Category: What to Do

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: 3rd 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

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: 1st 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

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

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 3rd July), Foals, Bastille (both on Thursday 4th July) and finally Years and Years and Kylie Minogue (Saturday 6th 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

Are you feeling the pressure? That nagging end of  the year feeling, the need to have the maximum amount of fun lined up for New Year’s Eve? If you are in Barcelona, you’re in luck, we’ll point you in the direction of the best restaurants, activities and parties on the night. No Sour Grapes! In Spain and Catalonia festivities come with their own customs. At the stroke of midnight you are “obligated” to consume 12 grapes, one for each strike. Washing it down with a glass of cava, the local sparkling wine, is recommended! With or without the wine, the 12 grapes, will supposedly bring 12 months of luck and prosperity. On the other hand, If you are used to spectacular fireworks on New Year’s Eve you might be slightly disappointed, although there’s a good firework show on Plaza Espanya. Our theory is that the “Barcelonins” are all “blasted out” when they get to the end of the year as they are prone to setting off fireworks with any minimal excuse all year, with Midsummer’s Eve - Sant Joan as the, literal, highlight. No worries though, our guide will help you make your own fireworks on the night! New Year’s for Party Animals New Year’s on the Beach: Opium Barcelona - There’s a long standing tradition in Barcelona of taking your party to the beach, and why shouldn’t you? With kilometers of clean, white sand beaches it would be madness not to take advantage! The Opium nightclub has been a hotspot in Barcelona for a long time, and the beachfront location by the Hotel Arts is unbeatable. If you want to dance away the last night of 2018, Opium is a classy setting with deep grooves. Tickets from 50€ here. Hot Club Night: Razzmatazzz - This club, in the beach adjacent Poble