Second Time in...Barcelona

First time in Barcelona is unforgettable with the Gaudí grand tour, strolling the Gothic quarter and falling in love with all things modernisme.   Twenty years ago, I lived here for six amazing months and after the inevitable rite of passage of being ripped off for a jug of sugary sangria on La Rambla, I learnt to appreciate the city’s more subtle charms.

Whilst you should absolutely tick off the greatest hits first time round, a return visit gives you scope to explore the greener, grittier and more intriguing side of the Catalan Capital. There are still crowds – Barcelona is never going to suddenly be described as a hidden gem – but it’s entirely possible to have a completely different, and I would argue, more interesting trip second time around.

You’ve already done:  the Sagrada Familia, Park Guell and Gaudi’s houses on Passeig de Gracia, got blisters wandering down La Rambla (hopefully sans sangria), La Boqueria market and the Gothic Quarter, been to the Camp Nou (hint – if you’re going to a match, aim for tickets behind the goal, not the top tier – that’s where they shove the tourists).

Plate of bread with tomatoes, croquettes and a beer on a street cafe corner

Mini statues of Catalan caginess, some holding national flags

Day 1: Rediscovering Urban Charms

Morning: Breakfast at Xurreria Sant Antoni

• Address: Carrer del Comte d'Urgell, 110, 08011 Barcelona

• Opening Hours: Daily, 7:30 AM – 1:00 PM

• Price: €3-5 for churros and hot chocolate

• Nearest Metro: Sant Antoni (L2 - red)

Nothing quite prepares you for a day of exploring like deep-fried dough and molten chocolate.  I’ve tried multiple places in central Barcelona but none come anywhere close to this churros bar in the working-class neighbourhood of Sant Antoni, about 15 mins by Metro from the city centre.

Xurreria Sant Antoni is a tiny, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it spot. More to the point, it's a local an institution, serving up crisp, golden churros and thick, velvety hot chocolate.   Catalan dominates both the conversation and the menu and you’re in no doubt that this is not a regular tourist haunt. You don’t need an English menu – simply decide between prims (thin) or gossos (thick) and enjoy your weekly sugar intake in a dozen mouthfuls.

If you need a caffeine hit, take in a café solo at the bar.  It’ll help get you over any sugar crash you and you’re ready to take on the day.

Mid-Morning: Montjuïc

• Address: Ctra. de Montjuïc, 66, 08038 Barcelona

• Opening Hours: Castle: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM; Cable Car: 11:00 AM – 6:30 PM

• Price: Castle: €5; Cable Car: €14 round trip

• Nearest Metro: Paral·lel (L2, L3) then Funicular de Montjuïc or Plaça Espanya (L2) then 10 minute walk/escalator

From Sant Antoni, grab the L2 Metro back to Plaça Espanya (15-20 mins) and catch the escalators up to  Montjuïc.

Montjuïc is where Barcelona shakes off its urban sprawl and stretches out with a mix of history and sweeping views.  Start at the Olympic Ring, where the ghosts of the 1992 Games still linger in the sleek, retro-futuristic architecture.  While they no longer host sprinters or gymnasts (albeit FC Barcelona are in temporary residence while the Camp Nou is rebuilt), they make for a great reminder of how Barcelona went from industrial underdog to international superstar.  A few hundred metres along from the Olympic stadium is the diving pool with stupendous views back across the city – watching this on TV is one of my earliest sporting memories and the view is even better in real life.

From here, wander (or catch Bus 150) up to Montjuïc Castle, a fortress that has seen everything from pirate invasions to military coups – Catalan/Spanish history is decidedly messy. These days, it’s mostly just enjoying retirement as a scenic viewpoint and is a splendid place to spend a late morning.

The Montjuïc Cable Car is the transport of choice to get you back to ground level. There’s something uniquely thrilling about dangling over a city in a tiny metal box, especially when you realize the only thing between you and the ground is a cable that most was likely in place prior to the ’92 Olympics.  If that puts you off, there’s always the underground Funicular back to the Metro.  But before that…

Lunch: La Font del Gat

• Address: Passeig de Santa Madrona, 28, 08038 Barcelona

• Opening Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM

• Nearest Bus Stop: Parc de Montjuïc (Bus 150)

Hidden in the greenery of Montjuïc Park, La Font del Gat is the kind of place you’d stumble upon and instantly feel smug about discovering. Housed in a historic pavilion with a charming terrace, it serves up Catalan classics like escalivada (roasted vegetables with olive oil) and butifarra (blood sausage).

The setting is peaceful, the food is hearty, and the service is cheerfully unhurried.  Don’t book anything to close to lunch.

