Barcelona beachfront

The thing I love about Barcelona is that there are so many areas which offer a different experience of the city. If you need a bit of space away from it all, you can walk down to the port on a quiet morning or if you fancy a browse and a coffee you can head up to the cool neighbourhood of Gràcia and people-watch in one of its sunny squares.

My perfect day in Barcelona involves coffee stops, wandering around, a little shopping and definitely a bit of rooftop drinking. I love it when I have family or friends visiting and I get to share all of this with them.

Surf House Barcelona

My perfect morning would probably be a spring or autumn day here in Barcelona, with bright blue skies and nice temperatures. I love walking down to the beach for a bit of fresh air and exercise and then totally compensating with pancakes and syrup at the Californian style beach bar, Surf House Barcelona (Carrer l’Almirall Aixada, 22) or a cafè con leche and scone (English style) at Buenas Migas (Plaça del Mar, 1). Both spots overlook the sea and therefore make for a perfect breakfast stop.

I love photography and am a massive Instagram fan, so from the beach, I’d probably walk around the back streets of the Born or the Gothic Quarter, taking photos of daily life in Barcelona with its old bars and cute terraces. If I had time, I’d pop into the Convent de Sant Agustí (Carrer del Comerç, 36) to see what photo exhibition they have on. This cultural centre and café, in the Born area, has a gallery with local artists and photographers exhibiting, and sometimes a pop-up vintage market.

El Born

Heading up past the cathedral in the Gothic centre, it’s worth making a stop at El Cercle (Carrer dels Arcs, 5) terrace which sits up high overlooking Portal de L’Ángel, one of the main shopping streets in the city. I recommend this café especially in the winter as it does some of the best churros and chocolate you’ll ever taste.

El Cercle, Carrer dels Arcs, 5

My perfect day includes the perfect purchase, so in the afternoon I’d head up to the shops on Passeig de Gràcia. (If I’m with my nephew this would be after a stop in Plaça de Catalunya, purely to run headlong into a group of pigeons and send them flying!)

Shopping in Barcelona is great and although I love the little boutiques in Gràcia and the Born, I enjoy browsing in & Other Stories (Passeig de Gràcia, 8) and Cos (Passeig de Gràcia, 2) as you’ll always find something a little different from the typical Zara fashion.

I’ve always found the light in Barcelona to be incredible, especially in the early evening and that for me is the best time to head up to the Alaire Terrace Bar at the Condes de Barcelona Hotel (Passeig de Gràcia, 73). A cold glass of wine with my friends or husband along with the seriously tasty prawn wraps with sweet chilli sauce never fail to make me happy. The view of Gaudí’s Sagrada Família and La Pedrera as the sun sets over the city make the perfect end to my perfect day in Barcelona.

Prawn wraps with sweet chilli sauce at the Alaire Terrace Bar

Angela is originally from South London, but has been living and working in Barcelona for 8 years. Check out her blog, Instagram and Facebook for great ideas on what to do/eat/see in Barcelona. Angela also hosts delicious English Afternoon Teas on her private garden rooftop.

If you’d like to write your ‘Perfect Day in Barcelona’ then please get in touch via the email address at the bottom of this website. I’d love to hear from you. The more we have the better!