Barcelona & Southern Spain (?) in January: Recommendations

Hi Kaysetina

Barcelona, as you know, it's located on the coast of the Mediterranean so temperatures are never cold, our winters are rather mild, and on average you'll find temperatures in January around 50F or higher during daytime and around 40F at night. Temperatures in Seville aren't that much higher in January, after all, it's also in the Northern Hemisphere :) Having said that, as Barcelona rarely sees any snow, should you miss "snow" (lol!), a short ride away -literally, only 3 hours by car or so- you have several mountain ranges, the most 'extreme' so to speak, would be the Catalan Pyrenees where you can have all the snow you want (check the video in the link half way thru)

If you're a Game of Thrones fan, you might want to visit Girona, the second capital of Catalonia after Barcelona, north of Barcelona (45' fast train ride) where season six was partially recorded.

For music and art lovers in Barcelona there are quite a lot of places, too many to include on a short list. Just a taste here... :)

• ArtTicket for the six most popular art museums
• Ruta del Modernisme
• Museu Frederic Marés
• Museu Dalí -this one is in Figueres, near Girona
• Palau de la Musica Catalana
• Gran Teatre del Liceu

If you like architecture, there are literally dozens of sites worth visiting, such as Casa Batlló, Torre Bellesguard, Casa Milà, Casa Ametller, Palau Güell, etc. Here you have a quick sample of some of them.

For foodies:

With a reputation for producing some of the finest cuisine, it’s not just a matter of a few regional dishes but a gastronomy distinct from that found elsewhere. A geographically diverse region, Catalonia produces a variety of fresh, high-quality seafood, meat, poultry, game, fruit and vegetables. These can come in unusual combinations: meat and seafood (a genre known as mar i muntanya – the local equivalent of surf 'n' turf ), poultry and fruit, fish and nuts.

Not only we have several of the top restaurants in the world here in Catalonia, one in particular being named the best of them all for several years (came second this year, damn!) El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, but also some of the best chefs are local (Jordi Roca, Ferràn Adrià, Carme Ruscalleda, Sergi Arola...). Don't take my pretentious word, just Google for it to see for yourself :)) In Barcelona restaurants like Tickets, ABAC, Alkimia, Balthazar, Cinc Sentits, Moments, Enoteca, Lasarte... will make the delights of any foodie. And sure, Barcelona has become a cauldron of culinary kookiness, with the foams and froths of master chef Ferran Adrià and his disciples. But you can still get a taste of yesteryear and traditional Catalan cooking.

But of course, Catalonia is much more than Barcelona and Girona... in a territory not bigger than Maryland you have many other sites worth an escapade, from historical medieval towns like Besalú to old monasteries in impressive surroundings like Montserrat or Sant Pere de Rodes to coastal picturesque towns along Costa Brava and Costa Daurada to world-class vineyards -after all Catalonia is a top wine and cava producer.

...SADLY, though, you need to make a tough decision, because in order to experience the above you absolutely need to plan for several days in Catalonia otherwise you won't get to see much.

Also, for info, Jan 1st is not the best day to travel... it's one of probably two days in the whole year where transportation is reduced and most everything is closed. Not to say you can't travel of course, but expect fewer everything (planes, trains...). It's a great day to walk the city -whatever you happen to be in- and enjoy the architecture, the parks...

Enjoy!

PS. Have to warn you, though, that if your mindset is to visit "Spain" as portrayed in many movies, you'd be in for a disappointment in Catalonia since, while administratively Catalonia is part of Spain, its heritage, culture, history etc are quite different... even has a different language, Catalan (albeit Spanish is co-official). No Mudejar art or Moorish architecture, no flamenco (except for canned shows for tourists), no bullfights, etc. Just saying.

