This blog was originally posted on February 15th 2019 and was updated for March 2020.

Barcelona begins to awaken from its winter slumber in March and spring is tapping at the windows. With temperatures rising, the days growing longer and the streets growing busier, March is a great month to dust off the cobwebs and set out for a holiday in Barcelona. Perfectly nestled between the low and high seasons, March is a window of opportunity to explore Barcelona before the crowds really start to arrive.

Read on to discover the weird and wonderful events of Barcelona in March…

Sant Medir Festival: Candy Culture

When: 3^rd March

Where: Carrer Gran de Gracia, Gracia neighbourhood

Price: Free, although you may wish to purchase a big bag.

At first glance, this festival is a little tricky to understand. Well, first glance, second glance, at all glances really, unless you also have a candy and horses festival in your town? We didn’t think so.

The Sant Medir Festival is born out of a local story of a farmer called Medir and a passing Bishop who was escaping Roman persecution. The Bishop told Medir that he was willing to die for his faith and told Medir not to lie if the Romans asked if he had seen him. Medir, who had been sowing his crop of beans, swore to tell the truth and, once the Bishop had moved on, his crop of broad beans began to grown rapidly.  Unfortunately, when the Romans came and Medir told them he had seen the Bishop pass through, they took Medir, captured the Bishop, and both were executed. There is a sanctuary, the Ermita de Sant Medir, in Sant Cugat.

How does this connect to candy and horses? Well, there’s another story too (stay with us): a local baker was suffering an awful illness and made a promise that if he recovered, he would make a pilgrimage every year to the Ermita de Sant Medir. As the years went on, people joined his pilgrimage and were said to throw broad beans to the crowd that watched. Over time, broad beans were (thankfully) replaced with candy and thus the “Sweetest Festival” was born.

On 3^rd March, you can watch the procession which now not only has horses and carts, but trucks and decorated floats. You’ll want to bring a big bag or even an umbrella (turned upside, a local trick!) to catch as much candy as possible. This is a great evening of fun to share, especially if visiting with children, as they can catch candy and then follow the procession to the firework display in the Jardinets de Gracia.

Monumental Club: ¡Ay, qué rico!

When: 14^th March

Where: La Plaza Monumental de Barcelona (map link)

Price: From 5€ per person (ticket link)

Monumental Club is an event worth attending just to see the inside of one of Barcelona’s old bullrings (this activity has been banned in Catalonia since 2012; another bullring located in Plaza Espanya has been converted into a shopping centre). La Monumental still retains all its seating and the Monumental Club event takes place right in the ring in the centre. Walking in and out of the old entrances for the “matadors” and bulls alike is an awesome experience in itself, but throw in some live music, delicious food and beer and you’ve got an all-round winner.

Monumental Club takes place at least once a month in Barcelona, always with different acts and different themes, so don’t worry if you miss this March edition.

Barcelona Beer Festival

When: 13^th, 14^th and 15^th March

Where: La Farga de l’Hospitalet (Google maps link)

Price: from 7,75€ (official site)

Well, the title is pretty self-explanatory here! Take the train from Plaza Catalunya out to L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, which takes around 30 minutes and only costs a few euros, and join thousands of others in sampling the best international beers at this huge three-day festival. Tickets start from just 7,75€, which includes the booking fee, a glass that you use for sampling the beers and that you can keep after the event, a map and booklet to show you where to go and two tokens to help get you started on your tasting adventure.

If you’re new to the world of craft beers, you will find volunteers around the venue that will be more than happy to explain the origins of craft beer and also make suggestions on what to try. This is undoubtedly a must-see (and must-taste!) attraction for beer lovers; there will also be delicious gastronomic offerings to help line your stomach, so what more do you need?

The opening times on Friday 13 and Saturday 14 are from 11.00h to 23.00h – that’s right, a full 12 hours of beer drinking! Make sure you have something to eat at one of the amazing stands. On Sunday 15, it’s from 11.00h to 21.00h, but ten hours is enough for a Sunday!

Barcelona Beer pt. 2: St Patrick’s Day

When: 17^th March

Where: All over the city

Price: Varies, but at the minimum, it’s the price of a few beers!

