3 Gaudi attractions in Barcelona you must visit

Barcelona is a testament to the work and art of famed architect Gaudi. He is not only one of Spain's most famous architects, but one of Europe's most famous. The city of Barcelona is famed for his designs and if you visit the city, here are 3 of the best sights to see.

1. La Sagrada Familia - This famous temple is Barcelona's most famous attraction, not only because it is arguably Gaudi's best creation, but because it has taken so long to build. La Sagrada Familia first began construction in 1882, but due to delays, finances and resources the building still will not be finished for at least another 90 years. While its distinctive design makes it easy to spot in Barcelona, La Sagrada Familia split opinion when it was first announced. Today, it is incredibly popular with the tourists and has to be seen to be truly believed.

2. La Pedrera - Formerly known as Casa Mila, La Pedrera is a stunningly design block of flats that is famed throughout Spain for its 'wavy' design, coloured materials and the 'Virgin' statue atop it. The flats were originally built for the Mila family, but the building was partially destroyed by the Spanish government. If you are visiting the city during the summer, then you will be able to go on to the building's roof and enjoy a glass of wine while looking out over the city. This La Pedrera de Nit' is highly recommended and one of the attractions for Barcelona art and culture. 3. Park Guell - One of Barcelona's main parks, the Park Guell is filled with Gaudi's creations, chief among them is a massive coloured lizard. Due to its bizarre nature and location, it is incredibly popular with tourists, as is the park itself as it was Gaudi's home for the last two decades of his life.

Where to buy the best Xmas presents in Barcelona

With the festive season rapidly approaching, many people are getting their Christmas shopping and holidays sorted. If you happen to live or are going to Barcelona in the near future, and think it is the perfect opportunity to get your Christmas shopping done, then you could not have found a more perfect place than one of Europe's premier shopping cities.

Barcelona is famed for its markets and while dozens of them are held in the city each week, one of the best to visit for Christmas presents is the Mercadillo de la Plaça de Sant Josep. Packed with art, sculptures and other pieces of local culture, it is the ideal place to find something different to buy your loved ones. Other popular markets include Mercat Del Encants (which is known as the city's largest flea market) and the Sant Antoni Market (a massive food market with everything you could need).

Barcelona is also famed for its winding streets full of little stores and boutiques, so you don't need to go to the city's main shopping malls to find a bargain. A popular area to get designer brands is the famous Paseig de Gracia, which has many boutiques specialising in leather products. There are also several decent stores down Valencia Street.

If you are after fashion products from Armani and Gucci, then you will have to pay a high price, but many smaller stores specialise in similar products, even if they don't have the brand name on. If you want to do your shopping in a mall, then the large El Corte Ingls stores is extremely popular.

Sailing Trips and Lessons in Barcelona

The best way to experience Barcelona with its splendid beaches and scenic beauty is to take a sailing course or two. Barcelona is home to a wide range of sailing instruction facilities, which not only give tourists an opportunity to learn sailing on the picturesque seas of Barcelona, but also to experience the city in a unique manner.

A few months ago, I signed up for a short sailing course and took the classes while on vacation in Barcelona; if you are interested, you can do the same. I soon realised that taking a sailing course was a great way to meet local people, understand the coastal life and culture and experience the city. I cannot claim to be a sailing expert even after the sailing course I just took, but I can definitely claim to have had a great time. Besides, I have learned the rudiments of sailing on the seas of Barcelona. A few more courses and I will be confident enough to go out on my own.

You can sign up for sailing lessons in Barcelona either as an individual or as part of a group of six or eight tourists. You will learn not only about sailing, but also about the coastal geography of Barcelona, how to handle the boat in tough situations and about the weather. Besides this, you will strengthen your relationship with the others in your group. At the end of it, you will find that it was all worth the time and money invested.

If you are lucky as I was, you might also get a free entry ticket to Barcelona’s Maritime Museum, where you can learn more about boats and the history of seafaring than you ever thought you would. Even if your sailing instructors do not give you this bonus, visiting the Maritime Museum after your sailing lessons is worth it because you will find a large number of ancient boats displayed there. More events in Barcelona.

5 Reasons You Should Holiday in Barcelona, Spain

Barcelona in Spain is an excellent vacation destination for tourists because of its rich history, places of attraction, museums, churches and sunny beaches. Here are five top reasons tourists flock to Barcelona in large numbers.

1. To Enjoy the Great Weather and Beaches -The sun shines in Barcelona for most of the year, and the best time to visit Barcelona is during the months of May, June, July, August and September. Moreover, Barcelona has miles of attractive coastline and plenty of sunny beaches, the most famous of which are Barceloneta Beach, Icaria Beach, Mar Bella Beach and the Sitges Beach.

2. To See the Sagrada Familia by Antonio Gaudi – The Sagrada Familia, designed by Antonio Gaudi, is still under construction. Tourists can visit the place where Gaudi has been laid to rest and view the museum, which relates the tale of this master architect and the history of Sagrada Familia. Although exhausting to climb, the towers of the church present a splendid view of the entire city.

3. Visit the Barcelona FC Museum - Barcelona FC Museum, which attracts over 1,000,000 tourists per year, is a place that football fans simply should not skip; even people who do not like football can have a great time touring this monument. Tourists can purchase a ticket to the museum and view the stadium or they can buy a ticket, which permits them not only to view the museum, but also the changing rooms, press conference zones, VIP lounges and other interesting spots. The museum has on display trophies, statues and pictures of great football stars.Learn about buying FC Barcelona football tickets.

