7 TOP trips from Barcelona
Do you know any better place to enjoy and not survive the winter days than Spain? Sure, snow-capped hill lovers will probably object, but we've been desperately seeking the spring rays since about December with frostbitten hands, even though it's still above freezing... we get it. In order to delay this moaning at least a little this year, I bought tickets to Barcelona for Advent, with the aim of sort of pre-stocking myself with that sunshine.
We visited Barcelona as such back in 2015 + 2018, see the updated article here for info on flights, transport and what not to miss. This time around I've directed our steps to the Barcelona area, with a few places in the area I've had earmarked for a long time and some I added to the itinerary randomly during the planning process.
As is our practice, we spent each night in a different place - always booked in advance via booking. Our dates coincided with the Spanish holidays (6th and 8th December), so we had to pay extra sometimes, but in general we were perfectly happy with the program. For inspiration, you can take a look and then I'll break down more detailed info on the places we visited below:
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Rental car
...was absolutely inevitable, and we never considered any other option. This time we didn't travel so much in kilometers, but I included in the program also quite remote places where it would be difficult to get to by public transport. The choice of a car in the SUV category was Record Go, a car rental company with a kiosk right at the airport. In reality, it was an even bigger car, namely a SsangYong Rexton at a price of €107 for 7 days. This time we were taking the kids car seats from the Czech Republic, so the price was really great + for the sake of interest additional fees associated with the car in the itinerary mentioned above:
- petrol - €80
- toll - €12.80 only on route Barcelona-Tarragona (you could go around)
- parking - €18
1. Tarragona
We started our trip in this beautiful city an hour's drive from Barcelona. Parents here will be just as excited as we were about the cool playgrounds you'll find literally at every turn. We didn't even spend 24 hours here, but the kids did get to try out six different playgrounds, which isn't exactly the norm when you're in the city.
Originally, Tarragona was a fortified city (Tarraco = fortified city) and during the Roman boom it became the largest cultural centre far and wide. But even the high walls did not prevent the invasion of armies and the destruction of most of the ancient monuments. The remaining ones are now even listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and you should definitely check out at least the Roman Amphitheatre and Tarragona Cathedral.
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Other places of interest for me are the historical museum Praetorium and Roman Circus located right in the original buildings, the modern Mapping of Tarraco or the sights of Balcó del Mediterrani and Passeig Sant Antoni. I also recommend a trip to the fishing area next to the harbour, El Serrallo, where you will again find several playgrounds, many restaurants offering seafood specialities and the National Archaeological Museum of Tarragona. From here we took a walk past the moored boats and docks to the beautiful sandy beach of Platja del Miracle.
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Where to stay in Tarragona - I chose a stylish suite Petra Apartments in the historic center, which was a great choice. For €108 a beautiful, fully equipped (incl. toys and cot) apartment with easy self check-in and very helpful owners. The biggest advantage was of course the walking distance to all the local attractions and the playground right in front of the house was just a nice bonus. We left our car in the Saavedra underground garage, where parking for 24 hours comes to €5.95, which seems like a great price to me. Any other accommodation tips for me like this:
- cheaper: Hotel Lauria or B&B HOTEL Tarragona Centro Urbis - both great rated hotels in the city centre for a price from €60/night
- more expensive: H10 Imperial Tarraco or AC Hotel Tarragona - very nice hotel rooms with all the amenities, prices are not exorbitant
2. Poblet
It takes about half an hour to reach this impressive Cistercian monastery from Tarragona, and you won't really find anything else in this village. The grounds of the monastery, which boasts a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are very large and walled all around, so if you want to see any of it, you'll have to come inside for a tour. It's definitely worth it though, as Poblet is particularly interesting because it is home to a royal burial ground and is still inhabited and maintained by monks even today.
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Practical - you can park for free in the large car park, from there you are only a few dozen metres away from the entrance. Admission for an adult comes to €9.50, which includes a video projection and access to the monastery itself. Inside you'll find a café and a hotel with a restaurant, but in December visitors were really scarce, the season must be a different story. However, I personally really liked it here.
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3. Montserrat
The most popular excursion from Barcelona is undoubtedly Montserrat, and it's actually no wonder. The mountains, the beautiful views, the monastery, the museum and all this can be served up under your nose quite effortlessly... Or it can be a hell of a well-deserved hike, the choice is yours :) Montserrat is located in the natural park of the same name, which is characterised by its huge limestone formations, and on one of these impressive rocks a Benedictine monastery was built in the 11th century. It is this monastery that has become a popular tourist destination thanks to its location and attractive surroundings, which include many trails and sightseeing spots.
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Now let's get to what you're wondering - how to get there?
- Aeri cable car - a large yellow cab that has been travelling this route since 1930. A return ticket will cost you €14 for an adult, children are valid from 4 years old (more info on the official website here)
- Cremallera funicular - a green train leaving the village of Monistrol. Very similar in price to the cable car, just a few cents more expensive. They also have various special packages with transportation straight from Barcelona (train + funicular), all available on their website.
- by car - there is a large parking lot under the monastery grounds, where you can pay €7 for a car for the whole day. Just make sure you arrive on time, because for example when we left there was a huge queue of cars waiting for a free space at the entrance.