Yes, even in Barcelona, St Patrick’s Day is now widely celebrated. It’s up to you if you want to celebrate it in the city centre with other tourists, in one of the many Irish pubs that can be found around Barcelona, or if you want to celebrate with the locals in a small bar or restaurant, we hope the luck of the Irish will bless you! Be prepared for Guiness, Irish music and even Irish dancing – and plenty of “craic” (which means “fun” in Irish slang).

Barcelona-Sitges Rally

When: 21^st, 22^nd and 23^rd March

Where: starting from Plaza Sant Jaume

Price: Free to watch

Now, we cannot stress enough how important it is not to drink and drive! But if you want to see some incredible cars after visiting the beer festival, then the Barcelona-Sitges Classic Car Rally is here to help.

Held every year since 1959, the rally sees participants race from Barcelona to Sitges, with the exit from Barcelona a highlight. Classic cars, lovingly restored by the participants (who will also dress in period-appropriate clothing), leave from Plaza San Jaume in the centre of Barcelona and travel to Sitges. Don’t worry if you don’t catch the opening ceremony, there are other spots around the city to catch the race – lookout for updates on the official website.

Also, from the 2^nd to the 21^st March, six classic cars will be on display at L’illa Diagonal Shopping Center, including a 1916 Hispano-Suiza and a 1908 Cadillac Thirty.

Festival in the Gothic Quarter

When: 20^th – 24^th March

Where: Gothic Quarter

Price: Most festivities are free.

The Festa Major del Pi, also known as the Festa de Sant Josep Oriol, takes place in the Pi area of the Gothic quarter, which consists of the church, Santa Maria del Pi, and the streets that surround it. The major features of the celebrations are the Gegants del Pi, some of the oldest Gegants in the whole of Catalonia (gegants are large paper-and-wood representations of men and women, each neighbourhood has their own). While the gegants will be used in dances and processions, there will also be theatrical demonstrations of local legends, from stories about Sant Josep Oriol to tall tales about thieves and highwaymen.

This was originally posted on the 22nd December 2018; it was updated 18th December 2019.

January in Barcelona is a quieter time, but that doesn’t mean that the festivities stop and the city shuts down for a month. On the contrary, as a Catholic country (officially, although many people in Cataluña are not religious), there are still two more holidays in January to be celebrated before the yuletide season comes to a close. There are also still many amazing activities taking place, and lots of fun things to see, so if you’re trying to combat the January blues with some Mediterranean merriment, let us guide you through the chilly streets and show you some of the great things you can do during January in Barcelona.

Don’t forget, visiting in low season means that all the major attractions will be less busy. January is a great month to visit Sagrada Familia and Gaudí’s other works, as well as to enjoy the emptier streets. We still suggest buying tickets in advance, just in case! If you’re visiting for a conference or a team-building, be sure to check out our Team Building Activities and Group Travel Services, and get in touch for help getting tickets to the main attractions for large groups.

Important! The average temperature in Barcelona in January is around 13 degrees, so while you might not want to go swimming, won’t need 50 layers and thermal undies to spend some time with us. Speaking of swimming…

Go to the beach: Primer bany de l’any 2020

When: 1^st January

Where: Sant Sebastia beach, just in front of the Club Natació Atlètic-Barceloneta

Price: Free or 3€ for access to the showers and a certificate.

As with many coastal cities, hot and cold, Barcelona holds an event to celebrate the first swim of the year and it’s called “Primer bany de l’any”. This New Year’s Day swim will certainly combat any hangover you may have acquired due to the previous evenings antics, as the Mediterranean Sea can be mighty cold in the winter. If you’re looking for a fun but frosty way to wash away the cobwebs of 2019, or even just the memories of New Year’s Eve 2019, join the hundreds of other locals and visitors as they plunge into the water.

And it’s not just hangovers, the locals will tell you, that a dip in the sea will help. All year round in Barcelona, young and old residents alike will take an invigorating dip in the water, which you will hear promotes good health and a long life. If you think you can handle the New Year’s Day shivers for a year of positive energy then bring your swimsuit along to your winter holiday.