You can't see everything Spain has to offer in a week, but you can see a lot. We loved Barcelona and your girls will love the tapas scene. Seeing the Sagrada Familia was one of the highlights of our trip. After celebrating New Years eve consider the high speed train to Barcelona. Yes, it's 6 1/2 hours, but...no airport hassles, it travels through Provence, a very pleasant trip. Not sure flying with security, etc. saves much more time but you can do the math. Probably many things closed on Jan 1 in Barcelona so train may be the way to go. After a couple of days in Barcelona you can take the high speed train to Madrid (2 1/2 hours). Madrid has the Prado museum, a great morning or afternoon, Plaza Mayor, a fun place, lots of shopping. You can take a day trip to Segovia, or Toledo. The high speed train is then about 2 1/2 hours to Sevilla. There is where you can experience flamenco, see the beautiful cathedral, wander the small streets and plazas. A really great city and nice place to end your trip!

With a week I would not try to see Barcelona and two other major cities. As Enric's posts show, there is plenty in Catalunya alone to keep you busy, and--as a slow traveler--I'd spend all my time there. But I know few other travelers would choose that option on their first trip to Spain. I'll just mention a sight Enric didn't list--the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya. In addition to paintings, it has an interesting modernism collection and fabulous architectural elements from Catalan churches, including medieval frescoes.

The smallish city of Teruel in Aragon is visually stunning. Lots of Mudejar towers and other interesting architecture as well. That would give you some Moorish-style architecture without needing to go so far south. But Teruel is about 4-1/2 hours from Barcelona by train with a change in Zaragoza (larger and also worth a visit), and this would require an overnight stay because of the rail schedule. In addition, there's a substantial risk of quite cold weather.

Next closest for some Moorish architecture, but actually quicker to reach than Teruel because of the availability of the fast AVE trains to Madrid and frequent onward connections, would be Toledo, and you could visit Madrid as well--plus Segovia if you had time, if you chose to base yourselves in Madrid. You can see a lot of Toledo in one day, but it's worth more time than that. And of course Madrid itself has much to see.

If you really want to see Seville, I'd skip Madrid/Toledo on this trip. The AVE would get you from Barcelona to Seville in 5 - 6 hours. Unfortunately, much of the scenery on that route is pretty dull.

Thank you all for your replies! Is Seville's city and the Alcazar worth seeing on our trip? We fell in love with the Alcazar's scenery and architecture from the brief shots of the kingdom of "Dorne" from Game of Thrones, but not sure if it's a must-do as many mention other sights like the Alhambra and other cities... Also please forgive me for missing all the accents on the Spanish words in my reply! I can hear my grandma scolding me in her Castilian Spanish (she was a trilingual Portuguese/Spanish/Filipina) lol. Anyway.

@Enric: Thank you for your detailed short list, oh my goodness! I recognize some of the famous chefs you've mentioned but I have oh so much more research to do in terms of restaurants and eats for our enjoyment, haha. We are so excited to try the more traditional Catalan cooking as well. The surrealist art of Dali and the modernisme architecture of Barcelona is right up our alley. We weren't keen on seeing Girona but at your mention of its close proximity to Figueres' Museu Dali... it may be something we make a trip to see! Thank you also for your notes on the weather and Catalan culture, it's so helpful to hear and we can't wait to experience the unique cultures that lie within Spain this trip and during our future trips! Would love to hear your personal favorite Catalan restaurant and vineyard if you could choose one! (Wondering if visiting a vineyard in the winter wouldn't be as picturesque, although wine is good year round of course.)

@Alan: Thank you for the recs and also for the at-a-glance traveling time it would take if we went from city to city during the week. We may just follow your recommendation to end in Seville as your description is charming, though we're leaning towards staying in Catalonia for most days. Out of the cities you mentioned for day trips, do you have a favorite or stand-out? Also any favorite tapas spots from your trips? :)

@Acraven: Great mention of the Museu Nacional d'Art-- I would've missed that! I'm going to look into Teruel, although your insight on the "dull" scenery on the AVE from Barcelona to Seville is truly SO helpful... Making 1 stop outside of Catalunya is something we have to debate, as we'd want the stop to be very worthwhile! Although, we're a pretty easygoing bunch so we'll likely be content wherever we end up. Between Teruel, Madrid/Toledo, and Seville is there a city you recommend over the others?

