Barcelona sight seeing recommendations

[anricat]

I'm having a really really hard time narrowing down what to do in Barcelona the day before we embark in June. We arrive the day before and we should be fairly well-adjusted to the time change because we'll be coming from spending a day and a half in London prior to our arrival. On embarkation day, we're going to do a short, half day tour that will pick us up from our hotel, drive us around a bit, make a stop at Park Guell and then drop us off at the port, but it's the day before that has me baffled.

I was originally thinking about going to Monserrat, but it seems like that require a full day and lots of travel and I also really want to see Sagrada Familia, so I'm not sure that's going to work. So now I'm thinking Sagrada Familia plus something else on our own that day. Anyone have something that they loved? My daughter is going to be just shy of 10 years old (by a couple weeks).

 

[Marc D]

If you want to stay in a Gaudi mood, I would visit La Pedrera and Casa Batllo. They are near one another. If you want to see something entirely different, you should check out the Poble espanyol on Montjuic. It represents different styles of architecture found in Spain. You can get there by the Hop on Hop off Bus Turistic.

 

[o&smom]

Do not miss Sagrada Familia! I would also recommend Cosmo Caixa. Our kids loved it and still talk about when we can go back.

 

[GatorMomInNC]

You should not miss Sagrada Familia. But get tickets ahead of time online for a scheduled time or you will spend the day in line. If you still have time left over, I found LaPedrera really interesting.

 

[rlk]

We were able to do Monserrat and Segrada Familia in one day.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

We did a half-day tour to Montserrat, booked through Viator. Just do a search for their half-day Montserrat tour. They also offered a full day Montserrat and cava tour that included a cava winery and tasting. These were both small group tours in a van rather t han a bus. We really enjoyed the half-day Montserrat tour, excellent tour guide and good service.

 

[Kate_45]

Sagrada familia is great. I also like the st maria del mer church east of las ramblas. In fact there are a few nice churches plus the cathedral around there as well as some small museums - even the post office is lovely! I would probably go to Sagrada familia first and then just have a bit of a wander around the area I just mentioned (https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place...b4bc945c1fc0e160!8m2!3d41.3838867!4d2.1820709) stopping for some tapas. If you have time you could go over towards the port to take the montjuic cable car up the hill and walk back down via the old Olympic park. Sitting under a tree with an ice lolly might be very welcome by then. (But then you could also do that in parc de la ciutadella if you wanted to stay in the area above).

I can see why you're having trouble deciding, there is just so much to do in that city! I think your nearly 10 year old will appreciate exploring at your pace as opposed to doing a long tour if embarkation day the next day will be long. SF will be crowded and so good to do it first before her concentration fades. Then I would head back in and have a sit down break and recharge before exploring regardless of what time it is. Maybe give her the map of that patch so she can plan a route - that should keep her engaged and excited by it all even if you've already had a few days of sightseeing by then.
Enjoy!

 

[Sarah O.]

Agreed, don't miss Sagrada Familia. We did Montserrat and also time at the beach in our 2 days there. Both were great for our two toddlers!

 

[anricat]

Thanks everyone! I think I will maybe have a slower pace to the day, especially since once we get on the ship it's pretty much tour tour tour in every port. I don't want us all exhausted before it even starts! So it sounds like Sagrada Familia is better in the morning and definitely tickets. There are a lot of options online. Do you recommend the tower? Guided tour? Audio guide?

 

[sambycat]

I would recommend the HOHO bus and do both loops. That way you can see the lay of the land and get out for stops like sagrada familia etc. we were there about a day and a half before the cruise and tried to do too much!

 

[GPaLarry]

We loved Barcelona for two and a half days last year (Sept.) before and during our Med./WBTA B2B DCL cruises. Being new to the city, we turned to our favorite resource, Rick Steves books and videos to help us prioritize for cost, time and interest. Being fascinated by Gaudi, the first day we walked from our hotel past Casa Batllo (he designed the exterior) for photos, then walked through Casa Mila "La Pedrera" (he designed from the ground up). After that we walked (it's a bit of a hike) to Sagrada Familia (which he totally designed and will be constructed for the next 40+ years). We had booked reservations months before to walk it with headphones and take the elevator up one tower (one-way, you walk down). It was truly awesome. If you don't like heights, don't book the tower. Tapas for dinner and done. Next day, bus to Park Guell (need timed reservations, which hotel helped us do, to get into the most attractive and popular part of the park). This place reminded me of Whoville. After being pickpocketed in the gift shop across from the entrance (Barcelona is the capital of pickpocketing, be very careful), we got a taxi to the old town (Gothic Quarter) for a 3pm walking tour (booked online months before) that included the Museo Picasso. Great historic tour that walked through Roman ruins and past a Nike store (in case your shoes were shot) and into Picasso's early years works. Again, awesome! We went back for dinner to the 4Cats, a restaurant Picasso and pals frequented. Lots of security around the city and that is before the attack this year.
Day of boarding Magic we checked in at Disney desk, got on the bus and went to dockside.
We used the day between cruises, back in Barcelona, to walk Las Ramblas. We took the shuttle from the ship to the base of the shopping strip/street, Chris Columbus' statue, and walked a bit more than half way up, to the market, took photos of Rick Steves favorite vendor, then started back and stopped at a coffee shop to relax. Since most of that city is just getting up at 9am, a lot of the shops and attractions were just opening. Again, awesome. We finished by walking down to the CC statue and sat dockside for a while before getting the shuttle back to the Magic.
Monserrat was too low on our priority list for us to head there this time. Also, we did not take the subway system, which I understand is not that difficult. Also, do watch for pickpockets. I only lost a few dollars (money belt with passports inside shirt around waist). They even train kids (smaller hands) and will scam you or catch you in a busy situation. There are YouTube videos about all this...check them out. Be careful and you will truly enjoy this city.

 

[CarolynU]

Barcelona is a wonderful city and you have been given great advice for sightseeing. I second the part about scams and pickpockets. Watch out for tricks like people stopping abruptly in front of you forcing you to stop quickly and then someone behind you will relieve you of your possessions. If you stop to eat or get a coffee don't leave anything on the ground or put your phone on the table. It will be snatched in an instant. Always put any straps across your body. It's not as scary as it sounds but don't let your guard down.

 

[ludari]

I would definitely recommend Sangrada Familia as the number one place to visit. Montserrat is truly amazing and it's unfortunate you don't have enough time to visit this wonderful place. Nevertheless Park Guell is a nice place for an afternoon visit. I also enjoy exploring La Boqueria Market on La Rambla which I think your 10 year old will enjoy. One of my favorite activities was doing a bicycle tour of Barcelona but I'm not sure if your 10 year old can do it. One thing I would also recommend is catching flamenco dancing show at Palau de la Musica Catalana which is in the gothic quarter. Enjoy your visit.

 

[braysmommy]

A fun thing I did with my son is the Chocolate Museum in Barcelona. Added bonus is your ticket is a chocolate bar or at least is was when we went. We were there for 4 days post cruise and I tried to find a few things I knew he would love. If you are soccer enthusiast I would also recommend Camp Nou home to Barcelona FC.

 

[MUN]

I'm not sure bullfighting is still allowed in Barcelona, but I would think that would be a lot of fun to see.

MUN

 

[The Fox Menagerie]

Thanks for all of the Barcelona suggestions.

 

[eva]

We took a couple of Viator tours and they were awesome! We did a full day of Barcelona with Montserrat. It didn’t include he inside of Sagrada Familia. So we set up a tour with them for just Sagrada Familia. I would NOT miss Sagrada Familia. And I would definitely take a tour, not go on your own. The tour guide we had was amazing and knew so much about this wonderful place. Plus, they usually have tickets and a reservation included to take the elevator to the top of one of the spires. We loved Montserrat and the Guadi Park on the City tour, but Sagrada Familia is a DO NOT miss.

 

[anricat]

We took a couple of Viator tours and they were awesome! We did a full day of Barcelona with Montserrat. It didn’t include he inside of Sagrada Familia. So we set up a tour with them for just Sagrada Familia. I would NOT miss Sagrada Familia. And I would definitely take a tour, not go on your own. The tour guide we had was amazing and knew so much about this wonderful place. Plus, they usually have tickets and a reservation included to take the elevator to the top of one of the spires. We loved Montserrat and the Guadi Park on the City tour, but Sagrada Familia is a DO NOT miss.

Thanks! We definitely won't. Hey, I think we're on the same Southern in 2019. Are you embarking January 20 from San Juan?

 

[eva]

Thanks! We definitely won't. Hey, I think we're on the same Southern in 2019. Are you embarking January 20 from San Juan?

We sure are!

 

[jrabbit]

The hop on hop off bus is an easy way to get around without a lot of walking.

Up in the Parc Guel area we got off of the bus, caught the Tram Bleu to the Funicular and took it up to the top of Mount Tibidabo where there is a Cathedral - very cool inside. Great Views outside. Also up there is an amusement park - that might make the kiddo happy - doing some rides.

Picasso Museum - can get long lines. In the same area is the Chocolate Museum. I enjoyed them both. We did Picasso in the afternoon that we arrived in BCN and walked through much quicker than we normally would - but there is a lot of interesting works of his.

Sagrada Familia is a must do for us. We were in it over 10 years ago and the inside pillars were not even half way up to the ceiling and then a few years ago, it was consecrated and is "open for worship" even though it is still not completed. Have not been up the towers yet. That will happen on our next visit to the city.

I've not gone up in the Columbus monument at the foot of Las Rambles but it looks like it could be interesting - again, a nice view from up top. I have taken the cable car from that area up to Mountjuic - we enjoyed spending some time walking around up in that area and visiting the gardens.

If soccer is of interest, I believe that there are tours of the FC Baricelona's stadium.

More modern art museums than you can shake a stick at. Or take a walk along the waterfront near the Parc de la Barcelonetta ("North East" of the Columbus Monument)

when we were there about 5 years ago we used the subway system to get around town and found it pretty easy to navigate. I don't know if there's an app for the BCN subway system, but I did find one that worked very well for London, WITHOUT an internet connection. you put in where you were (which station) and which station you want to go to and it would give you the route without having to spend a lot of time looking at the maps in the terminals.