Barcelona, best area to stay

sudzs

Mr sudzs and myself are thinking of going to Barcelona for a week over Christmas. Never been before so not familiar with the city and would appreciate any advice on what part to stay in. We'll be seeing a few sights during the day but basically we are going for the food! We'll be looking for tapas mostly so is there any area of the city that would be best when it comes to rambling about of an evening having a bite and a beer here and there?

brownian

Barrio Gothic is the Temple Bar of BCN. But nicer, and bigger. The Rambla is the main walking street (think Grafton street on steroids). The Boqueria (?) food market off the Rambla is not to be missed. Food everywhere, but read a good guidebook or TripAdvisor to help avoid the many many mediocre-tourist-food places. The bar called the Butterfly (but in Spanish), that was on the front cover of the Lonely Planet guide a year or two back, has the best ham (jamon iberico) I've had anywhere. A decent glass of red and a plate of that ham is just great.

FCB1899

Gràcia is my favourite neighbourhood as its not too touristy. It's a little bit alternative but has its own food market,a few squares dotted with bars and restaurants and isn't too far from Sagrada Familia and Passeig de Gracia.

sudzs

Thanks both, appreciate your advice. Will check out the areas you mention. Looking forward to that jambon!

Riesen_Meal

I love El Born and Barcolenetta, loads to see and do around both areas and plenty food wise to eat...

brightspark

Not sure this is the best year for visiting Barcelona?

It probably isn't actually dangerous but there is always a chance of protests etc shutting down some of the sights etc.

Riesen_Meal

brightspark wrote: »

Not sure this is the best year for visiting Barcelona?

It probably isn't actually dangerous but there is always a chance of protests etc shutting down some of the sights etc.

I've been 3 times this year, even recently with all the stuff going on and it's fine, same old Barcelona tbh...

Once you don't get involved with the protests you will be fine...

misschoo

I’ve stayed in the Gothic quarter twice and would recommend it too! It’s close to the Ramblas and walking distance to the beach area. Great Irish bar called McCarthys on Via Laietana and go to the Arts Hotel for a cocktail! Will set you back €15 per cocktail but nice to soak up the atmosphere! There is SO much to see in Barcelona - you will love it - the Gaudi houses, Parc Guell, the Sagrada Familla, Plaza -Catalunya & of course Camp Nou for the hubby! God I need to plan another trip!!

Spanish Eyes

I echo Gracia District also. A wee bit away from the main drag but walkable.

There is a street called Rambla de Catalunya, (NOT to be confused with LAS Ramblas!) that has restaurants/tapas all the way down the middle of the street and is close by.

Barcelona is huge. But we stayed in Hotel Condado, and never used public transport at all, just walked. Plenty of bars, tapas and restaurants around. Well we did get a cab up to Park Guell as I couldn't face the hills!, but we were able to walk all the way back downhill no bother, and stop in Gracia for a bit of refreshment. I really liked that area. Close to Sagrada Famiglia also. And walkable to Gothic quarter, Las Ramblas and the sea area too.

Enjoy. It is a most amazing city.

If you get the opportunity you should try to get to Montjuic in the cable car. Put it on the wish list anyway!

You can look up the areas/hotels etc. that I mentioned. Happy hunting.

LaVidaEsAsi

I've been in Barcelona twice. Others have mentioned Gràcia and the first time I visited I stayed in a self-catering apartment in nearby Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, just around the corner from Casa Vicens (the first house designed by Gaudí which just opened to the public last week). Staying in Gràcia or Sarrià can definitely be recommended for a quieter take to Barcelona - a real flavour of the life of the the locals. I really enjoyed it. Some of the best food I had in Barcelona was in these areas and I also enjoyed buying produce from local markets and cooking it myself. The second time, I stayed in Hotel Praktik Vinoteca (reasonably price "boutique" wine themed hotel) in the heart of Barcelona in the Eixample area. It was a short walking distance from Casa Milà and there were definitely plenty more tourists around but I enjoyed being in the centre of things as a contrast to the last visit. I agree with Brownian, make sure you read some up to date guides to avoid the bland tourist trap restaurants and apart from that, chose where to stay based on what sites you want to get to, the kind of pace that suits you and your own personal tastes - good city guides will show you that each Barrio in Barcelona has it's own unique character.

It's a wonderful city, enjoy!