You can either join the swimmers waiting on Sant Sebastia beach for free, or you can register as an “official” swimmer on the Club Natació Atlètic-Barceloneta website and have access to a hot shower and receive a diploma when you exit the water.

Concert Agenda: Concert de Nadal de l’Orfeó Català

When: 3^rd January

Where: Plaza del Rei, Gothic Quarter

Price: Free

If you’re a fan of choirs then you won’t want to miss this moving performance that takes place in the iconic Plaza del Rei. This is the square where Christopher Columbus is said to have presented the treasures he found in America to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. The Orfeón Catalán, a foundation that supports choirs in Catalonia, presents this concert, with acapella performances from the Men’s Choir and the Young Choir of the Orfeón Catalan. The music echoing off the medieval walls will fill you with festive cheer.

Plaza del Rei provides the perfect setting for these beautiful recitals. While the songs will be performed in Catalan, you don’t need to understand the words to appreciate the quality of the performances and the stunning setting. Also, you may recognise the melodies of classic Christmas carols like “Silent Night” (Santa Nit), “The First Noël” (On Aneu Pastorets) and “Oh Christmas Tree” (Oh Arbre Sant). Stay for one song or the whole evening, the enchanting voices of the choirs will help it feel like Christmas isn’t over yet.

Celebration: Día de los Reyes

When: 6^th January

Where: Beginning at Port Vell, then spreading across the city

Price: Depends what you do! But the parade is free.

Speaking of Christmas not being over yet, the Día de los Reyes, or the Day of the Kings, is the highlight of the festive period for many children. On the 6^th January, Catalan children will once again head to the Christmas tree to see what the three kings have brought them in the night. However, Barcelona’s way of celebrating this day is truly a sight to see – or should I say a sight to Sea?

On the evening of the 5^th January, head to the Port Vell in Barcelona between 4 and 4.30pm and you will see hordes of families looking out to see, waiting for something. And what are they waiting for, you ask? Why, the Three Kings of course! That’s right, a highly decorated boat carrying the Three Kings will dock in Barcelona and so begins the celebration of King’s Day. From here begins the three hour parade through the city. It is, of course, amazing and exciting for children, adults will enjoy the experience as well; it’s a great way to combine a day out with a truly local experience. Be sure to try the traditional cake too, decorated with neon coloured fruits to represent a crown.

Celebration: Las Festas de Sant Antoni

When: 17^th – 26^th January

Where: Gracia

Price: Depends how much you eat and drink!

If you’re looking for something a little less Christmassy but still ready to celebrate, look no further than the street parties in the neighbourhood of Sant Antoni. These fiestas are the honour the neighbourhood’s namesake, Saint Anthony, whose Saint’s day in the Catholic calendar is the 17^th January. Of course, in true Barcelona style, only one day of parties is never enough and this week-long event is sure to combat any January blues that may have settled.

Originally a celebration on the island of Mallorca, the festivities have travelled across the sea and landed in Barcelona, when Mallorcan and Catalan traditions collide: this means plenty of Human Towers, plenty of parades featuring the statues of giants (in Catalan they are called gegants – have a look on Google or show up on the day for a surprise!) and, most excitingly, a correfoc. This word translates to “fire run” and is a pyromaniacs dream! Fireworks, fire crackers and bonfires will form a part of these amazing celebrations, with people dressed as demons roaming the streets with pitchforks covered in fireworks – not for the faint-hearted!

If you’re not here in January, fear not, correfocs are part of many other celebrations during the year.

What else is on?

Visitors during January can make the most of the quieter streets with our fantastic personalised tours of Barcelona or keep warm in the kitchen with an amazing Spanish cooking class, visit our activities pages for more information.

We hope to see you soon!

As true Barcelona enthusiasts, at BarcelonaTours we feel the need to promote more than the most widely known attractions in the city. This is our goal for our “Hidden Gem” stories, we are doing small presentations of things in Barcelona that we find fantastic, but that might not be on everyone’s to-do list. The topic of the first gem in our series is the architectural marvel, Hospital Sant Pau.

