Come spend 4 days in Barcelona with us!
We spent 5 wonderful days in Barcelona in the summer of 2023. This was our first stop in Europe with the kids and they had a great introduction with Spain. The minute we got to our airbnb there was some kind of impromptu music playing and people were making an arm tunnel for people to run through while they cheered them on! đ Check out the details of all we did below! If you are looking for a list of canât miss activities⌠check that out here.
- Day 1: Gothic Quarter
- Day 2: Park Guell and Sagrada Familia
- Day 3: Day Trip to Monserrat and Flamenco Dancers
- Day 4: Mercado Boqueria and Beach
- Day 5: Picasso Museum and Park Ciutadella
Day 1:
We arrived for our first day around 1pm Barcelona time â got very minimal sleep on the overnight trip. We grabbed a taxi to our airbnb in the gothic quarter, right next to the Basilica de Santa Maria del Mar â a wonderful location.
We decided for our first day, we would wander around the gothic quarter with not much planned other than seeing a few sights â and then get to bed early.
We visited the Basilica right by our airbnb which was beautiful. Then we walked through Placa del Rei and Placa de Sant Jaume.
We saw the Temple of Augustus â an ancient roman structure now surrounded by an apartment building â very cool
Next up we saw Placa Sant Felip Neri and Carrer del Bisbe
We walked around the Cathedral but chose not to go in â it was a little expensive and we were tired
We then wandered down La Rambla for a bit, crossed into Placa Reial and then found dinner at Goiko â a burger restaurant
That was about it for the first day â then we enjoyed the balcony at our airbnb and went to sleep early!
Day 2:
This morning we walked up to Mercado Santa Caterina for breakfast. I was thinking this was one of the few bakeries that was open early in the AM, but turned out there were tons on our walk there. There was one small bakery here which was good, but we didnât spend much time here
We prebooked timed tickets for Park Guell and took a taxi up there around 9am
Really enjoyed our time here, and getting there early was good. We wandered around most of the park, saw the nice overlooks, the lizard statue and many other things.
After this we started our walk to Sagrada Familia which was mostly downhill but kind of far
We had timed tickets for 3:30 so before that, we grabbed lunch from an empanada store, got Gelato from a place right next to Sagrada Familia, Gelateria Neva which ended up being amazing and one of the cheapest we encountered (weird!) and then found a barber close by to cut my kids crazy hair
We entered a bit early, around 3 and got right in. It was crowded but so beautiful. We wandered around the entire basilica, took tons of pictures, enjoyed resting in the benches looking up at the stained glass etc. Finally we went up in the tower â Nativity side. It was a quick elevator ride to the top, then a walk across a bridge with great views, then a long walk down a spiral staircase. Iâm not totally sure it was worth the extra money, but my kids thought it was awesome.
We then walked back to our airbnb â another long walk and it was hot. We saw the arc de triomf and grabbed pizza at a quick restaurant before we collapsed from exhaustion back at our place.
Day 3:
Day 3 we spent in Monserrat!
We grabbed breakfast from a bakery then walked to a main street to catch a taxi to Placa dâEspanya. It took us too long to figure out which entry to go down to find the R5 line đ So, leave yourself enough time. We were hoping to get tickets at 8:40am and we got there around 8am, but felt a bit rushed. We finally found the R5 line, found the ticket machine but it was broken and the man helping was helping all kinds of people so it took forever. We were trying to pay with card but it wasnât working, so we had to go to an ATM (thankfully one on site) to get cash. Anyway it was a bit more stressful than it should have been. We got the combined ticket that included the cable car
We got on the train and easily found a seat, although it was getting a bit crowded. It was about an hour ride and we had a nice time. Once we arrived at the cable car we just had a short wait to get on. It seemed much more scenic than the rack railway
We spent the first hour or so just wandering around, taking in the views. We brought some food, but not quite enough for lunch so we ate at the cafeteria to supplement our snacks. Super overpriced and not that great. I would recommend bringing a picnic instead, we just didnât plan ahead well enough. We decided to buy tickets for the 1pm boy choir which allowed us to also get into the basilica. We were able to get in about 30 minutes early to get a seat and enjoy the views. I didnât realize in all the info I read that you have to pay to get into the basilica. I do think the boy choir tickets was the best option because it was fun to hear them (although very short) but you could also see the Black Madonna from a distance.
After that was done, we did the Cruz Sant Miguel via Cami hike which was 1.4miles long. It took us too long to find the entrance and did some extra walking. The entrance was up near the cafeteria and not down by the cable car!
It was a mostly up hill hike. Not super difficult but I was sweating a bit đ At the end you end up near the cross you can see from a distance and looking back on the basilica â gorgeous views the whole way
Once done there we walked back and were able to catch the cable car back down in time to get the train. They come every hour, so plan accordingly. They only arrive about 3 min before they leave again, so no need to get down there super early. What we were not prepared for though, was that it was extremely crowded (this was around 2:40 I think). We stood the entire ride home (1hr) which was less than fun.
We got back early enough to have a nice evening. We cleaned up then went to dinner. We got the kids Pizza Del Born which they liked, then we went to Taller de Tapes Argentina â just a minute from our airbnb and it was great. Nice outdoor seating as well. After that we attended a Flamenco performance, also very close by. We bought the tickets online just a few hours before â they have multiple performances and itâs in a beautiful, small venue â https://www.flamencopalaudalmases.com/ I really enjoyed this! It was about an hour or so. My one son wasnât that excited by it though.
Day 4:
First up this day we walked to Guell Palace â this was a way for us to see some more of Gaudiâs work without 1) walking all the way to Casa Balto and 2)Â saving some money! This one was only $13 for adults, and we worried spending more money that we would regret it because our kids just wouldnât care as much. This place was fabulous. We loved the quick and easy audioguide, it had tons of see and do, especially loving the rooftop. We stayed there for over an hour and really were impressed
We then walked a quick walk to the Mercado Boqueria around lunch time. We each got some food, snacks, dessert and more. Had a really nice time here
After that, we walked back to our airbnb to change for the beach and put away some of the snacks we bought for later
We walked to the beach which wasnât too far. When we got there though it started to rain đ Wasnât supposed to! It kind of tapered off so we stayed for a while playing. Water was cold but the kids enjoyed it.
We only stayed less than 2 hours so had the evening to do some more exploring. We went to El Born Center de Cultura which was really nice. We then ate dinner at El Bosc de Les Fades, a really neat place that looks like youâre in a forest. Finally we finished off with some gelato and a bit more wandering near our airbnb
Day 5:
This was our final day in Barcelona before we boarded a 2 day cruise that would take us to Italy! We couldnât get in line to board until about 4pm so we had bit of time. We relaxed in the morning because we were tired, then my husband went for a run near the beach. We also took my younger son to get a haircut too at Hair Korner â the guy was wonderful, really styled my kids hair! We did two final things before leaving. One was visiting the Picasso museum which was very close by. It wasnât too expensive and we really enjoyed it. My younger son is very into art and really liked it. We had a late lunch at a Mexican place close by, then headed over to spend about an hour at the Park Ciutadella where we saw the big fountain, a few other monuments and had a nice walk.
We absolutely loved our time in Barcelona. The location of our airbnb was perfect and I loved being able to sit on the balcony overlooking the square.
Some other highlights:
