Top 10 Things To Do in Barcelona

A visit to Park Guell is one of the most interesting things to do in Barcelona. This is a park complex which is the brainchild of the famous Catalan architect, Antoni Gaudi. He built this complex with an idea of displaying some of his best works in mind from 1900 to 1914. The park is situated on Carmel Hill and is named after Count Eusebi Guell. Guell wanted to convert the hill into a housing project, which was not successful. Recognizing the strong cultural and historical importance of Gaudi’s works and the park, UNESCO named Park Guell as a World Heritage Site in 1984. The park is an expression of Gaudi’s naturalism and modernism in its purest form. Gaudi also incorporated many elements of the Catalan nationalist movement in many of his works in the park. The most breathtaking view of Park Guell is the mosaic sea serpent fashioned as a bench by Gaudi on the main terrace. Gaudi’s house is in the same park complex, and it contains pieces of furniture that were designed by Gaudi himself. This house has become what is now called the Gaudi House Museum since 1963. The park is also home to a variety of wildlife species, especially birds like the short-toed eagle and non-native parrot species, and insect species like hummingbird hawkmoths. A visit to Park Guell is one of the things to do in Barcelona that you should avoid missing.

Placa de Catalunya, which translates to “Catalonia Square” in English is the heart of Barcelona. It holds a special place in the capital city of Catalonia. This monument stands almost in the center of Barcelona and is a famous meeting point for people. The plaza contains large shopping centers and departmental stores, which is frequented by a large number of people at any point in time. King Alfonso XIII inaugurated it in 1927. It is built over a large area of 5 hectares. The architects of this plaza were Pere Falques, Francesc de Paula Nebot, and Puig I Cadafalch. But it also features several interesting sculptures by well-known artists like Llimona and Clara. The Placa de Catalunya finds a significant place in Catalan culture. The plaza had cafes and restaurants like Maison Doree, Cafe Suis, La Lluna, and Cafe Colon. It hosted the intellectual elite of the city, like writers and artists. Unfortunately, none of these cafes survived the Spanish Civil War of 1939, except Cafe Zurich. The plaza contains mainstream retail stores like El Cortes Ingles; hotels like H10 Catalunya Plaza and Olivia Plaza; banks like Banesto and BBVA; Consulate of Canada; and the terminal station of Placa Catalunya of Barcelona metro, known as Gran Metro. A visit to Placa de Catalunya is one of the interesting things to do in Barcelona.

Casa Batllo is a palatial house that seems to be straight out of a fairy tale, designed by Antoni Gaudi in 1904. Visiting the Casa is one of the mandatory things to do in Barcelona. This house is unique as it seems to have a skeletal look to it, with the back designed like the back of a dragon. The Batllo family bought the house in 1900 and wanted to redesign it to be a unique and different piece of architecture that stood out. This is the reason why they hired the architect of Park Guell, Antoni Gaudi and gave him complete creative freedom to come up with a unique style of architecture for the house. Casa Batllo was the result of this endeavor. Throughout the design of the house, Gaudi has avoided straight lines and tried to go for organic shapes, such as irregular, oval-shaped windows, and mushroom-shaped fireplaces. The highlights of this beautiful piece of architecture involve the roof that resembles the back of a dragon, the tower that resembles a spire, the loft designed completely out of catenary arcs. Some others are resembling the ribcage of an animal, and the noble floor with its strong Mediterranean influence with white walls and large airy windows. The noble floor is where the Batllo family resided until the 1950s. A visit to this UNESCO World Heritage Site is a must among the list of things to do in Barcelona.

