Barcelona in a day…………..

Following on from my previous blog about my trip to Barcelona I thought I would go into more details about the tour I took called Barcelona highlights.

Out first hotel we stayed at was called the H10 Urquinaona Plaza which as I said was in a fantastic location just off Catalunya Square.  Our voucher said we needed to meet outside the Plaça Catalunya opposite the Deutsche Bank & Hotel Olivia Plaza at 10.00am, which I have to say was very easy to find and at the most was a 5 minute walk from the hotel.  We were met by our tour representative and directed onto our coach.  We were all given a small transmitter and headphones to be used when we were off the coach so we could still hear all what our guide had to say.

The tour is classed as a full day sightseeing tour, which is ideal for anyone wishing to see the main attractions in a day.  You also beat the queues at the Sagrada Familia (which can get extremely busy especially during the summer months)  You have the chance to visit top sights such as the iconic buildings of Antoni Gaudi, Casa Batllo and Casa Mila, the waterfront with the Columbus Monument and the Old Harbour and Montjuic Hill with amazing views over the city.  Unfortunately the weather wasn’t really on our side and pretty much rained all day more so in the afternoon so we didn’t really get chance to take in the amazing views, oh well we can’t control the weather!

So when the coach left our meeting point to head to Sagrada Familia our tour guide stated to tell us all about Gaudi, which was so interesting, what an amazing and fascinating man! You pass Passeig de Gracia, an elegant boulevard dating from the early 20^th Century.  You then take in the sights of Casa Mila and Casa Batllo.  Casa Mila was built from 1906 to 1912 and was the last civil work designed by Gaudi, it was controversial because of the undulating stone façade and twisting wrought iron balconies and windows.  Casa Batllo again another masterpiece of Gaudi, which he redesigned in 1904, you get to know which buildings Gaudi built or designed as they are so unique.
Out next stop was the guided tour of La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi’s great unfinished masterwork!! The construction of Sagrada Familia started in 1882 and Gaudi became involved in 1883.  He knew he was never going to finish the project and devoted his last years to the project, he died in 1926 at the age of 73 where less than a quarter of the project was complete.  Sagrada Familia has been built by donations and since Barcelona hosted the world games back in 1992 it is said that Barcelona has been put on the map and they now have enough money to hopefully complete the building between 2026 – 2028.  Every detail of the building tells a different story I thought it was a truly amazing!

We then head down to the old port, a recently renovated area, where at night it comes to life as there is a wealth of restaurants, shops, nightclubs and frequent open-air entertainment. 

Next we travelled up to Montjuic Mountain, where you can enjoy the great views over the city and harbour. 

The final part of the tour is a stop at the Poble Espanyol, a charming collection of replicas of streets, buildings and plazas from all over Spain. The area also many crafts shops and some excellent restaurants and bars for you to have lunch at your leisure.

I really would recommend this tour!