Perplexed by good locations to find a rental aprtment in Barcelona - I am thinking Born or Gothic area to be central, mostly walking aorund but open to other suggesitons. 8 day stay in March - would like the area to have local stores, markets, nice to stroll/walk around and, needless to say, relatively safe for walking at night (for a big city!)
thanks

El Born and Gothic have what you are looking for. Both are rather crowded
and lively.

I prefer to stay in Eixample where the streets a bit wider.
We found Barcelona very safe.

Also traveling to Barcelona in March, 20-28, which is over Easter. We have booked a hotel,Catalonia Atenas, on Ave. Meridiana, through Gate 1. It is supposed to be close to Sagrada Familia, 2 miles from city center. If anyone has information to give Iweissmann that might be helpful to us we'd appreciate it.

lweissman - I spent a lot of time researching an apartment for my husband and I for two months (Feb/Mar 2008) - we settled on the Born district - I have ALOT of bookmarks - what are you looking for (size/decor/price) - I might be able to suggest some links.

We stayed in the Eixample and really enjoyed the area. It's a little more upscale and residential and well within easy walking distance to Las Ramblas.

We got an apartment last summer at the Plaza Cataluna V--Ronda San Pere 3. It was very new. Ours was two bedrooms, two baths, washer and dryer, living, dining, kitchen, balcony. It is right across the street from the Plaza Cataluna--right in the middle of everything. Great location--across the street from El Corte Ingles. You could walk everywhere. No complaints whatsoever. www.friendlyrentals.com

hey lweissmann, Borne or Gótico are both great for centrality, the latter will more than likely be noisy. You should also think about Raval, the third, taboo part of Ciutat Vella, which thanks to its edgier and more multi-cultural scene, is less occupied by tourists. Meaning you can get a better deal on a vacation apartment. have a look on way2stay.com, Borne, Gótico or Raval. Raval has markets like the Sant Antoni and La Boqueria, art/design and vintage shopping, street stalls set up some saturdays withe natural produce from the local area, slightly cheaper eating out.

we walked around Raval ;it is indeed a less touristy , but also a rougher part of town.
Since you are worried about safety at night , it may not be the best place to stay.

I also felt that the Raval area was a little sketchy, especially at night.

I would suggest the Barri Gotic or El Born area, or if you are an upmarket shopper, you would probably prefer Eixample for the better shopping.

I don't agree with that. Where there is one small, specific street in raval which has hookers, the ramblas are crawling with hookers and thieves at night. ironically it becomes more dangerous for a man walking there on his own
The sketchiest street to be around at night has to be Escudellers, Plaza George Orwell and the streets around Plaza Real, in Gotico.
Similarly I have only ever seen bag-snatchings in El Borne (in broad daylight on both occasions).

Of course it is pure chance and coincidence where you will feel safe, but I have never felt unsafe in Raval, which is becoming ever-more culturally trendy etc.

Elizabeth S - my eyes are glazing over looking at the different rentals! We need a place for just two of us - mother and daughter. I was thinking maybe Gothic quarter or maybe Born - not too noisey and want to feel safe. Would love to look at your bookmarks - which one did you choose? Looking to spend around 150E per night or less. Decor not much of an issue but don't want it to be too shabby. Thanks for your help!

suec1.

150 euros will get you a NICE apt. in Barcelona
take a look at

www.friendlyrentals.com

suec1 - will post a few things later today...........I found myself looking at the same apartment over and over on different sites under different names!

This is the apartment we've rented - bigger than your needs but the location might be of interest.

http://www.athome-barcelona.com/apartments-372

I wanted to be close to Plaza Catalunya, not in Exiample (we prefer the architecture).

This one is probably 10E more than your budget - but it looked lovely (a little further from Plaza Catalunya than I wanted but a nice apartment)

http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/spain/S1285.htm

I was very interested in this one but it was booked for part of our stay

http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/spain/S1614.htm

Another apartment in Exiample - we wanted something more historic but a lot of people I showed this listing to thought it was a great apartment in a great location at a great price (the terrace would have been more appealing to us had it not been Feb/Mar)

http://www.barcelonaforrent.com/appa...osRefID=ap-152

I loved the location of this apartment - came really close to booking it

http://www.visit-bcn.com/inglaterra/opcion_paloma.htm

Liked this location a lot

http://www.friendlyrentals.com/en/ba...ment-844-1.htm


All of the above are around your price range but all are two bedrooms - as someone else pointed out your budget (if for a one bedroom) is quite good.......you could either pay less or get a bigger apartment.

Boy - I don't know if any of this helps!

Thanks Elizabeth S - more choices! the one you have chosen looks fabulous! I have found two I like I think on the Friendly Rental site - both are around the Gothic area and El Born - with one quite close to the water. I get a bit dotty from looking thru the sites trying to find the "best one". We have not rented an apartment before but the days that we are going to be in Barcelona all the hotels seem to have jacked up their prices - I think there is some sort of medical convention. So we will give an apartment a try - maybe we will never go back to hotels! I'm a little anxious tho about gathering up so much cash but for the money we will save I'm willing to give it a shot! Have a great visit to Barcelona!

suec1 - most people I know who stay in an apartment never go back to hotels!

Good luck!