Placa Espanya is one of the most important squares in Barcelona, which was made for the International Exhibition of 1929. This is also the largest square in Barcelona, built on a site that was previously used for public hangings on the gallows. One of the characteristic monuments in the square is the intricately sculpted fountain at the center of the square. It is just designed by a colleague and contemporary of Gaudi named Josep Maria Jujol and a sculptor named Miquel Blay. Another eye-catching monument is the pair of Venetian Towers, 47 meters each, welcoming travelers to Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya or MNAC on the avenue named Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina, which is well-known for hosting trade fairs regularly. MNAC itself is a major landmark as it is one of the best fine arts museums in Catalonia, standing proudly on the face of Montjuic Hill. This plaza has major strategic importance in transportation in Barcelona. It is because some of the most important roads of Barcelona like Gran Via and Parallel intersect. The Placa Espanya is also an underground terminal station for the Barcelona metro railway line. A tour to Placa Espanya is one of those things to do in Barcelona that you should never miss.

Barceloneta Beach is the most famous beach in Barcelona. This 2-mile long beach is situated in the fishing area of Barcelona, named Le Barceloneta. Barceloneta Beach is one of the most fun things to do in Barcelona, with the boardwalk full of outdoor gyms, fun clubs, restaurants, and many other interesting places. Barceloneta Beach was not a significant beach just thirty years back. But the beach went through a major facelift by the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. The city municipality ordered a reclamation to create a 2-mile long artificial beach and created the excellent Passeig Maritim. It has some of the best pubs, restaurants, and luxury hotels. Some of the iconic artworks at Passeig Maritim are Frank Gehry’s El Peix and Rebecca Horn’s Homenatge a la Barceloneta. Frank Gehry’s El Peix is a 52-meter metal sculpture of a golden fish adorning the waterfront. Rebecca Horn’s Homenatge is a homage to the Barceloneta neighborhood. The Passeig Maritim also has some of the best nightclubs in Barcelona, such as Carpe Diem and Pacha, frequented by world-famous DJs. Barceloneta Beach is also a great place to enjoy Catalan cuisine, especially delicacies like fish tapas. The beach was the setting for the final duel between Don Quixote and the Knight of the White Moon in Miguel de Cervantes’ classic novel, Don Quixote. Spending a day at this beach is one of the best things to do in Barcelona.

La Basilica de la Sagrada Familia or the Basilica of the Holy Family is a breathtakingly beautiful cathedral. The cathedral was initially conceptualized by the Catalan architectural genius, Antoni Gaudi in 1883. The cathedral resonated with his architectural and engineering style to portray a “forest of stone” when observed from close quarters. In 1926, when Gaudi died in a car accident, the architects tried to piece together the original design of Sagrada Familia as envisioned by Gaudi, available only in pieces of his architectural drawings. Due to this, Sagrada Familia, with its Nativity Facade including 18 towers in Gaudi’s original design (one tower each for the 12 apostles, 4 evangelists, Virgin Mother Mary and Jesus Christ) took over 137 years to reach completion in 2019 - making it the longest live architectural project in the history of the world. Several architects and designers tried to think like Gaudi to recreate his imagination of Sagrada Familia, the basilica that was the magnum opus of the devout Catholic architectural genius. The Spanish Civil War of 1936 drastically slowed down the building process of the Sagrada Familia because of two reasons - since the project relied on private donations, the flow of funds dried up during the war and also because some anarchists attacking the Sagrada Familia and destroying Gaudi’s original designs and drawings. This cathedral was inaugurated and consecrated by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010 before it was finished for the public to pray and offer mass. This masterpiece of Gaudi’s Art Nouveau architectural style is a must-visit place among things to do in Barcelona.

Camp Nou is the official home ground of the FC Barcelona football club, which replaced their old home ground, Les Corts, because of the low seating capacity of the old stadium at 48,000. Camp Nou, which means “new field” in English, has a seating capacity of 99,354. This makes it the largest stadium in Europe, the third-largest football stadium in the world, and the eleventh largest stadium in the world! It was completed in 1957 when the FC Barcelona shifted to this stadium from Les Corts. Camp Nou was made by architects Francesc Mitjans Miro, Josep Sateras Mauri, and Lorenza Garcia Barbon from 1955 to 1957, with concrete and iron mainly. UEFA awarded the stadium 5-star status in line with the facilities that are available in the stadium, which later became “Category 4” in 2010. As a category 4 stadium, Camp Nou has a presidential box, press conference rooms, TV studios, a VIP lounge, a veteran players area, a chapel, a Sports Medicine Centre, an Operative Control Unit (OCU), and the FC Barcelona club museum, among others. Camp Nou has also been used for other events other than football matches, such as music concerts. Pope John Paul II offered a mass for the congregation in 1982 on the occasion of him being awarded honorary citizenship of Barcelona. Music legends who have performed at Camp Nou include Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, and U2. Being in a city like Barcelona, with its rich history in global football, a visit to Camp Nou is one of the things to do in Barcelona.

