Barcelona: Here's the Plan...What Am I Missing???
 

Feb. 28th, we’re scheduled to arrive in Barcelona at 10:30am from Kauai — very jet-lagged and dealing with an 11-hour time change. We’ll be staying at Hotel Continental in the Gothic Quarter. FYI, we chose the hotel for the location, having a fridge & microwave, and a 24/7 buffet. We have dietary restrictions and thankfully, are not foodies. We will likely buy much of our food from markets. don’t drink wine or other alcohol.

I’m guessing it will be 12:30 or 1:00pm by the time we get luggage, clear customs, and check in to the hotel. We’ll probably take a nap and head out to explore the Gothic Quarter on foot until it gets dark. We’ll probably go to sleep early.

We’ll have five nights; Thursday afternoon through very early Tuesday morning.

Here are the things we would most like to do and see:

--Sagrada Familia

--Park Guell

--the Cathedral

--Mercado de La Boqueria

We are torn between a Flamenco performance at Tablao Flamenco Cordobes OR Guitar Trio with Dancers (Tribute to Paco de Lucia) at the Palau de Musica… The advantage to the guitar trio is that we’d see the Palau.

A day tour to Montserrat w/ 1-hour hiking and choir (5-1/2 hours)

An all-day tour of Medieval Villages

(https://www.viator.com/tours/Barcelo...142BCNMEDIEVAL)

We're also considering the hop-on-hop-off to get an overview of neighborhoods we might not otherwise go to.

What am I missing? It seems like quite a few of the top sights are Gaudi architecture and I’m not sure how much of that I need to see (after Sagrada Familia and Park Guell). The Picasso Museum is not high on our lists, but is a possibility—especially if we have a rainy day. We’re not interested in the football club.

I’m a serious nature photographer, so we were considering an additional day tour, either to Costa Brava & Girona or the Pyrenees. But with the other day trips, we only have two-and-a-half days in the city.

Any thoughts and suggestions will be much appreciated.
Muchas Gracias!

I'm with Nikki -- it would be best if you can see both musical performances. That said, note that you can see the Palua de la Musica during the day (without catching a performance). And seats at the Tablao Cordobes for those who don't dine there can be truly lousy, so consider going for dinner, too (even though their dinners don't get particularly good reviews).

What are you missing? Well, quite a lot -- but you can't see everything in the time you have. I'd want to find time Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau and Casa Batlló at the very least, but that's just me.

Thanks for the responses. We can do both musical performances. I was afraid that they would be similar, as the guitar trio at the Palau includes Flamenco dancers (although according to a review, they are dancing Flamenco to classical Spanish music, as opposed to Flamenco music). I also thought seeing a concert at the Palau would kill two proverbial birds with one stone. I have a feeling one performance will be enough for DH. But I'll work on it! Never underestimate the power of my nagging. ;-)

<And seats at the Tablao Cordobes for those who don't dine there can be truly lousy, so consider going for dinner, too>

It's funny. I've read both things: the seats are bad if you don't eat dinner...; and ... the venue is small and there are no bad seats--only bad dinners ;-).

The Museum of the City of Barcelona -- especially because of the access to the underground ruins -- will now go on the list!

Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau and Casa Batlló both look very interesting. I think they will go on the "if there is time ..." list ;-).

Thanks so much!

I couldn't see the dancers's feet. Flamenco, no view of feet, bad. Unspeakably bad.

I think kja covered the most important additions but there are others. For my TR start here (links at the top of the page):

https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...s-the-ramblas/

Thursdaysd: Wow. What a great report. Thanks. Ironically, we changed our hotel from the Continental's sister hotel in the Eixample!

<Flamenco, no view of feet, bad. Unspeakably bad.>

Good info to know!

Thanks, again.

Glad you enjoyed it! Can you change the hotel back, lol?

If you go to Recinte Modernista (Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau), I recommend taking a guided visit rather than just walking around on your own. I learned a lot on the tour. It's only about a 10 minute walk from Sagrada Familia, so you can easily go from one to the other. It was designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner, who was also the architect of Palau de la Música Catalana.

Maybe Montjuic Castle in Montjuic Park? Montjuic Park also has some museums, the Miro Museum and the National Museum of Catalan Art, housed in an impressive building:
https://www.museunacional.cat/en/museum

Diamantina--

I had not planned on an art museum, but seeing the photography exhibit described online at the National Museum of Catalan Art has now moved that high on my list. Thank you for those suggestions!

Thursdays: actually, I think I could change the hotel. The one in Example costs a little less and looks MUCH nicer. But we thought staying in the Gothic Quarter seemed more convenient to some of the sights and might be more atmospheric. Location and ability to walk to sights is the biggest factor. With that in mind, do you still recommend switching???