If all hospitals looked like this, people would be checking themselves in, constantly!  The hospital was constructed between 1901 and 1930, and concocted in the mind of the famous modernist architect, Louis Doménech i Montaner. The architect might stand in the shadow of his more illustrious compatriot, Antoni Gaudí, like the hospital is in the shadow of Gaudi’s greatest work, the Sagrada Famila, but he is one of the most prominent modernisme (or Art Nouveau) architects.

Besides its opulent façade and ornamentation, the architecture has been hailed for its successful adaption to patient needs. It is probably fair to say that he Catalan version of Art Nouveau is the more “phantasmagorical” of the various strands, taking inspiration form nature and striving for natural, more than strictly functional forms. However, as an architect, Montaner kept closer to “the rule book” than his colleague Gaudí did.

About the Architect: Louis Doménech i Montaner

Born in Barcelona (1850) he became a significant figure in the city development, as an architect and as a professor at Barcelona’s school of architecture, for 45 years. His name is probably more associated with another Barcelona building, the Palau de la Música Catalana, a beautiful concert hall situated in the Sant Pere neighbourhood ( a 10 min. walk from Plaza Catalunya), and  well situated on the list of the most iconic buildings in Barcelona.

As an architect, he favoured more open structure and spaces, a contrast to Gaudí’s more intricate, undulating forms. Both the Hospital Sant Pau and the Palau de la Música bear witness to this.

World Heritage Site

The hospital complex, a UNESCO world heritage site, has been a museum and cultural center since 2014, meaning that architect buffs can get up close and personal with the buildings. The hospital is one of the finest examples of Catalan modernism, and well worth a short detour off the most well trodden tourist trails in Barcelona.

How to get there

From Sagrada Familia – Walk up (west) the pedestrian Avinguda Gaudí street for ten minutes and you arrive at the gate of the hospital.

From Plaza Catalunya – Walk to the Metro stop on Passeig de Grácia and take the L4 (yellow) line to Guinardó-Hospital Sant Pau, which will bring you to the backside of the hospital. Or, take the D 50 bus to Indústria-Independéncia, then walk for 4 minutes up C/Badajóz to the hospital. Both options will take about 25 min.

At BarcelonaTours we customise your Barcelona experience, whether you want to focus on architecture, food or other themes. Check out what a private tour of Barcelona can entail!

July, simply put, is usually a scorcher in Barcelona. The spring showers have passed, the summer storms of August have yet to come, so it’s blue skies and hot sands as far as the eye can see. July also is one of the busiest months of the year when it comes to festivals, both international and local, so read on the discover the exciting things that await you in Barcelona in July…

Cruilla Festival: A mix of local and big name bands

Let’s kick off with this brilliant and budget-friendly festival that takes place at Parc del Forum.

With the most expensive tickets priced at 160€ for the full four days, Cruilla Festival, which is incidentally celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2019, is also offering combo tickets which let you mix and match which days you want to attend. For example, you can purchase a two-day ticket which allows you to enter on just Wednesday and Saturday, or Wednesday and Friday and so on, as well as one-day and three-day tickets. This flexible approach ticketing means that you don’t need to buy a full ticket in order to catch the acts you’re interested in.

Known as having more commercial acts mixed with local bands, this eclectic festival has the likes of Kendrick Lamar and Lauryn Hill among its headline alumni. This year you can catch Black Eyed Peas (Wednesday 3^rd July), Foals, Bastille (both on Thursday 4^th July) and finally Years and Years and Kylie Minogue (Saturday 6^th July). Held at Barcelona’s favourite festival spot, Parc del Forum, you will also find dance stages, comedy stages and speeches scattered around, meaning there’s always something to see.

Festival Jardins Pedralbes: Music in the Park

These beautiful gardens are not as famous as other parks in Barcelona, and they are far enough from the centre that you might not immediately want to add them to your list of must-dos if you’re only in town for a few days. However, each year for the past 7 years, the gardens have drawn big crowds for the big-name acts that perform at the Festival Jardins Pedralbes. The gardens themselves are large, lush and green, with flowers everywhere in July, which makes it the perfect summer setting for an evening of great music.

