2 days in Barcelona

I've been twice. The first time I was by myself and stayed at Sun and Moon Hostel. It was an excellent location just off La Rambla near the Gothic Quarter, Plaza Catalunya, and the Marina area. It's a typical hostel setting and was overrun with teens...drunk teens on a couple nights. It was nothing more than a place to lay my head so I just ignored it and slept.

The next time I took my mother and stayed at the AC Diplomatic, a block off the Paseo de Gracia which is a beautiful wide boulevard with waaay expensive shops and a few Gaudi-designed buildings. They have a rooftop pool and lounge area which provides nice views of the area.

The metro's were convenient to both so it was easy to get anywhere in the city.

I just booked a couple of nights at the Somnio Hostel which is just off the Passeig De Gracia. They have both private rooms and dorms. Looks like a more relaxed hostel than some of the other ones.

What kind of things do you like to do and what have you done before. I love the Gaudi buildings and just walking around the city.

Thanks!

Jeff, we've never been to Barcelona before, so everything is a new adventure. We like to walk to see a city and its architecture, art museums, and spending as much time outdoors as possible, especially with the coast/beaches there. We're not much on shopping on such a short stay, unless there's something interesting like a market.

How is the driving, if you wanted to?

Jayne

Take one of the tour buses-hop on & off. There are 3 lines and you tour the whole city- takes 3 hours. I believe the red line goes by the Gaudi buildings and the famous church which you can get off and viist.

Also wandering the back streets of the Barrio certainly is a must as well as the Rambles. You will fill in 2 days very fast.

Car not recommended.

Jayne,

Barcelona is a great walking city. The architecture is fantastic. I love the Gaudi buildings and am looking forward to visiting them again in a couple of weeks. I have been to the Miro, Picasso, and Catalunya Museum. I like the Miro, the Picasso was ok and the Catalunya was a great place to take a nap under the dome. The Ramblas is interesting but full of tourist and it is not worth spending a lot of time on.

We enjoyed the Cathedral, Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera, Parc Guell, Picasso Museum, the excellent market, walking everywhere especially the Gotic area, eating tapas,lunch near the beach--all in only two days. There was a street market(near the cathedral) on one of those days but items looked very pricey. We want to go back to Barcelona!

We stayed at the Le Meridien on Las Ramblas, which was perfect! Great rooms in a perfect location. We had breakfast each morning at the La Boqueria market a block or so away and were able to walk everywhere. It is not cheap, but worth it for the location and super comfy beds!! As for what to do, we read RS book and wandered around all the areas he suggested. We skipped museum, but did go into one of Gaudi's buildings.

If you're into ships and things maritime, you should try the Barcelona maritime museum, at the foot of the Ramblas on Av. de les Drassanes, a short walk from the Metro stop of the same name. It's expanded from the original royal shipyards located there...that was where the waterfront was a few hundred years ago. Some fascinating displays....one of which is right outside the museum entrance....a wooden submarine! As an added bonus, there are huge storage lockers inside, so if you're lugging stuff around, you can store it there. There's a nice cafe as well, with a nice shady outdoor patio (if the weather's nice.)