4. Make trip to the Barcelona Zoo - Barcelona Zoo, located in Parc de la Ciutadella, is a great attraction for animal lovers. Tourists can first visit the Ciutadella Park and then go to the zoo, which shelters a wide range of animals. Besides the animals, the Barcelona Zoo presents a restaurant, a shop, ponies, picnic area, electric cars and a mini-train. In other words, the zoo can keep the entire family happy and amused for hours.

5. Watch the Magic Fountain - Constructed in 1929 for the Universal Exhibition on Montjuic, the fountain springs to life during summer events and draws huge crowds of excited tourists. The shows which last for 15 minutes each are a delightful blend of lights, music and water. During the shows, the Palau National is also brilliantly lit. The Magic Fountain springs to life every half an hour, and the best time to view it, is in the evenings.

Barcelona’s Shopping Hubs

Barcelona is often described as ‘un gran botiga’ (one big shop!) and that’s not far off the mark. The standard of shopping here, from big name luxury boutiques to small artisan shops is astounding. Add to that two great sale seasons (July-August and January-March) when the discounts can often start at 50% and you see why visitors often return with their credit cards slightly worse for wear. To help you on your way, here are some of the city’s best shopping hubs.

Portal de l’ Angel

This wide pedestrian strip right in the city centre is equivalent to a (very long) British high street. Here you will find all the now-global Spanish brands (Zara,, Mango etc), a frightening number of shoe shops, as well as leatherwear and sporting goods stores. If there is anything you can’t find head to the giant El Corte Ingles department store at the northern end.

El Born

A bit like Covent Garden (or at least how it used to be) the tiny streets of the El Born district hold a cornucopia of fashion and design junkie fixes. You’ll see loads of designer-run boutiques, some fabulous homeware stores, quirky shoes and bags and a couple of big names such as the Swiss furniture company Vitra.

Passeig de Grácia

With its architecture by Gaudí and florid pavement tiles, the Passeig de Grácia is Barcelona’s most elegant avenue. Fitting then that is hosts the city’s biggest name boutiques: Gucci, Chanel, Vuitton, Loewe et al are all here. But at its southern end you’ll find more everyday brands such as H&M and Zara.

Raval

Shopping in the Raval is an eclectic mix of century-old mom and pop stores, cutting edge art and design (particularly around the MACBA museum) and gourmet shops near the Boqueria market. For something really different, head to the Calle Riera Baixa, Barcelona’s retro clothing hub. On Saturdays retailers wheel racks into the street, selling stock at bargain prices.

Cooling off in Barcelona’s Pools

As summer temperatures rise, every one is looking for a place to cool off. Barcelona’s municipal pools offer an alternative to the beach, where you can swim like an Olympic champion or splash around in the shallows of a converted quarry.

Piscinas Bernat Picornell, Avinguda de l'Estadi 30-38 - This is where the swimming events for the 1992 Olympic Games took place. A sleek 50-metre outdoor pool awaits you high up on the verdant hill of Montjuïc, where the air is generally a few degrees cooler than the steamy city below. There is also a smaller indoor pool that is taken over by the local nudist club on Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons!

Piscinas Municipal Montjuïc, Avinguda Miramar, 31 - Located almost opposite the Piscinas Bernat Picornell, this was another Olympic-venue pool. It was used for the diving events and affords sweeping views of the city below. These days its mainly frequented by children and families and has a bar area where adults can chill.

Club Natació de la Barceloneta, Plaça del Mar s/n - Located right on the shore at Barceloneta, this pool has a beach vibe and Mediterranean vistas! There are three pools: a 25-metre outdoor pool and children’s pool (both surrounded by a terrace dotted with sunbeds) and an indoor pool with large glass windows overlooking the sea.

Parc de la Creueta del Coll, Pg. Mare de Déu del Coll, 77 - This is probably the most unusual pool you will ever come to. It is located inside the Parc de la Creueta del Coll, a public park that occupies a former quarry. In between two cliff-like walls hangs a massive claw-like sculpture by the prolific Basque artist Eduardo Chillida. But the biggest attraction is a large a splash pool which is hugely popular with local children in the summer months.

Getting your Chocolate Hit in Barcelona

Chocolate and Barcelona may not seem like an obvious pairing, but chocolate addicts will be pleased to know that there is s long history of chocolate-making in Catalunya, and local chocolate makers are some of the most respected in Europe.

When people think Spanish chocolate they generally think chocolate con churros: a cup of think dark drinking chocolate accompanied by thin, tube-like donuts. Although popular in Madrid, they are hard to find in Barcelona (especially outside the winter months) except at the emblematic Café de la Opera (Las Ramblas 74), a fin de siècle café that generally has them all year round. Instead you could opt for a suizo—a wicked cup of steaming chocolate or a Cacaolat, a light hot chocolate that comes in a bottle. Both are sold at the charming Granja Viader (C/ d'En Xuclá 4).

Barcelona’s vibrant design scene has made a happy marriage with chocolate making. For the funkiest packaging try Xocoa (shops all over the city) and for the most exquisite elaboration, head to Bubó in the hip Born neighbourhood (C / Caputxes 10).

Further afield in the upscale residential neighbourhood of Sarriá, world-renowned pastry and chocolate maker Oriol Balaguer has a minimalist chocolate boutique (Plaça Sant Gregori Taumaturg 2) where products are displayed with the reverence of fine jewellery (with prices almost to match). More down to earth is the Museu de Xocolata (Plaça Pons I Clerch, S/N, also in El Born) where you can find out all about the history of chocolate in Spain, and enjoy a treat in the museum’s café after the visit