and ended up choosing Hotel HCC St. Moritz given its high ratings and decent price point. In addition, it was centrally located which made it easy to explore the areas on our itinerary. Overall, the hotel was nice with a spacious room and a big lobby space with many tables for working if you need. We didn’t have the breakfast but if you want to add it for 19 EUR per person you can enjoy the buffet which included several American dishes as well as many pastries and fruits.
Note: * our additions to ai itinerary and exclusions are crossed out, also see our summary at the bottom.
Day 1: The heart of Barcelona
Gothic Quarter (Barri Gòtic)
- Latte and croissant at The Coffee*
- The latte’s were okay at best, with so many options in the area, maybe check out another spot first.
- La Sagrada Família – Barcelona’s iconic basilica. Book timed tickets in advance and aim for first entry. Morning light through the stained glass is stunning.
- This basilica absolutely lives up to the hype you may see online about it. During our trip, we’ve seen many churches and this has to be right up near the top of most beautiful!
- Walk down to La Rambla and Mercado de La Boqueria for fresh juice or a light snack (avoid the front stalls; go deeper inside for better quality).
- This market is really cool and absolutely jam packed with vendors so it can get a bit overwhelming. So many of the food and drink options looked so tasty inside so we suggest trying a few small items from different vendors!
- Also, La Rambla ended up being a really nice area to stroll through the streets admiring the palm trees and pretty architecture!
- This market is really cool and absolutely jam packed with vendors so it can get a bit overwhelming. So many of the food and drink options looked so tasty inside so we suggest trying a few small items from different vendors!
- Explore the medieval streets of the Gothic Quarter:
- Plaça Reial (great architecture and palm trees)
- Temple d’August*
- Carrer del Bisbe*
- Barcelona Cathedral
- Small artisan shops and hidden courtyards
- We wandered through the narrow alleyways while stopping to check out each of the above spots. Our favorite was sitting outside the Barcelona Cathedral and watching the street performers!
- Lunch at
- Honest Greens*
- So delicious! The Latin Lover bowl with Piri Piri Chicken was one of the best meals of the summer!
- OR
El Xampanyet - OR
Tapeo - OR
Cal Pep
- Honest Greens*
- Afternoon coffee at Corgi Cafe*
- The coffee was decent but we came for the Corgi! There was only one Corgi in the shop and he was fast asleep in the middle of the room but was so adorable!
El Born, Park, & Beach
- Relax in Parc de la Ciutadella and rent a rowboat or relax in the shade.
- We opted to relax in the shade given how hot it was and watch other people float along in the rowboats. It was a very peaceful way to escape the city for a bit.
- Arc de Triomf*
- This felt pretty similar to the Arc in Paris as they are both very intricately designed.
- Marina Port Vell* and Time Out Market*
- During our walk towards the water, we stopped to check out the Marina Port area and which was a very nice spot, as well as pop into Time Out Market and check out the food options. Although we didn’t end up grabbing anything, if you’re traveling with a group and everyone wants different things to eat, this is the perfect spot to try!
- Walk to Barceloneta Beach
- Swim, stroll, or grab a drink at a chiringuito (beach bar).
- Tip: Walk further to Bogatell Beach for fewer crowds
- We continued our stroll from the Marina towards the beach and by this point, the sun was mostly set. We were amazed by how many people were still out enjoying the beach on a weekday evening! It was so fun watching the crowds while we walked along the sand.
- Tapas & sunset
- Dinner in El Born or Barceloneta
- We ended up grabbing dinner and drinks at Luigi’s* which was close to our hotel. We got wood oven pizza and the famous vino y tinto.
- Sunset option: Rooftop bar at
Hotel 1898for city views.- There was a number of different outdoor restaurants right along the beach that all looked really fun!
- Dinner in El Born or Barceloneta
Day 2: Guadi Sights & Panoramic Views
Gràcia & Park Güell
- Latte, croissant, and acai bowl @ La Papa*
- The coffee here was also just okay and not very sweet but the food was tasty!
