Top 7 Reasons to Visit Barcelona

Barcelona is in the Catalonia region of Spain. People in Barcelona do not speak Spanish; they speak Catalan. If you were planning to visit Barcelona to practice your Spanish, you would be in for a big surprise!

Park Guell is beautiful. You can see stunning mosaics and an incredible view of the city below. You can visit Gaudi’s house and take a self-guided audio tour to learn more about his interesting life. I’m really glad I did this, and I learned a lot!

Colorful mosaic in Park Guell

The world-renowned Sagrada Familia is phenomenal. And it’s STILL under construction. Artists and historians have been working for decades to complete the church in genuine Gaudi style.

The church is meant to look like a body. The ceiling looks skeletal, like the body of Christ, and the stained glass windows could represent organs. Every detail inside and outside the church has meaning. Nothing is unintentional. It’s truly a masterpiece. You could spend hours here marveling in its spectacular wonder.

Pro tip: Buy your tickets in advance! When I visited, they were sold out days in advance.

Ceiling of the Sagrada Familia

This was AWESOME! The Bunkers are former military bunkers that have been weathered away over time. They’re on top of a hill overlooking the city. From the Bunkers, you can see the Sagrada Familia, Park Guell, Barceloneta Beach, and the entirety of downtown Barcelona.

Locals meet at the Bunkers to have picnics and watch the sunset. I went for sunset with my hostel mates, and it was one of the highlights of my time in Barcelona.

Sunset at the Bunkers

This is like the Central Park of Barcelona. It’s a huge green space right in the heart of downtown. I recommend bringing something to eat and having a picnic.

Visitors can admire Picasso’s abstract paintings in the same city where he went to art school. When I visited the museum in October 2018, I ran into a classmate from college! I love little reminders like this of how small the world is.

When in Barcelona, you have to check out the Mercado de La Boqueria. It’s a market filled with every type of cuisine you can imagine.

Ham and chips at the Mercado de La Boqueria

A popular sandwich in Barcelona is ‘the Bikini.’ It’s a hot pressed sandwich of ham, cheese, truffle oil, and super buttery bread. It’s divine. The Bikini sandwich gets its name from the Bikini Concert Hall, where they were originally sold after performances. Another indulgent snack is patatas bravas. Patatas bravas are fried potatoes drizzled with mayonnaise and a spicy bravas sauce. Sooo delicious.

Bikini sandwich and patatas bravas

Pro tip: Carry snacks with you at all times. Restaurants are open on a limited basis. They’re not open from morning until late night like in the States. Restaurants usually open around 2pm for lunch and then they close until dinner around 8pm. You’ll need snacks to ward off afternoon hunger. I recommend going to a grocery store on your first day in Barcelona and stocking up on snacks to last the duration of your stay. This will ensure that you can enjoy sight-seeing without your stomach growling.

I recommend trying sangria at as many different restaurants as you can. You might not like it at one place but love it at another. Stay open-minded and try it everywhere.

Have you been to Barcelona? What was your favorite thing to do there? Let me know in the comments!

– Travel Alli