Over the holidays my friends and I were discussing where we had been in Europe and what places were still on our bucket list of places to see and explore. As it turns out none of us had ever been to Barcelona, mainly due to the press and it’s reporting of how along with Venice and Dubrovnik the city was just overrun with tourists.

After having looked into it in more detail it turns out that the overcrowding is due to the massive cruise ships that pull into port during the summer months and unload their thousands of passengers onto Barcelona’s streets for a day of sightseeing.

Having decided that this should not be a problem in the middle of May, my friends and I decided that Barcelona would be a great place to go for a short trip.

With our tickets in hand, we left work early on Friday and headed straight to Luton Airport for our 17:05 easyJet flight to the Catalonian capital.

OD Hotel Barcelona

Read the rest of this article…

Houses in Carrer Campoamor, Horta-Guinardó

Being born and raised in Barcelona has given me the chance to enjoy this wonderful city in many ways. Now that I live abroad, I still regularly come back to Barcelona, to see my family and friends, to enjoy Barcelona’s culinary and cultural hotspots, and of course, the nice weather and the sun! For my perfect day in Barcelona I’ve made a summary of my favourite places and local spots, which I always enjoy visiting.

Morning

My perfect day would begin in Horta, which is the neighbourhood where I grew up and where my family lives. At one of the terraces in Plaça Eivissa I would start my day with a café con leche (a cup of coffee with milk) and some sweet pastry. At Plaça Eivissa there’s also a churrería. Pick a handful of churros and eat them while you discover Horta! Carrer del Tajo is the main shopping street with a local market you cannot miss. A bit further you can discover Carrer d’Aiguafreda, where in the past century clothes from Barcelona’s upper-class members were cleaned. Read the rest of this article…

Enrique Tomás on Carrer de Pelai

My perfect day in Barcelona would definitely start with an Iberian ham sandwich, no tomato please, I might be the only Catalan that doesn’t like pà amb tomàquet – no one is perfect.

Food is a big part of a perfect day, and I would start with Iberian ham from Enrique Tomás on Carrer de Pelai, there’s nothing like good quality Iberian ham.

I would walk down las Ramblas in the morning after breakfast at around 10am, any later will be a battle between tourists and locals. It is a pity that the city centre has become a forbidden place for locals since you know how crowded it would be so you don’t want to fight every step you make. Although this changes with the season, I certainly hope that Barcelona tourism is sustainable and tourism in the future combines the local needs with tourism growth. Read the rest of this article…