All of those places are worth a visit. People respond to different things and will have different favorites. I mentioned Teruel because you seemed to be interested in Moorish architecture, and because Teruel is so much smaller than Barcelona-Madrid-Seville and far less touristed than Toledo, and I like to present options. That's by way of saying that I don't think anyone would rank Teruel with the other cities, though I'd far rather walk around in Teruel than in Madrid if I had 4 hours to burn and had already seen the major Madrid museums. You'd run out of stuff to do in Teruel--other than revisiting and gawking at the beautiful towers and the striking early 20th century buildings--after 6 hours or so, though.

I was in Seville too long ago to include it in the comparison, but it is clearly one of Spain's highlights. It's just that you don't have a lot of time in Spain, and generally when people go to Andalucía they want to see at least Granada and Cordoba as well as Seville.

Madrid is a large city with three important art museums plus other museums of interest and a palace that many people really like. (I'm not fond of whatever period the Palazzo Real is--Baroque? Not my thing at all. Would probably have the same reaction to Versailles.) It's a handsome city with interesting neighborhoods to visit, and the city has an extremely active nightlife; I'm guessing it's the bar-hopping capital of Spain. What it doesn't have is much really old architecture (by European, not American standards, I mean).

Toledo is full of historic buildings, some of them built by Moorish artisans. There's a good museum as well as many historic sights that are both interesting and beautiful (a former synagogue turned in to a church, now disused, the cathedral, etc.). In the summer, people who don't stray far from the path to the cathedral sometimes complain about how touristy Toledo is, but it's like Venice: You just have to wander off the beaten path and the city will be practically all yours. It will be much quieter in January, I'm sure, and some people might find it too quiet in the evening.

Since you mentioned Girona: It is so worth a visit! Large medieval area, a wall you can walk on, and sights such as the beautiful cathedral, the 14th century Church of Sant Feliu, and the Girona Art Museum. The museum is not large, but I thought it was very good. As with MNAC in Barcelona, there are things like architectural elements from medieval churches as well as paintings. Aside from being a worthy destination in its own right, it's quicker to get to the Dali sites in Figueres and outside of Cadaques from Girona than from Barcelona if you're trying to use public transportation. If you want to take a bus tour, Barcelona might work better in the middle of winter, but I don't know how many days a week a tour would be available.

Finally, if you also really like Miro, you'll want to see the Miro Foundation in Barcelona. It's basically a museum of his work. It's in a modern building with the art very nicely displayed. Skip it on a relatively short trip if you're not a big Miro fan.

@Christina

I don't really have a favourite one, there are literally so many that I could easily list you a couple dozens, each one for a different reason. Having such an array of eateries in Barcelona (over 15,000 just in the central districts, ranging from simple no-frills places to top-class restaurants with all the bells and whistles) it's impossible to have "one" :)) I'd say that choosing a restaurant depends on what you're after, or better still, in the mood you're in for.

For example, among others, I do like rice based dishes -something very Mediterranean in fact- such as arròs caldós, arròs negre, mar i muntanya, paella, caldereta de llagosta, and obviously a good fideuà.. and for that the 7 Portes, La Mar Salada, Can Solé, or Arrosseria Xàtiva come to mind for example. Btw, arròs=Catalan for rice and it's pronounced 'ah-ros'. Here in Catalonia we are rice producers too -albeit in small quantities- and there are two particular areas famous for it: El Delta de l'Ebre and Palamós, also known for its prawns.

But then other reasons for choosing this or that might kick in, for example historical: el 7 Portes mentioned before, one of the oldest restaurants in Barcelona, est. 1836, used to be one of the hot spots for the Barcelona bourgeoisie for decades; for a similar approach, Can Cullaretes, probably the oldest in town, est. 1786, more a popular place than a cheffy one, but with the charm of its basic Catalan cuisine with dishes one has eaten home many times in his youth. Or else maybe the setup is considered, then restaurants like La Venta, Asador de Aranda (Tibidabo), Torre d'Alta Mar have some of the best views of the city; or small unpresumptuous ones like Celler Can Recasens in Poblenou, always busy but away from the touristy Les Rambles, or one of the many tapas places, like Lo Pinyol in Gràcia, or Bodega 1900 in Sant Antoni, or Bar Cañete in El Raval... for tapas there's no "best", it's a deeply personal choice and asking 10 locals you'll get 10 completely different responses.

