Top things to do/see in Barcelona
 

My husband and I (both 28 years old) are heading to Barcelona over Easter. We're pretty adventurous people and just need some direction of what to see/where to go while we are there for 5 days. We'd like to see some sites, but don't need to do ALL of the touristy stuff. We sometimes like going off the beaten path so any cool recommendations anyone has for things to do while we are there would be great!! Thanks so much !

Lori

It is touristy but don't miss any of the Gaudi venues.

Go for tapas with the locals in laid-back Poble Sec outside the most beaten tourist track: http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/wv3/...to-bodega.html

Two of my favourire restaurants in town are just up the road, old school and rock'n roll Xemei, and you don't get a more genuine Barcelona lunch than at La perla on the other side of the road.
Xemei, a must: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Lvcjtoh0tU
La Perla: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...Catalonia.html

Poble Sec is at the foot of Montjuic (Jewish mountain) with the so called Theater city, great museums, lots of greens, Olympic sports arenas and fabulous views of both the city and the sea from the Castell on the top: https://www.telefericdemontjuic.cat/en/
http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/wv3/...-montjuic.html

Poble Sec is also close to many of the best restaurants in town in the so called Barri Adrià (after the Adrià brothers who run the best restaurant in the world the past decade, El Bulli) in and around Avinguda del Paral·lel. Here you'll find Tickets, Rias de Galicia, Pakta, Bodegas 1900 etc. etc.
http://www.barcelonabook.com/tickets...estaurant.html
http://www.timeout.com/barcelona/bar...bs/bodega-1900
http://www.barcelonabook.com/pakta-restaurant.html

Local and upscale nightlife in and around Carrer Aribau up from the university from 1450: http://suitelife.com/blog/moving-to-...-world-of-fun/

To dismiss the touristy things in Barcelona is not to understand Barcelona. The city is infused with moderisme of which Antoni Gaudí was the one of architects. Please consult a guide, so you can visit his structures.

Reverse snobbery has its limitations.

In Barcelona? IMO you have not BEEN to Barcelona unless you take at least one walk down the lower Ramblas to see the living statues, the bird sellers, the shell games, the flower kiosks, that ridiculously mobbed marketplace, and the general swirl of humanity.

Sagrada Familia and the reminder of a child's sand castle on the beach that has just been doused with a wave.

The cathedral (and the Gothic Quarter); I wonder if that guy dressed as an angel with those huge wings is still hanging out on the front steps.

Parc Guell

"The" daytrip to Montserrat

And then there is the interior of the Liceu opera house that has burned down THREE different times which only seems to have given birth to more marble and more gold leaf than ever before!

It is, IMO, a great city.

There is probably no other city in Europe that is as polarizing as Barcelona, as we see here in this thread.

Some think, Antonio Gaudi was a great architect, others think his works are just kitsch.

Some think, the Ramblas are a swirl of humanity, others consider them a tacky street crowded by tourist traps and pickpockets.

I am afraid, if you want to explore Barcelona, you must follow your own tastes and preferences and consult a guidebook. I will just throw in a few ideas:

- El Born is a very lively neighbourhood right in the center. Mercato Santa Caterina is a restored market hall with a good and inexpensive restaurant that is frequented by the younger crowd of locals. With your age, you will fit in perfectly. Be aware that dinner time starts not before 9 p.m. and that nights are long in Spain.

- Fundació Joan Miró in Montjuïc is the place to be for lovers of modern art. There are also museums with works of Antoní Tàpies, Pablo Picasso and the unavoidable Gaudi.

- There are also several historical museums in Barcelona, including a quite impressive maritime museum.

- If you want to catch the heart and the soul of Barcelona, take the streetcar to the football stadium of F.C. Barcelona, the Camp Nou. There is a self-guided tour through this temple of sports. However, since it is Barcelona's main attraction, is not exactly of the beaten path; so expect huge crowds - but the place is well organized.

Bookmarking----love to go there

Maitaitom recenty wrote an excellent trip report (insane for Spain) on Spain with a very descriptive section on Barcelona. You might look it up and get some good ideas.

Our favorite sight in Barcelona was Hospital de Sant Pau (aka Sant Pau Recinte Modernista…Modernist Complex).

Here (link below) is the report with lots and lots and lots of photos...Chapters One through Five cover Barcelona. Have a wonderful time.

<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/spain-2015/</B>

((H))

"Be aware that dinner time starts not before 9 p.m. and that nights are long in Spain."

A blanket statement that really is not true. Since you guys are young, you might not want to eat until after 9 p.m., but there are plenty of places open earlier if you want to dine before nine.

((H))

>>A blanket statement that really is not true.<<

You are right, MaiTai. Of course, tapas are served earlier - they are pre-dinner food. And also the touristy restaurants have adapted to the rhythms of tourists.

But if you want an authentic dining experience like the locals enjoy, it starts later.

Many places don't even think about opening until late BUT you'd be amazed at how fast you can get yourself used to eating late and I mean really late.

Poor Traveller....

A number of the top tables in Barcelona open for dinner at 20h30, including Cinc Sentits, ABaC and a few dozen others. Petit Comitè at the Majestic opens at 19h30.

More restaurants in Spain are opening for dinner a little earlier now, not so much for tourists, but for locals who want to eat a little earlier. But lunch remains the main meal of the day and tapas/pintxos are taken before lunch or dinner, not as lunch or dinner.

An excellent flamenco scene in Barcelona. Super star Sara Baras dances "Voces" in Teatre Tívoli in Barcelona several weeks from April 6th after having toured New York, London, Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo etc., and last night Jerez de la Frontera. http://www.deflamenco.com/revista/re...s-minas-1.html

And only top of the shelf artists perform every night in
Tablao Cordobes: http://www.tablaocordobes.es/en
Tablao de Carmen: http://www.tablaodecarmen.com/en/
and Casa Camaron: http://www.casacamaron.com/beta/tablao.html

Trailer to a recent documentary about the flamenco scene in Barcelona: http://www.bajarifilm.com/#!trailer/c24k4