Afternoon: El Born and Santa Maria del Mar

Santa Maria Del Mar

• Address: Plaça de Santa Maria, 1, 08003 Barcelona

• Opening Hours: Mon-Sat, 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM & 5:00 PM – 8:30 PM; Sun, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM & 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM

• Price: Free entry (donations welcome)

• Nearest Metro: Jaume I (L4)

Santa Caterina Market

• Address: Av. de Francesc Cambó, 16, 08003 Barcelona

• Opening Hours: Mon-Sat, 7:30 AM – 3:30 PM (closed Sundays)

• Website: Santa Caterina Market

• Nearest Metro: Jaume I (L4)

After this morning’s open spaces, El Born marks a return to the narrow streets of the city centre.  Parallel to the Gothic Quarter but with far fewer tourists, it represents Barcelona at its most effortlessly cool - cobbled alleys, tucked-away boutiques, and the kind of wine bars where people pretend to read poetry while secretly judging your choice of tapas.  

Whilst wandering and getting lost is all part of the enjoyment, you absolutely should not miss Santa Maria del Mar.  Built by local merchants in the 14th century, it’s one of the few churches in Europe actually funded by the people who worshipped in it.  No royal meddling, no ecclesiastical embezzling, it’s something of a novelty in Catholic Europe.  The soaring stone columns, elegant stained glass, and hushed atmosphere make it a place of quiet reflection (and/or at least a great spot to take five minutes to chill). 

The El Born Centre de Cultura i Memòria (CCM) nearby is also worth a visit - an archaeological site with remnants of the medieval city beneath your feet, an intriguing realisation that the city has over a millennia of history behind it. Outside is an excellent place to catch street performers.

With one eye on tomorrow, make a pit stop at Santa Caterina Market before closing time at 3.30pm, which has all the great produce of the more famous La Boqueria market but without the selfie sticks and pickpockets.

Underneath its striking, wave-like roof covered in multi-coloue mosaic tiles, you’ll find a treasure trove of freshly baked bread, manchego cheese, Iberian ham, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives. If you have a sweet tooth, grab some turrón (nougat) or coca de llardons (flaky Catalan pastry with sugar and pine nuts) for either a dessert course tomorrow or as gifts for loved ones back home (or just stick with Manchego, that always works for me).

Evening: Cerveseria Catalana

• Address: Carrer de Mallorca, 236, 08008 Barcelona

• Opening Hours: Daily, 8:00 AM – 1:30 AM

• Website: Cerveseria Catalana

• Nearest Metro: Diagonal (L3, L5)

This place is a rite of passage for food lovers in Barcelona. Cerveseria Catalana is what happens when tapas goes rogue: fresh seafood, perfectly grilled meats, and patatas bravas so addictive they should come with a warning label. Locals and tourists alike queue up for a seat (come early to reduce the queuing time with the trade-off of being seated amongst tourists).

If you’re unsure what to order, go for the bombas (potato croquettes with a spicy kick), garlic shrimp, and a side of whatever the waiter suggests – they’re not backwards in coming forwards with their suggestions.

Continue your night with a stroll around the Eixample District, picking out whichever bars take your fancy – there’s enough to pick from.

If you’re in a cocktail mood, start at Dry Martini (Carrer d'Aribau, 162). This elegant bar is all about vintage drinks done right, and – as the name suggests - the martinis are so crisp they could cut glass.  For something more playful, head to Bobby’s Free (Carrer de Pau Claris 85) a speakeasy hidden behind a fake barbershop. Once you get past the “staff” insisting you need a haircut, you’ll enter a world of inventive cocktails, jazz music, and a general sense that you’ve just joined an exclusive club.

Try to avoid Spanish drinking hours otherwise you’ll never get up for Day 2.

Day 2: Beyond the City Limits

Most of the Day: Montserrat

• Getting There: R5 train from Plaça d’Espanya (1 hr) → Aeri de Montserrat cable car or Cremallera railway (20 min)

• Opening Hours: Monastery: 7:30 AM – 8:00 PM; Basilica: 7:30 AM – 6:45 PM

• Price: Train Ticket + Ascent (by either method): €26.30 return; funiculars once you've arrived at Montserrat vary

• Website: Montserrat Monastery

• Nearest Metro to Train Station: Plaça d’Espanya (L1, L3, L8)

Montserrat is the premium day trip out of Barcelona but only a small proportion of visitors ever make it there.  I blame the ‘quiet drink’ you had last night at Bobby’s Free.

This jagged mountain range, an hour outside the city, is home to a centuries-old monastery, a famous choir, and hands-down the best views in Catalonia. 

A few words of guidance:

• Getting there is half the adventure.  Buy a combined ticket at Plaça d’Espanya for the train to the foot of the mountain and your choice of ascent (see below). The total journey to arrive and ascend the mountain is about 90 minutes.