Then of course, if you're on a date you'd choose a romantic place, such as Can Recasens, Restaurant El Pla, Boca Grande, la Carassa, Famen, Minamo... Note that in these shores we tend to choose 'romantic' ('cozy' if you want) over 'expensive' when on a date, even if it's a mere plain tavern. It's not about flashing out money but about touching feelings -or so our ladies say, LOL! And if you're into avant-garde cuisine, of course, you'll be looking at one of the restaurants run by the trendy chefs either the ones from the El Bulli school or others and obviously the Roca Brothers (in Girona) and their Celler de Can Roca. For me, one of the obvious choices is Sant Pau, by Carme Ruscalleda, in Sant Pol de Mar, outside Barcelona. In any case, note that for the later type you need to pre-book way in advance... and prepare to pay an arm and a leg :))

Enjoy!

I myself tend to choose restaurants away from the centre if I can, not because they won't be as crowded -we Catalans go out a lot!- but because they'll be less "touristy" -you know what I mean! As everywhere else in the world, areas receiving too many 'foreign guests' do end up lowering the quality of their services and raising their prices -I guess greediness among business owners is a common sin no matter the city you go to! Have a browse at TimeOut, the sort of unofficial bible for going out in Barcelona. I don't necessarily agree with all their recommendations, but it's a good starting point. Also, over here the line between a restaurant and some other type of eateries (bars, taverns) is often blurry when in comes to good food.

PS: A bonus

What a great thread! Hopefully my message will go to all the people that have been responding??

I am also planning a trip to Europe for January, it will be three women, myself and my college age daughters. I have about four weeks.

My itinerary so far is fly into Barcelona and spend about a week. Fly to Munich for about a day, train to Salzburg for a couple days (possibly Hallstatt, too but I'm not sure its worth it in the winter??), train to Vienna for a couple days, train to Switzerland to spend about 1 1/2 weeks in cities and the Grimmewald area. Train from Geneva to Paris, spend a day and fly home. We will be relying completely on public transportation.

I am overwhelmed by possibilities near Barcelona. Would Montserrat be nice to visit in January? I am also looking at other day trips. Cadques was recommended, it sounds difficult to get to. Is there another town on the Costa Brava easier to get to? Besalu is appealing as something different as well as Girona. Can these two be easily reached by train? If I want to do both, one day is probably not enough so perhaps I would stay in one of them overnight? I was also told or read that Sitges is worth a visit.

Any tips in terms of trains/transportation? I have been to France twice and also a trip to Vienna/Budapest/Prague/Munich. I have done some train travel.

One of my daughters is vegetarian. Will this be a problem in Spain? She is a little flexible, she will eat meat broths and dairy and related, won't eat poultry or seafood.

I am a little worried about reports of crime in Barcelona. (I also hear a lot that Barcelona is people's fave European city) Any particular tips on safety?

Also, I read something about wine/cava in Barcelona/Catalona. Any suggestions for tasting accessible by public transportation? Perhaps just one or two wineries. We prefer tasting at an actual winery and not an in town wine shop. Thanks!

Jules, please start a new thread to discuss your possible itinerary. That way, you'll get email notices when someone responds to your questions, and Christina will not.

Thanks.

Where exactly do you come from, Jules?

Thank you again, Enric & acraven! I've been making reservations at some restaurants (hooray arròs! I loved my grandma's paella) and comparing passes for museums/attractions based on your many recommendations. I so appreciate your thoughtful responses.

I meant to ask for recommendations on hotels to stay in Barcelona for 5+ nights (and perhaps Seville for 1 night)? Our budget is ~$200/night. If not a hotel, maybe a barrio for a potential hotel or apartment via Airbnb?