Although this festival began at the beginning of June, it carries on until mid-July with many great acts still ready and waiting to perform. June saw the likes of Carli Bruna and Mariah Carey take to the stage, but the line up definitely hasn’t trailed off towards the end! In July you can catch Joss Stone (Wednesday 3^rd July), Kraftwerk (Saturday 6^th July) and The Beach Boys (Friday 12^th July).

This year, if you visit on Saturday 13^th July, you will get two events for the price of one, as Soundeat! hosts their nighttime edition in the Pedralbes gardens. For those who can dance for hours, this is a great way to spend time in the stunning surroundings of Pedralbes while boogying the night away from 17.00h until 02.00h!

Hint! If you like the sound of Soundeat!, get your tickets sooner rather than later as the tickets increase in price the closer to the event you purchase them. This is not the case with the rest of the Festival Jardins Pedralbes.

For more tickets and information about the Pedralbes Festival, please visit their website.

Sonar Festival: Techno by day and by night

That’s right, another festival! Sonar takes place the third weekend in July with venues spread across the city. This is accompanied by OFFSonar, a bunch of awesome events which are thrown at the same time as the main event, so there’s no excuse to miss out on being a part of the action.

The cheapest tickets are for the daytime events, which are on sale for around 60€ for a full day of music fun. If you’re more of a night owl, the night tickets start from around 80€, and the full festival experience of three days and two nights will set you back 195€. If you really want to make this a special event, Sonar also has VIP Packages starting from 115€ for one night, all the way up to a pocket-burning 315€ for the full festival VIP experience. This includes access to exclusive VIP stages, bars and restaurants, as well as an exclusive VIP zone and even a free bus shuttle to the venue.

However you choose to enjoy the festival, you can see acts such as Disclosure, A$ap Rocky, Four Tet, Peggy Gou and Skepta.

Hint! Remember, in Barcelona night means night! Sonar by Night kicks off at 22.00h and goes until the early hours of the next morning, so be sure to have a siesta if you choose to attend the night festivities – unless you’re also at the day festival of course!

“Festa Majors” of Raval and Poble Sec: Sun and “cerveza” in the streets

Seasoned visitors of Barcelona will know that throughout the year, come rain or shine, each “barrio” or neighbourhood has their own designated street parties. If you’re here in July but not fussed about forking out a lot of money to visit a festival, then taking to the streets with the locals is for you. The Raval parties are in mid-July, with Poble Sec taking over the reins from the 19^th to the 28^th.

Stages and bars are purpose-built around the city streets. You can purchase a beer, wine or cocktail for just a few euros and park yourself in one of the streets to watch the local bands that come to play. If you get bored in the streets (unlikely, but it could happen) then you can head into one of the many bars in the neighbourhood.

What kind of music is it? Well, expect the unexpected! From cheesy cover bands to reggae beats to house music to an old man and his guitar, anything and anyone could be a headliner at these events. Attending one of these street parties is a great way to get really immersed in what summer nights in the city are all about, so get out and discover the real Barcelona.

Sala Montjuic: Movies under the stars

Finally, a seated activity! To round off our blog about dancing, drinking and get out and about comes the Sala Montjuic. Barcelona in July has the perfect weather for an outdoor cinema, and tickets are as little as 5€.

The location is little short of spectacular. Up on the hill by the sea sits the Montjuic Castle, and the cinema screen is set up in the old moat! You can bring along your own picnic and alcohol and sit on the floor, or for a comfier experience, you can rent folding chairs for just a couple of euros extra. There’s also always a musical act or other artistic production on before the movie, so you can head up the hill in the early evening to set up camp and enjoy the music and the atmosphere before the film kicks off.

The programme for this year includes everything from comedy classics such as Some Like it Hot to big hitters from this year like Bohemian Rhapsody and The Favourite. Check out their website for the full timetable.

Hint! All the movies are shown in their original language with Spanish subtitles, so be sure to check that you’re not attending a movie you won’t understand!

Book an activity with Barcelonatours to make your visit extra special! Visit our Boat Trips page to organise a nautical adventure and our Activities page to see what great options we have for fun in the sun in July.