As the name suggests, Museu Picasso or the Picasso Museum showcases the best works of the legendary Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso. The long-term secretary conceived the idea for the museum of Picasso, Jaume Sabartes in 1899, to whom Picasso gave many of his life works. The collection includes some of the best paintings of Picasso, such as ‘The First Communion’, which was painted by Picasso when he was studying at the La Lonja School of Fine Arts in Barcelona in 1896; and ‘Science and Charity’, which was also painted by Picasso in Barcelona in 1897. The museum’s collections also include a book of engravings by Picasso of Ovid’s magnum opus poem,‘Metamorphoses’ donated by the legendary Catalan surrealist artist, Salvador Dali; and a collage by Dali’s wife, Gala Dali. The museum has been built over 10,628 square meters area covering 5 palatial houses, namely Palau Baro de Castellet, Palau Meca, Palau Aguilar, Casa Mauri, and Palau Finestres. All the 5 houses are built in the Gothic style of architecture and houses close to 4250 works of the iconic artist. The museum also has a Knowledge and Research Centre. It also has a public library for people who want to read more about the life and works of Picasso. With the amazing relationship, Picasso had with the city, a visit to this museum is one of the best things to do in Barcelona.

Las Ramblas or La Rambla is a 1.2-kilometre-long pedestrian street lined with trees in the center of Barcelona, running from Christopher Columbus Monument in Port Vell in the South to Placa de Catalunya in the North. La Rambla is an iconic street that is associated with Barcelona in general. The plural form is used so because La Rambla can be considered as a series of multiple adjoining shorter streets. Such as Rambla de Canaletes, the street leading to the famous Font de Canaletes Fountain; Rambla de Santa Monica, named after the Convent of Saint Monica, which is now an arts centre named Centre d’Art Santa Monica; Rambla dels Caputxins, where the Liceu Opera Theatre stands today; Rambla de Les Flors, which has an open-air flower market; and Rambla dels Estudis, the part of the street which contains the Church of Bethlehem. Las Ramblas also contains Barri Gotic or the Gothic Quarter, which was the heart of the city of Barcelona in the olden days. Las Ramblas can be reached using Barcelona Metro, with Catalunya station serving the north part of the street, Liceu station serving the central part of Las Ramblas, and Drassanes station serving the southern part close to the port. Being an integral part of Barcelona’s culture, a walk down La Rambla during the daytime is one of the interesting things to do in Barcelona.

Casa Mila is a famous house in Barcelona which was the residence of the affluent couple, Pere Mila and Roser Segimon, built from 1906 to 1912. It was designed in characteristic modernist architectural style, which has Gaudi written all over it. The chief architects of this project were Antoni Gaudi and Josep Maria Jujol. Casa Mila finds a special place in the world of architecture as the last private residential project worked upon by Gaudi. The undulating and self-supporting stone facade, wrought iron balcony, spectacularly designed terrace, and a free-plan floor significantly adds to this remarkable rough-hewn building. Casa Mila was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984. A trip to Casa Mila is one of the best things to do in Barcelona for a person interested in learning about Gaudi’s works.

Barcelona is a lively city and is one of the best destinations on the Mediterranean coast, be it for enjoying gastronomical delights, experiencing the true spirit of football, or even a night of pure fun with friendly people. Over here, we have listed some of the best things to do in Barcelona as a traveler. Enjoy the joys of this beautiful Mediterranean metropolis immersed in rich history, art, culture, and sports. What are you waiting for? Pack your bags now, plan your trip to Barcelona, and include the afore-mentioned must-visit places in your itinerary.