Bienvenido a España! There's so much beauty in the capital of Catalonia! With its cosmopolitan international vibe, it's no surprise that Barcelona is a popular destination for so many travelers. This vibrant city seems to have a little bit of everything - culture, amazing art, tons of history, and of course some of the most renowned restaurants in the world. If you are considering to take a trip here I can assure you it will be well worth it. Unfortunately, I was only able to visit Barcelona for one day, and most of what I'm going to share with you will only scrape the surface of what can be found in this vivacious city. I was offered a free flight, no thanks to Ryanair, in lieu of a previously canceled flight. My first thought was - where in Europe can I go for €80.00? Since I was already in Portugal, I figured the easiest of choices would be Spain, since they are practically neighbors anyway. Ticket prices to Barcelona were dirt cheap...I'm talking like €15.00 for a one way ticket! Now, if anyone has ever had the privilege of flying with Ryanair (that is complete sarcasm by the way) then you will understand that everything on the flight costs money - choosing your own seat, food/beverages, priority boarding, etc. I can assure you I will never fly with this airline again. But that's beside the point. In total, my flight ended up costing me €40.00 .....crazy right?! So now you can understand why I only went for a day. The flight to Barcelona from Porto was only 2 hours. Basically a hop skip and a jump! Once I arrived at the airport, and had access to some wifi, I found the closest metro station (which is literally the ground level below where you exit the terminal). Everything was super easy to navigate and a lot of locals were very helpful and it didn't hurt that their English was impeccable. Below I will provide my top tips for making the most of your trip to Barcelona. I will also include the costs, location, and hours of each place visited. _____________________________________________________________________________ ACCOMMODATION Since I only spent one day visiting Barcelona, there was no need for any type of accommodation. However, I will give recommendations on a few places to consider staying, depending on your budget. All places are relatively close, if not in the center, of the city. _____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________ $ ST. CHRISTOPHER'S INN BARCELONA HOSTEL Location: Carrer de Bergara, 3, 08002 Barcelona, Spain Cost: choose between 8 bedroom dorm - 16 bedroom dorm prices starting from $20.00 per night (USD) Hours: check in is at 3:00 p.m. - 24 hour reception Website: https://www.st-christophers.co.uk/barcelona-hostels _____________________________________________________________________________ $$ HOTEL PRAKTIK GARDEN Location: Carrer de la Diputació, 325, 08009 Barcelona, Spain Cost: prices starting from $57.00 per night (USD) Hours: check in is at 3:00 p.m. - 24 hour reception Website: http://www.hotelpraktikgarden.com/ _____________________________________________________________________________ $$$ HOTEL VILLA EMILIA Location: Carrer de Calàbria, 115, 08015 Barcelona, Spain Cost: prices starting from $97.00 per night (USD) Hours: check in is at 2:00 p.m. - 24 hour reception Website: http://www.hotelvillaemilia.com/en _____________________________________________________________________________ WHERE TO EAT Trying to choose a place to eat in Barcelona is a lot like playing Roulette, it's basically a gamble. If you're able to find a good quality restaurant off the beaten path, then lucky you! The town plaza is packed with a variety of different food options. The only problem is that because they are all located in the center of the city, most of them are overpriced and overcrowded with tourists. This is where good old yelp came in handy. Yes, yelp works even in other countries. I wasn't really feeling the whole crowded plaza scene, nor did I want to spend a ton of money on food (considering I was on a budget at this point in my trip). Between Yelp and Tripadvisor, I was able to find a few quality restaurants within walking distance of my location. Both places were rated highly in terms of food quality, service, and overall customer satisfaction. _____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________ WHAT TO DO / PLACES TO VISIT When thinking about Barcelona, there's really only one place that stood out in my mind - La Sagrada Familia! Honestly, that was probably the only landmark that I recognized while planning this one day excursion. But trust me when I say, that's just only one of the MANY exquisite places to visit in this magnificent city. It's hard to know what to do or where to go when you are traveling to a new place. There's just so many historical landmarks, so much culture, and so much life in a city such as Barcelona. Unfortunately, because I was only visiting for a day, it was a mad dash to ensure that every place on my itinerary list was completed! Below I will provide a few of my top places to explore while visiting Barcelona. _____________________________________________________________________________
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWest Coast blogger with a love for traveling and adventure seeking. Archives
July 2018
Categories |