Thanks!

"'d want to find time Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau "

our favorite sight in Barcelona.

((H))

maitaitomi: duly noted!

So ... not including the tour to the Medieval villages, I’ll have two full days and a few hours (following the Montserrat tour) to fit in the following. Is this do-able? I’m going to look on a map and see which of these things should be grouped together. I'll schedule the evening performances on nights when we have not done a long, tiring tour.

Sagrada Familia
Park Guell
the Cathedral
Mercado de La Boqueria
National Museum of Catalan Art (Photography exhibit)
Recinte Modernista (Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
Museum of the City of Barcelona -- because of the access to the underground ruins

I looked those hotels up, and they are not that far apart. Both are close to Pl. Catalunya. The one on the Ramblas is closer to the Cathedral, but the other is closer to the Modernisme sights (not surprising, since they were built in the Eixample) although I see you have not listed any of the apartments. Personally, I would not want a hotel on the Ramblas (or so close to a Hard Rock Cafe and a McDonalds), although it is the far end of the Ramblas. I found buses useful for getting around.

Despite the above if you don't at least walk down that thoroughfare at least once with its bird sellers, flower sellers, illegal shell games, living statues, and the rest of it (tour groups behind people? so what?) I think you are missing an essential. Of course, we always walk on it when we go to the opera but perhaps we are the only travelers here who are into watching extremes.

It depends on your preferred pace and how many breaks you take. I think its possible, but ambitious.

And I agree with Diamantina: the Recinte Modernista (Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau) is best with a tour. And I don't usually like joining tours!

in Barcelona there're over thirty historic sites and a dozen or two of architectural buildings and landmarks that are worth a visit. but indeed it's very hard to manage to look at all these.

sure Sagrada Familia and Park Guell are the must-see still I'd visit Dali museum (a two-hour drive). we were in Barcelona in summer and we enjoyed various wine-and-cava-with-tapas tours, though am not sure whether those will be available in February

by the way, to see as many places as possible we rented a scooter..in Barcelona there're many services like that so if you feel like renting one, it won't be a problem for you (i personally can recommend the one we rented, vesping, https://vesping.com)

if I were you I'd also visit Tarragona (there you can eat authentic seafood paella at El Serrallo), Garrotxa (Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park, a wonderful place for hiking) and Rupit (a town with medieval houses and nice parks for hiking) -- these are picturesque towns around Barcelona. you can get there easily by bus

Actually I think you might find this useful
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi...Catalonia.html
and here is another list https://www.surfingtheplanet.com/en/...ear-barcelona/

Alison: Thank you so much for that excellent trip report. It was VERY helpful.

ooogra: I appreciate your suggestion. With our very limited time, I don't think we can explore much beyond the city. We are already trying to eliminate some things from our itinerary! I don't eat seafood or rice, and don't drink alcohol -- so there will be no paellas, wine or cava. No sugar, either. (But life is still worth living.;-)

Hopefully, this will not be my last trip to the area. I typically work in the U.K. and/or Norway once or twice a year--and we always add vacation time.

<I agree with Diamantina: the Recinte Modernista (Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau) is best with a tour.>

It's interesting to read such varying opinions. I read reviews on TA that said the tour was wayyyy too long and that they would have been much happier going at their own pace with an audio guide. I also read that almost everything shared by the tour guide was posted.

I guess that's why they make 32 different flavors. ;-)

My next decision is whether to book skip-the-line tix in advance for SF and Parc Guell. We will be there the first week in March and I wonder if it will be necessary that time of year.

This museum in a former convent offers a change from Gaudi, although it is nearby that we found a Gaudi gate:

Michael: Thanks for posting those great pix. I'm getting excited!!!

For everyone else... FYI, if you click on the pix there are many more of them.

I won't mention a few of the things we did because you don't drink! My love for architecture and Gaudi meant we did the audio tours of Sagrada (jaw-dropping), Mila, Batlo and Park Guell - it was amazing. We also loved the Palau Catalana - take the guided tour. We also enjoyed Montjuic and the fountain. Even if you don't drink, wander out at night - we got caught in a fun parade at about 11 pm.

Songdoc, what photography exhibition at the National Museum of Catalunya are you referring to? I noticed a Oriol Maspons retrospective, which looks very interesting, but it does not open until July 5, 2019.

