[BARCELONA, SPAIN] — There are lots and lots of Barcelona guides, so I won’t go into much detail here, just think of this post like an old postcard rack at the train station, look for places that look good, then go find them. These are all my favorite places in Barcelona. The Best Things to Do in Barcelona, at least the best things to do over a winter weekend in Barcelona.

I won’t go into much detail here, others have already done it. Just think of this post like a cluttered old postcard rack at the train station. Look for places that look good to you, then go find them.

I’ve been in and out of Barcelona a half dozen times. Sometimes just as an overnight, sometimes a week over Christmas holidays, sometimes for some recharge days over a six month slog, returning from Morocco, or Portugal or Corsica — it was like my Home Base, familiar enough to do laundry, buy new clothes, get fixed at the Apple store, etc.

This is a long post, so forgive me. I consolidated a bunch of smaller earlier posts into one comprehensive post so you have all the info in one place.

Check Out Barcelona’s Cool Neighborhoods

Hang Out in Hip El Born

El Born is a cool, quiet neighborhood away from the crazy crowds. It was super quiet when I first started coming to Barcelona in 2011, but has really filled in with many more cool shops, bars and restaurants. Now it’s become super hot and a bit swallowed up by Airbnbs, but still gorgeous.

Perfect for walking around, cool shops, mellow restaurants and beautiful streets.  There’s a great little square with four or five outdoor cafes, perfect to just sit and watch Barcelona go by.  You should go here. Here’s a good article from TimeOut on what to do in El Born and its trendy neighbor.

There’s a lot more to do in El Born, so I made a separate post here.

Off the Beaten Track Gràcia

I only had time for a quick walk-thru in Gràcia, but it’s cool, too. As some would say “This is where the people live” vs. the sometimes airbnb and retail-choked tourist quarters. It has gotten even more popular since. Here’s TimeOut’s guide to Gràcia and all the good things to do.

Meander Around The Gothic Quarter

The Gothic Quarter is chock-full of tourists, but still retains a lot of its ancient character. Dark, narrow medieval streets lined with laundry and cafes.Good chance your hotel is here or nearby, most of the cool boutique hotels are here, many dense pedestrian streets and lots of great restaurants.

Here’s TimeOut’s guide to the Barri Gotic.

Go to Casa Batlló at Night

If you’re going to Barcelona, you’re going to see a lot of Gaudí.  After all those schoolbooks and tests, I never really got him. I’ve always been more of a symmetrical Greco-Roman guy, so would look at all those crazy organic forms in textbooks and pictures and go “I don’t get it. I like straight things.” But walking after around Barcelona with my head up for a week, I get him now.

Where I always swoon over right angles and chiseled goodness, now I see the sensual, organic forms that he created. Almost aquatic or cannibalistic. You can’t get that from a textbook, but being right in front of his work, being INSIDE his work, it all comes to life.

This stop is super easy… it’s right on the sidewalk on the main shopping streets of Eixample. Sometimes there’s nobody in front of it at all, other times you’ll find it by just looking for all the people looking UP. I remember walking by and stopping for the light and looking up “Oh wow, this is that one place with the fishbone balconies.”

The inside is gorgeous, too. You can buy tickets and come back to see the inside, looking out.

Go For a Walk in the Park

The giant Parc de la Ciutadella is the largest greenspace in Barcelona, just north of El Born. Gorgeous destination to grab some food at La Boqueria on in El Born, have a picnic and chill out in the open air. There’s a gorgeous fountain, the zoo and great people watching.

Watch the Sunset on the Roof of Casa Milà

You can’t miss Casa Milà (popularly known as La Pedrera) on a prominent corner of Paseo de Gracia, on of the widest, busiest shopping streets in Barcelona. It’s curvy balconies created a shock when they were building it in 1905, nothing had ever been done like that.

The facade is cool, but it’s the inside and roof that are the real draw. When you walk into the swoopy courtyard and look up, it’s not the typical squared off atrium we’re accustomed to. You feel like you’re inside a wasp nest, looking up at the sky, curvy buildings showing leg all the way up.

But it’s the crazy ass roof that is so amazing. Undulating carpets of stone and stairs loop up and down and all around. Crazy sculptures salute the skyline, looking like stone knights. And sculptured chimney tops like Centurions.

PRO-TIP: Go online and order tickets in advance. Time your visit to be right between sunset and dusk when the lights come on and purple sky frames everything in magic. Daytime is a wasted opportunity.

Cool Off in the Gothic Cathedral

It’s a gothic cathedral, so you gotta go in.

Eat Everywhere

There are so many great restaurants in Barcelona. I was there during their heyday, but still ate most of my meals at the endless numbers of local tapas joints, names I can’t remember. The idea of tapas eating is that you don’t want, or have to stay in one place for the evening. It’s all about popping into a place that looks good, order an Estrella, order a couple of bites, savor them, then move onto the next place. It’s a very respectable way to live.

Go to any of the famous mercados and just belly up to the bar and eat some tapas, bite some seafood or taste some meats. The Boqueria is the most famous and most crowded, but there are different ones closer and just as good, depending on where you are staying.