When researching barrios I liked the idea of being in Eixample or Barri Gotic for the charm and ambiance of the immediate surroundings; Las Ramblas near La Boqueria, would that be lively? And then El Born I read was great for nightlife, which I'm not sure is at the top of the list for a family trip, although I know we'll definitely have our fun late nights at restaurants and bars while in Espana. I've been looking at TripAdvisor, although if anyone has leads that would be wonderful.

Although here in Catalonia, and especially in Barcelona, we have a lively nightlife, note that January doesn't necessarily invite to wander around or sit on a terrace (albeit many have heaters!) in the evening... it can be cold! Thus you'll have people going from A to B but streets won't be necessarily as bustling as in Summer. Also, we tend to go for a night out especially Fri and Sat. This is not to say there aren't people going out other nights, but nothing compared to Fri and Sat. In fact, other nights are rather quiet from 10pm onward.

Sorry, not in the loop for hotels/apts :(

Les Rambles near La Boqueria are nice to walk but not necessarily to stay in -far too noisy and busy (for me!). Staying here or there is down to the street in particular rather than on the "barri" (note no 'o' as Catalan is the local language!). Thus, for example Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes in l'Eixample -a 6 fast-lanes street- is far more noisy than say Rambla Catalunya, also in l'Eixample which is a boulevard mostly pedestrianised -just to name two popular and important streets in the area.

I go for the cheapest single with bath I can find in a reasonably convenient neighborhood, so I can't help with specific hotel info. You should be able to get something nice for your budget. There's sometimes a trade-off between a view and nighttime noise. In my budget hotels in Spain I often had a nice, quiet view of an airshaft. I doubt that will be an issue in your price range. I was very glad to have a room with a mini-refrigerator, because eating dinner between 10 PM and midnight did not work for me at all. I tried to have my main meal at lunchtime (2 to 4 PM), and I sometimes picked up something like a salad earlier in the day and stashed it in my room to eat at 7 or 8 PM. I also bought cups of cut-up fruit for the next morning's breakfast.

A few of Barcelona's main sights are far enough from the center that you'll probably want to use some form of transportation in at least one direction: Parc Güell, La Sagrada Familia, Sant Pau, the Montjuic sights. A lot of others are reasonably walkable if you pick a well-located hotel. I stayed on Carrer de Santa Anna, one block off Plaça de Catalunya as you head toward the port. It turned out to be a fabulous location. Plaça de Catalunya is between the Barri Gòtic and the central part of the Eixample where many modernista buildings are located. There's a major Metro station there, a large (underground) tourist office and the termination point for the Aerobuses from the airport. La Boqueria Market is about 3 blocks down the Rambla toward the port, and there's a large supermarket on that same street before you reach the market. The supermarket is very busy after work but the Express lines move fast.

There's a difference in the ambience of the Barri Gòtic and El Born vs. the Eixample. The former have a lot of narrow streets not laid out on a grid. Buildings are much older, and there's a lot of street life. Those areas have many pedestrian-only streets and shops catering to tourists (more in the Barri Gòtic). When you get up into the Eixample the streets are wider and there's more car traffic but far less hustle and bustle. Except for the stretch of Passeig de Gràcia between Plaça de Catalunya and La Pedrera/Casa Milà, I felt like the other folks out and about were mostly locals, and I was sometimes the only person on the sidewalk. The restaurants weren't full of tourists. It's your typical upper middle class neighborhood (many nice apartment buildings), but with a lot of modernista architecture. Staying out beyond Plaça de Catalunya might be too quiet for some tastes; others would find it comfortable.

I suggest printing out a map of Barcelona and marking the sights you know you want to see. Try for a hotel that puts you sort of in the middle of your target sights and close to a Metro station. Use Google's street view to get a good look at the areas around the hotels you're considering.

One thing to keep in mind is that walking time in the Eixample can be a bit longer than you might expect. In Spain pedestrian crosswalks are not located right at the intersection. You'll have to walk a good way off the straight path every time you need to cross a street, so five blocks can seem more like six. And if you're not paying attention, you may find yourself heading off in a direction perpendicular to where you want to go (happened to me more than once).