- Start at Park Güell
- Book early entry to avoide crowds and heat
- After taking the ~30 minute bus ride to Park Güell we learned that it was 20 EUR per person to enter and we simply weren’t interested in paying that much to walk through the park. Be prepared for this before heading all the way out there and then turning around like we did!
- Wander the Gràcia neighborhood afterward — feels more local and less touristy.
- We would imagine this is generally a less touristy area, however, our visit coincided with Festa Major de Gràcia, a weeklong festival where the narrow streets are completely decorated and this drew some pretty major crowds. The decorations are done by locals living on these streets and are really well done spanning the whole length of the streets!
- Stop at Plaça del Sol or Plaça de la Vila de Gràcia for coffee.
- Book early entry to avoide crowds and heat
- Walk or metro to Eixample
- Passeig de Gràcia
- Our hotel was actually in this area so we spent a lot of time around here, as noted by AI below, there are a ton of restaurant options and it certainly did not feel very touristy.
- Casa Milà & Casa Batlló
- As you can see in the photos below, the architecture is incredibly unique on both of these buildings. We took photos and admired from outside as there was a cost to enter each of the buildings.
- Passeig de Gràcia
- Lunch — this area has many excellent, less touristy restaurants.
- Thai Barcelona*
- Right across the street from our hotel, the food was fantastic but the service was pretty bad and we never got the drinks we ordered.
- Thai Barcelona*
- Afternoon coffee at Syra*
- This ended up being our favorite coffee spot in Barcelona, very tasty!
It was over 100 degrees while we were in Barcelona so unfortunately we skipped the below and instead went back to our airbnb to cool down. We still wanted to include it on the itinerary if others are interested.
Montjuïc Hill
- Take metro & cable car up
- Montjuïc gardens and viewpoints
- Montjuïc Castle for panoramic views of the port
- Optional:
MNAC - Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium*
- Jardins de Joan Maragall*
- Magic Fountain of Montjuic*
Poble-sec
- At the base of Montjuïc:
- Carrer de Blai — famous for pintxos bars
- More local and relaxed than central tapas areas
- Carrer de Blai — famous for pintxos bars
final thoughts:
How did ai do?
Overall Rating: 8/10
Would we go again? Yes, it was very big so there is a lot more we could have done and seen.
Favorite moment:
Bailey’s favorite: I enjoyed shopping here, Barcelona has a good mix of chains, boutiques, and vintage stores. Additionally, brands like Mango and Zara are significantly cheaper than in the States.
Parker’s favorite: I really liked walking along the beach at sunset and just people watching. The sheer amount of people hanging out well into the night was so fascinating to me as nobody does that back home in the US.
Favorite meal:
Bailey’s favorite: Luigi’s was great. Trying the vino y tinto was fun and delicious!
Parker’s favorite: The Latin Lover bowl from Honest Greens! It was so filling and felt really healthy at the same time.
Any surprises? We were surprised by how big the city was.
Anything we missed? Montjuic hill, given how spread out the city was and the heat we just couldn’t swing it.
Food spots AI recommended, but we didn’t have a chance to go: El Xampanyet, Tapeo, Cal Pep, and Hotel 1898.
Average step count per day: 18,350 steps
Nailed it: AI put together a really nice Day 1 itinerary that we felt like allowed us to experience the many different flavors of Barcelona neighborhoods in an efficient way. From the Gothic Quarter to the Marina and Beach, the walk showed us a little bit of everything and we really enjoyed our first day in the city.
Needs work: The Day 2 itinerary certainly could have done without the Park Guell suggestion. In all fairness, AI did mention that we needed to book tickets which we accidentally overlooked, but beyond that, this park was quite a ways out of the city and for 20 EUR a person, we felt like there had to have been better ways to spend a few hours in the morning.