Barcelona - Fireman's Run & St. George's day back to back -- go or avoid?

I don't know how much impact those events will have in Barcelona (where are you, Enric?), but I just want to offer another possibility for a day-trip: the very atmospheric Girona. Closer than Figueres. Has a walkable wall, two great cathedrals, a beautiful medieval historic district, and a very nice not-too-large museum. Actually worth an overnight (or two), so you could easily fill a day there.

Thank you, I'll check out Girona! We bought our airplane tickets a little impulsively... (fare sale, and we were going to go somewhere, we just didn't know where!) Barcelona has long been on my personal to-visit list, but I only just bought the guidebook today. I'm looking forward to digging in!

The fireman's run won't be busy. In fact, the only disadvantage is that some buses are diverted, but use the Metro and no problems at all.
However, Sant Jordi is one of the busiest days in Barcelona, but it is an amazing day, and many people love it. Lots of authors are at Rambla Catalunya signing their books, and people buy them. The most crowded part is usually the centre (Rambla Catalunya and La Rambla) but you just move 2 or 3 blocks and no crows. But the usual main sights will not be packed, as not all of them are at the city centre.
Sant Jordi is a super special day for Catalans, I would try to enjoy it a lot. We give roses and books, and some sights that aren't open for tourism, they open that day (like the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Barcelona City Council), which are very interesting sights not too crowded.

Hi there!

Thanks for calling Ann...

The Fireman's Run is "just" another of the dozens of major sports events happening in the city every year, much like the NY Marathon. In fact, we have a number of "races" happening in the city every year... as many as 50! (check the calendar) The vast majority are held on Sunday to minimize inconveniences to other residents of the city. But they don't really affect much, some streets are closed "when the runners are passing" but as soon as they have moved on, so to speak, the streets are reopened to traffic. No event is never allowed to bring the city to a stall... out of respect to the rests of the citizens. To be frank, I wouldn't even have thought about this particular race being problematic or anything, just if you happen to be at the precise moment runners are passing your location.

As per Sant Jordi, this is a very important day here in Catalonia as it's the patron saint of our small nation and it's also the day of the Book and the Rose when thousands of bookshops and flower shops put their stalls in the streets in most towns and cities in Catalonia, including of course Barcelona and also Girona, and people flood the streets in search of a token for the loved ones. The most famous writers come to the stalls and sign books for fans and the whole ambience in the cities is romantic with roses everywhere. Many visitors from all over Europe come on purpose for this sort of celebrations.

But again, it all boils down to your travel style, if you're just looking for museums and stones, then yeah, thousands of people strolling the city can slow you down; if you appreciate traditions then you can't miss this one, but hey, expect crowds... when we celebrate, we do celebrate.

The festivity is celebrated all across Catalonia, but one very special place is in Montblanc, south of Barcelona, where the legend says "Sant Jordi killed the dragon". In this day a medieval fair is hosted in a town that's already in herself a bit of a fairytale town, with the medieval walls, the cobbled narrow streets...

In any case, regardless of traffic or road closures for this or any other reason, or simply when there's gridlock, the metro is always the best option to quickly move across the city. Just sayin'.

Wow, this sounds so amazing! I went from a moment's hesitation to being really excited about the timing of our trip!! St. Jordi's Day sounds really special, and I can't wait to experience it. As for the race, it sounds like we can seek it out or not if we want to -- my husband is a runner so he's actually considering signing up to run in it. :) What a way to see Barcelona!

Thank you, all, for your kind and informative feedback. This will be a special trip!

Girl, check the calendar of the races above, some are smaller and more local, some others are international venues, but all are pretty crowded, and we have several each month so I am sure your hubby will be pleased! :)

He might like the Salomon Run on the 29th, it's a tough cookie though with lots of uphill/downhill. If you prefer a DIY circuit, on weekends, especially Sunday morning, lots of Barcelonans go to Carretera de les Aigües, a road in the hills north of the city that goes around them with magnificent views of the city and next to the biggest urban park in Europe, the Collserola Park, an 8000-hectare park of Mediterranean forest with lots of fauna and flora, including wild boars, badgers, etc.

While he's burning calories, don't you forget to visit Caelum, in Carrer de la Palla, 8, near the Cathedral, to compensate the yin and the yang and keep the universe in balance, LOL!