BARCELONA IN SEPTEMBER

you say quote: " Mostly we love architecture, food, long walks, gardens and parks, and just experiencing the people." .. If that is the case then I think you really need to base at least part of your visit in the City otherwise you will spend too much of your day commuting in and out. .. It wasn't until our 1st visit to Barcelona 2 years ago that we really developed an appreciation for architecture. A visit to Gaudi's Casa Mila and Casa Batllo should certainly not be missed, the latter is privately owned, entry is a little more expensive but well worth it. . I was very impressed with the Sagrada Familia and was glad I got the audioguide (worth booking time slot and getting tickets ahead of time) If you like gardens Parc Guell is an interesting stop...The park was originally part of a commercially unsuccessful housing development, the idea of Count Güell, Gaudi purchased one of the two only houses that were built here. . Barcelona is also a Mecca for foodies, just as long as you stay away from the eateries in the main tourist hub of Las Ramblas. We very much enjoyed our Day trip to Montserrat, we purchased a ticket that included subway to the main train at Plaza Espanya and the Funnicula to the Monestary as well as the Funnicular to the top of the mountain. From here there are breathtaking views and a series of marked trails back down to the Monestary. (By which time the bus tours had departed and we had the Monestary pretty much to ourselves) ..
We stayed at Hotel Lleo which is in a awesome position just off Las Ramblas the postion also makes it easy to use the airport bus.

If you can plan your trip for about the third week in September, you can be there during the annual La Merce festival. It's the largest festival in Barcelona. It's where you see the Gigants (giants). Google Barcelona gegants. Tens of thousands of people will be in the La Rambla area. Check the internet for the exact dates. You won't regret it. We were fortunate enough to be there on the exact 4 days of the festival 2 years ago. Just spectacular. Secondly, I just heard a blurb on the TV about Barcelona having the best architecture in Europe. If you do go, you must see the Modernisme architecture. It's alll over Catalonia. Of special importance is the Gaudi architecture. Teresa has mentioned several of the sites above. The Sagrada Famila and Parc Guell and simply not to be missed.

Thanks for the replies and suggestions, all good. We usually rent an apartment as we love to cook at home... so here is the question, if we stay IN Barcelona, what are the best parts of the city...."best" for us is simply clean relatively quiet at night, and safe, we do not favor high end areas, (but are not against paying extra for something special) and actually prefer local color much more. Stayed in the Sorbonne area of Paris a few months ago and just loved the activity and cheap food!

I like Barcelona. We stayed in Barri Gotic and were happy. It was centrally located and convenient to everything. The district mentioned above (sounds like shampla but means, I think, "example") is where the Modernist architecture is found. It's quieter and, probably, safer than the Barri Gotic but sacrifices some convenience. Outside of town, I'd probably go up or down the coast. Sitges has become popular in it's own right. It's a beach town that is a popular gay resort. Up the coast, there are a series of small beach towns - all easily reached by train from Barcelona. This is the Costa Brava area, mostly rock reefs and small beaches.

I think a good place to stay is the L'Xiample district...

Me again. Have any of you been to Sitges? Just found a great apartment near the ocean there and the reviews are wonderful for day trips into the city and also to Montmartre and some other areas nearby. It's always a challenge to decide whether to stay in the city or go just outside of it. We always rent a car unless we are going to stay right inside of the city, so a short drive (Sitges is about 15 miles from Barcelona) is not a bother to us. Thanks for an input.