On our first visit to Barcelona, we had trouble deciding between Eixample's Passeig de Gracia, with its Art Nouveau architecture and flashy high-end boutiques, and a small hotel on a quiet street--more of an alley really--in the Gothic Quarter. I find the Gothic Quarter very atmospheric. Eixample's not far from it at all, so you'll probably find yourself walking between the two areas on more than one occasion. Even if you choose to stay in the more comfortable hotel in Eixample, you still have the option of taking a free walking tour of the Gothic Quarter. I've not gone on one of these myself, but have read many positive reports on this forum from.many who have. Here's one of the companies I've read about. Maybe someone on this forum can tell you more about free walking tours.
https://runnerbeantours.com/tours/fr...othic-quarter/
These stock photos will give you an idiea of what the Gothic Quarter looks like:
https://www.gettyimages.co.nz/photos...er%20barcelona
I disliked Las Ramblas and tried to avoid it, but it was unavoidable when going to Mercado de La Boqueria.

If they are a priority, my advice would be to book in advance. But I'm sure you'll find other opinions.

"It's interesting to read such varying opinions. I read reviews on TA that said the tour was wayyyy too long and that they would have been much happier going at their own pace with an audio guide. I also read that almost everything shared by the tour guide was posted."

Every tour I've ever taken depends on how knowledgeable and entertaining your guide makes it. We had a good one here, and the tour lasted nearly 90 minutes, which isn't long at all. It's a fascinating place designed by a unique architect with a tremendous history. We don't usually get docents (guides) for these types of things, but all four of us said it was the best experience we had in our five days in Barcelona.

((H))

Me, too!

Diamantina: Thanks for those pics and the info.

< what photography exhibition at the National Museum of Catalunya are you referring to>

Apparently, I am referring to the one I must have hallucinated! I can't find it. It was on the first page of a museum website and it looked like a massive, permanent collection. It's sad when the mind goes. :-(

And ... yes, so much depends on the quality of a tour guide. I've mostly had very good ones. I tend to prefer to go at my own pace with an audio guide, but there are times when that's not a feasible option.

Thank you all SO much for your help. I'll arrive three weeks from today and things are falling into shape nicely!

We’ll leave Kauai Tuesday 2/26 and overnight at SFO. On 2/27 we’ll fly non-stop to Barcelona. We will be dealing with an 11-hour time change, so I’m trying to not schedule very much for the first two days.

FYI, I’ve NEVER planned like this. I’m more of a “play-it-by-ear” kind of guy. But with the tours/day trips, we don’t have much time in Barcelona and there’s so much to see. FYI, I have dietary issues. We are not foodies and we don’t drink wine or cava. (Yes, life is still worth living ;-). So we don’t need to reserve restaurants or allot time for “dining.” Our hotel was chosen, partly because it has a microwave and fridge in the room, and a 24/7 buffet. We will likely buy boring foods in stores for many of our meals.

I’ve left free time most days for walking and exploring different neighborhoods. Based on your input, here’s what I’m thinkin’ ... Is there something we should try to add – or subtract?

Thursday:

arrive 10:25am (I’m guessing it will be 12:30pm or 1pm before we get the luggage, clear customs, & arrive at the hotel.)

nap! Then ... explore the Gothic Quarter

if we’re not comatose:
Museum of the History of Barcelona (w/Roman ruins) 10 - 7 (Tues - Sat.); 10 - 8 (Sun.) 9 minute walk from hotel

Fri.

Familia Sagrada & Parc Guell Tour
https://www.viator.com/tours/Barcelo.../d562-16168P10
4 hours (leave 9:30am from Picasso Restaurant,Carrer de Mallorca, 422; 36 minute walk)

Tablao Cordobles Flamenco show w/Dinner (6:45pm -- 2 hours)
https://www.viator.com/tours/Barcelo...2-2140FLAMENCO

Sat.

Medieval Villages Tour (leave 8:30am; 10-1/2 hours; from “Central Barcelona”)
https://www.viator.com/tours/Barcelo...142BCNMEDIEVAL

Sun.

Montserrat Tour w/ 1-hour hike (leave 8:30am from Passeig de Gràcia; 5 hours; 16 minute walk from hotel)
https://www.viator.com/tours/Barcelo.../d562-6874HIKE

Guitar Concert (w/dancers) at Palau de Musica @ 7 pm; 80 minutes

Mon.

Hospital de St. Pau (Guided tour 10:30am; 90 minutes)

Barcelona Cathedral (weekdays 12:30pm till 7:15pm)

Mercado de La Boqueria (8am - 8pm; closed Sunday) 5 minute walk from hotel

(note: Museum of the History of Barcelona is closed Mondays)

Tues. (leave early morning for N. Ireland— 8 am flight)

Thoughts??? Thanks so much~!!!