But if you want a really great sit-down restaurant Boca Grande is a fabulous seafood restaurant in Eixample. It’s everything I love, I go there every time. Great people watching. If you want a the best American-style brunch/lunch or nice dinner, I met the owners of the amazing Picnic at a cool hotel in France, after I’d left Barcelona. You have to go here. Tara and Jaime created a special place and Jamie is an amazing Chilean chef, they also now has an amazing restaurant called Gala in Santa Barbara.

Here’s Eater’s guide to all the good places to eat in the central old part of the city.

Plan Your Day Around La Sagrada Familia

You’ve read about it in your school textbooks. You’ve seen pictures of it. But once you get inside, it all makes sense. Really magical. It’s like a great stone forest, with shimmering colored butterfly windows. I’ve never felt this moved by a building since St. Peter’s or The Pantheon.

I’ve never felt this moved by a building since St. Peter’s or The Pantheon.

You should go hang out here, wait for when the sun is out and streaming though the windows. Don’t let the constructions cranes scare you away, they’ll be there for awhile. They’ve been building this church for a hundred and fifty years, but are close to topping-out.

The crowds are intense, but they meter the entrance. Save waiting in line by booking online days in advance and skip the line. It’s worth planning your day around it so you a) don’t miss it because the lines are too long, or b) waste hours in line. There’s too much to eat in town to be waiting in line.

The expressions of the statues were my favorite discoveries. So much feeling, carved out of stone.

And then you walk through the doors and BOOM.

It’s like a soaring concrete forest. Amazing this all was designed in 1882! Three hundred years ago, yet it looks like it was designed last year.

Spend the Morning in Park Güell

I debated and debated: “Do I really want to go all the way out there?”  Boy, am I glad I did.  Park Güell is a park set in the high hills on the edge of Barcelona.  It’s a little bit of a hoof, but well worth it when you get there.

There’s an amazing Guadi designed pavilion there, trails that loop up and down the mountain and stunning views over the whole city. Just keep going up. You will be rewarded. A great way to spend a half a day. Go in the morning where the sun shines just the right angles.

Hang Out on the Beach in Barceloneta

They actually built the beach for the summer Olympics years ago. A newish area along Barceloneta, with new hotels, cafes lining the boardwalk. People surfing. Picnicking. It’s a little crazy during the summer, but always a good way to kill a couple of hours. Here’s a good page and map on how to get here.

Go in the Magical Off-Season

Too many people have been going to Barcelona. There’s a great Over Tourism push, mostly due to all the cruise ships and stag parties invading their space. I LOVED going over the Christmas holidays, fewer crowds, people in coats instead of shorts.

Go See the Coolest Old School Circus

This just blew me away as I stumbled upon this magical tent at the most glorious December dusk. A movie set-perfect old school circus tent, with the most perfectly art directed kiosks, signs and decorations. It’s part of the famous touring history circus the Circ Historic Raluy. I was looking around for the movie cameras, it was so unreal.

I didn’t have time to get tickets, but googled it and it looks just fantastic. It travels all over Spain, so check them out.

Splurge on a Michelin Star Meal

There are so many great restaurants in Barcelona. Some of the best in the world, many driven by offshoots of the famed Michelin-driven El Bulli, 3 stars, which closed and scattered talented chefs all over the city. The first time I was in Barcelona, it was Peak Michelin, with so many amazing places opening up. Splurged on a tasting menu all by myself at the incredible ABac. It was lovely, it was incredible, it was inventive, but that was also when I really decided that Michelin-starred restaurants were not my jam. I like more rustic-elegant, center-of-the-plate restaurants, preferably cooked with fire. But here are all the amazing Michelin 2 and 3 starred restaurants in Barcelona. You gotta experience it just once.

Order a Spanish Gin-Tonic, Anywhere

Spain is one of the largest consumers of gin and all over the country they have perfected the Spanish Gin-Tonic (no &). Rumor has it that the best chefs often would take a pour of gin in the back, fill a goblet full of ice and tonic and throw in whatever herbs or citrus was around the kitchen to switch it up. A Spanish G-T is about a 4:1 tonic:gin ratio, so the chefs could drink them for hours and not get completely wasted.

Walk into any good bar, or even neighborhood cafe, and not be surprised find a wall with 20, 30, 50 gins. You pick your gin, you pick your upscale tonic and then pick your “toppings” usually a fist full of herbs, cucumbers, citrus or spices, or all the above. Huge goblets loaded like buckets of ice.

I never really drank them before coming to Barcelona and Madrid, but then saw one being served and wanted it right away. Now I have my own set of giant goblets and lemons ready to be rind-ed.

— Last visited December 2011, May, June, July 2015 —

More Information on the Best Things to do in Barcelona

You Should Stay Here: here’s my post on my favorite boutique hotels to stay in Barcelona. And my guide on the El Born barrio.

Here’s Conde Nast Traveler’s top 28 things to do in Barcelona. Here’s the NY Times 36 Hours in Barcelona. And Atlas Obscura’s always fascinating take on offbeat things to do. And the 30 best things from TimeOut. And Travel & Leisure’s 31 Best Things to Do.