• You have a choice of silly transport method to ascend: the cable car (Aeri de Montserrat) or the Cremallata rack railway (for a scenic, less heart-pounding ascent) – both have different stops and you need to decide on your mode of transport at point of purchase.   Although the cable car is more dramatic, you’ll have less of time to wait for the railway and you stand a much better chance of getting a seat on the train back to town.  After a day’s hiking, I don’t fancy standing for 50 minutes so I opted for the railway.

• Tickets for the Basilica and to see the Black Madonna are separate, buy in advance for a timed slot.

• Tour groups descend on Montserrat from 10.30ish onwards – if you’re not horrifically hungover, get there earlier.

Once at the top, the Benedictine monastery awaits, with its grand basilica housing La Moreneta, the Black Madonna, Catalonia’s most revered religious icon. The Basilica is also the proverbial oasis of calm and worth your time.

For those craving fresh air, catch the San Joan funicular where a host of hiking trails are yours to discover.  My personal favourite is the Sant Jeroni trail, which leads to the highest point of Montserrat, rewarding you with air-swept 360-degree views.

It’s about 3 hours round trip from the funicular, depending on how often you stop to whip out your camera and enjoy your pre-prepared picnic.  Even if hiking isn’t your thing, the funicular offers an effortless way to see more of the mountain without breaking a sweat.

If you forgot a picnic or already ate the Manchego and turron you bought yesterday, the restaurant Abat Cisneros offers decent fare inside the monastery compound.  Arrive when it opens at 1pm otherwise you’ll be waiting a while.

Allow the best part of a day for your visit and try and time your descent to coincide with the trains going back to the city.

Late Afternoon: Bunkers del Carmel – The Best View in Barcelona (That’s Not in a Guidebook)

·      Address: Carrer de Marià Labèrnia, s/n, 08032 Barcelona

·      Opening Hours: 24/7 (but best at sunset)

·      Price: Free

·      Nearest Metro: El Carmel (L5) + 15 min uphill walk

If you’ve got enough energy for one more uphill walk, the Bunkers del Carmel make an excellent late afternoon diversion when you return to the city.  Not exactly unknown to tourists after it featured in Atlas Obscura but it’s a sunset favourite for locals for the city-wide views on offer.  Buy a couple of cold beers and bring the remnants of your picnic.

Originally built as anti-aircraft bunkers during the Spanish Civil War, this hilltop fortress was designed to spot trouble long before it arrived. The 360-degree view stretches from the Sagrada Família to the Mediterranean, and at sunset, the whole city is bathed in a golden glow that makes even the most cynical traveller fall just a little bit in love.

Getting there requires a short trek from El Carmel Metro station (L5) but that’s it - no entrance fee, no fences, and no official opening hours.  Mind you the same was true of Park Guell when I lived in Barcelona so now’s a good time to come before City Hall decides to monetise the views!

Evening: El Raval

• Nearest Metro: Liceu (L3)

Back in the city, spend your second evening in El Raval.  Most guidebooks offer various degrees of dire warning about the ‘wrong side of La Rambla’.  It’s edgy, gritty but also an undeniably fascinating neighborhood.  Once a red-light district, it’s now a melting pot of cultures, with vibrant street art, eclectic bars, and some very decent tapas spots (if you’ve got any space after your monster picnic at Montserrat).

Start with dinner at Bar Cañete (Carrer de la Unió 17), where the food is so good you’ll be side-eyeing the people at the next table, wondering if you can sneak a bite of their jamón ibérico. The counter seating means you get a front-row view of chefs searing, plating, and occasionally setting things on fire in the open kitchen.

After dinner, head to Two Schmucks (Carrer de Joaquín Costa, 52), a cocktail bar that somehow manages to be both laid-back and one of the best bars in the world (recently featuring on World’s 50 Best Bars list).

The drinks are creative, the crowd is effortlessly cool, and the atmosphere feels more like a house party.  A few doors down Casa Almirall (Carrer de Joaquín Costa, 33) is decidedly more old school, established in 1860 and specialising in absinthe.  Suffice to say the cockatils are truly potent.

If you didn’t learn your lesson last night, let me repeat – one is enough – unless you want to be hallucinating about Gaudi all night.

Frankly, I don’t think there’s much wrong with returning to some of the big hitters in Barcelona – going inside the Sagrada Familia 15 years after my first visit (when it was just scaffolding and masonry) was jaw-dropping.  I also still love everything about the Gothic quarter. 

That said, there is a ton more to admire and enjoy and a return visit gives you ample opportunity to do just that.  As they say in these parts, diverteix-te and have an amazing return visit!