Travel to Barcelona, Catalunya

Barcelona Hotels » Visiting Guide

Sagrada Família, Eixample
(photo by Wolfgang Staudt)

The lively capital city of Catalonia or Catalunya attracted world wide attention with the grandiose host of the 1992’s Olympic Games and since then it has been constantly progressing. In the past, during the long dark years of the Francoist Dictatorship between 1939 and 1975 the city struggled to preserve its unique culture and politics, despite of the severe repressions by the central government. Today Barcelona is one of the prime Spanish cities in terms of business, tourism, culture, cuisine, theatre and cutting-edge design, with the Catalan identity clearly distinguished.

The rich cultural heritage of Barcelona includes everything from ancient Roman remains to first class contemporary architecture in combination with Gothic and modernistic styles. The great artists of the last century - Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró and Antoni Tàpies are represented in their own separate museums. The stage of Gran Teatre del Liceu and that of the gorgeous concert hall designed by the famous Spanish architect Rafael Moneo - Auditorio Municipal, perform memorable spectacles. You’d better start your sightseeing tour from Barri Gotic (the old Gothic Quarter) where you will find the Cathedral, the palaces and the museums reflecting the heyday of the Catalan trading success. In the 1990s the area around the Old Port (Port Vell) was reconstructed from a dirty and neglected grid of narrow streets into a bright new cultural and gastronomic window with pleasant views over the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The main thoroughfare in this district is La Rambla, a long boulevard running from the Catalunya Square (Placa de Catalunya) to the statue of Christopher Columbus (Monument a Colom), which is right next to the port. South of La Rambla is located the modern quarter Barrio del Raval, where is found the Museum of Contemporary Art (Museo de Arte Contemporaneo / MACBA).

Monument a Colom (photo
by Son of Groucho)

West of the Gothic Quarter and the Old City (Ciutat Vella) there is a grid of streets dating back to the late 19th century. This is the Eixample quarter. Here are concentrated most of the ar nuvo monuments of Barcelona, alongside with top quality designer boutiques and fine restaurants. In Eixample you will also see the easily recognised steeples of the Sagrada Família - the unfinished architectural masterpiece of Antoni Gaudí and beyond it - his magnificent Parque Guell. Most of the 40 strange museums of Barcelona are situated in the splendid Montjuïc (Mountain of the Jews). This beautiful hilltop quarter you can reach via a funicular railway from the main port of the city - a trip which will take your breath away. The public transport is very convenient, especially the underground. The surrounding hills and the sea make it easy to find your way touring Barcelona.