Before coming to Spain, my only framework for Barcelona was the Cheetah Girls 2 movie… but now that I have been, I realize how incredible the city is! Barcelona is filled with beautiful architecture, adorable shops & boutiques, and incredible food. If you’re looking to get lost down small alleys filled with cute shops and tapas restaurants, Barcelona is for you.
Our Daily Itinerary
Day 1
Checked into Hotel 1898
Walked to L’Alcoba Azul for sangria and tapas
Robata sushi for dinner
Day 2
Walked to Syra coffee
Walked around Parc de la Cuitadella
La Plata for tapas
Popped into some boutiques: Macosch, Los Feliz & Muy Fragile
Walked to l'Eixample
Found my favorite store ever - ‘248 Colmado
Had pizza for dinner at Sartoria Panatieri
Finished the night with a glass of wine at Bar Brutal
Day 3
Grabbed an iced latte at Right Side coffee
Rented bikes and biked all around the city
Stopped at Lady Babka for lunch and had schawarma
Biked to Basílica de la Sagrada Família
Had tapas and sangria again at L’Alcoba Azul
Had paella for dinner at Telefèric
Day 4
Endured the line at Nomad Coffee
Walked around Cathedral of Barcelona and looked at all of the antique stalls
Lunch at Bar Pimentel
Went into a few shops: Concret, La Colmena, Cereria Subirà, and CHANDAL
Had pescaditos and a beer at La Plata
Went to Jimmy Fairly, Bon Vent, and Yümi
Dinner at Bar Brutal
Haley’s Recs
See my whole list of saved Madrid spots on Google Maps
Eat
Right Side for amazing lattes and pastries
Syra for coffee (we actually preferred over it over Nomad which was super crowded and just ok)
L’Alcoba Azul for amazing tapas and the best sangria I have ever had
La Plata for an authentic tapas experience - order the pescaditos and a beer, the perfect salty snack!
Lady Babka Bistrot for a break from Spanish food
Bar Pimentel for heavier tapas, yummy drinks, and a great vibe
Robata for amazing sushi and a very young, trendy crowd
Sartoria Panatieri for amazing farm to table pizza and natural wine
Bar Brutal was our favorite meal in Barcelona - the food and wine are incredible and the restaurant has a very interesting design
Shop
‘248 Colmado is the most beautiful home store, they had gorgeous ceramics and a huge selection of tinned fish, wine, and spanish grocery staples. It is a can’t miss!
Yumi for cute, inexpensive jewelry
Bon Vent, Chandal, and Concret for unique home goods
Cereria Subirà is a beautiful candle shop
Mostaza and Mercilona for cute gifts
See
We didn’t get tickets to Basílica de la Sagrada Família (they sell out way ahead of time!) but even being outside of it was amazing. I would highly recommend at least stopping by even if you don’t do a tour.
Our favorite neighborhoods were El Born, Gothic Quarter, Dreta de l'Eixample, and Sant Gervasi - Galvany
Stay
We stayed at Hotel 1898 which was a beautiful hotel. It also has great amenities: a roof top pool & bar, sauna, steam room, and warm pool. The rooms were very cute but quite small and it was a bit loud - you could hear everything from the hallway. It was also right on La Rambla which is quite touristy. Overall the actual hotel was great but we didn’t love the location.
Tips
If you are planning a trip to Barcelona (or really anywhere in Europe), do not go June - August. Barcelona was absolutely packed with tourists - and I know I was contributing to that, but it was the kind of tourists that have no spatial awareness and haven’t bothered to learn one word of Spanish. Our good friends went in May and had a much calmer experience, and the city hadn’t gotten worse for wear yet. It was quite dirty when we went in June, especially compared to Madrid which is less of a tourist destination. None the less, it was gorgeous and filled with culture and history.