- on foot - there are several pilgrimage trails leading to the monastery, but either way you will have a lot of elevation gain. You can see the routes beautifully by switching to the tourist map on mapy.cz, or check out the trail schedule on this website.
- organized tour from Barcelony - if you don't want to waste time finding out any info and want it to be completely hassle-free, opt for a tour with a bus transfer.
If you can just take a look around the monastery from the outside, you won't pay anything. There is a fee for the interior - the basilica with the Black Madonna and the museum. There are lots of different combinations on offer, which I won't list here, you can simply and calmly choose the option of your preference on the official website here. Online tickets come out cheaper, but it's not a problem to buy them on the spot.
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Be sure to set aside plenty of time to explore the monastery's surroundings. You can pick up a free map with descriptions at the information centre, or just turn on maps.cz, where the individual routes are beautifully visible. One of the most popular viewpoints is definitely Sant Miguel, where you have Montserrat right across the street. However, you can also climb the highest peak there, Sant Jeroni (1,237m) or take the shorter Sant Joan funicular ride to other viewpoints. There are plenty of options, just take your pick.
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Where to stay near Montserrat?
We chose a small apartment Cal Gaitero in Monistrol, kwhich I found absolutely ideal within the short drive up to the monastery. We paid €80 per night, parking was free nearby, so fine for an overnight stay. Otherwise it is possible to stay in the monastery itself, e.g. Alberg Abat Oliba or Hotel Abat Cisneros, which might be an interesting alternative. But if you want to spend the night in the Montserrat area, I definitely recommend booking in advance because there is not that much choice. Other options nearby like this:
- cheaper: Can Seuba or Guilleumes Montserrat - both nice clean rooms with good rating and price slightly over €80 per night
- more expensive: nice pension and not overpriced Can Misse or stylish Hotel Masia Can Farrés
4. Coll Can Macana
If you like the rocks in Montserrat Natural Park as much as we do and you have some time to spare, you can take a walk elsewhere than just around the monastery. I took the short and easy route to the famous Rocca Foradada as part of my afternoon walk. The car park at the Coll Can Macana info centre, where you can find out details of the trails (or on the park's official website here), was a great starting point. But it's only open on weekends, holidays and public holidays, same with paying the parking fee (€6/car).
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The route to the iconic leaky rock itself is about 2 km in one direction (GR172) + any detours and switchbacks (e.g. to Sant Pau Vell) you decide to make, because there are plenty of paths and viewpoints. I just recommend to prefer mapy.cz rather than google maps.
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5. Girona
A city you can even fly into... Ryanair serves Barcelona-Girona airport in addition to Barcelona El Prat. Beware of the fact that if your primary destination is Barcelona, it can get quite expensive. Anyway, Girona strikes me as an ideal starting point for hiking in the Pyrenees, checking out Andorra or even a roll on the Costa Brava.
And of course the city itself has a lot to offer. Most notable is the Girona Cathedral, which at almost 23 metres is the widest cathedral of its kind in the world. A long staircase leads up to its façade, where Game of Thrones fans may recognise the film location for the scenes with Baelor's Sept. They also filmed in the local Jewish quarter, another thing that is certainly worth a walk.
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Personally, I was most impressed by the colourful Onyar riverfront. Narrow houses of pastel colours are crowded next to each other and together they form a really beautiful whole. There are several bridges spanning the river, but one of them is a bit special - the distinctive red steel structure was designed by Gustave Eiffel. You'll probably get a better view of it when Girona's sudden football euphoria passes and they take down the monstrosity see photos :)
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Parking tip: you can leave your car for free at the Rotonda del Pont de Pedret roundabout and it's a short walk to the centre (the photo below was taken directly from the car park, proof :). Plus across the river you can still let the kids goof off in the playground.
6. Dalí Theatre-Museum
Not far from Girona, I highly recommend a trip to Figueres, where there is a huge museum dedicated to the work of Salvador Dali. You will have a truly extraordinary experience, you will immediately see that there are no limits to imagination in art. At one point I had a question like "how the fuck...". Some of the exhibits are unbelievable and you will think that it has no head or heel. Most of the time one thing is part of an even bigger whole and hides a lot of details. Anyway, it is a totally fascinating show even for not complete art connoisseurs, and you will be entertained for quite a long time watching and deciphering the individual exhibits.
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7. Lloret de Mar - coastal trail
In a time crunch, with a plane home in the evening, we decided to take at least a short walk. We chose Playa de Fenals beach as our starting point (free parking in low season) and walked past Castell de Sant Joan and Cala Banys to the main beach of Lloret de Mar. Marked on google maps as Camí de Ronda and although it looks like the road ends after a while, the reality is different. On the contrary, there are some nice views and a bit of stairs. At the castle you will then join the official route GR92.
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Where to stay in Lloret de Mar - as I have already pointed out this area is empty during the low season, so there are not so many accommodations to choose from. Our choice was Apartaments Els Llorers, where a night in a furnished apartment came to a beautiful €84 including breakfast. This is an apartment complex where it definitely comes alive in the summer thanks to the hotel's swimming pools and children's paddling pool. And since it's not right in the center (see sunset photo from the balcony), you can take a shuttle bus to the beach. If you'd like to stay closer to the sea, check out these accommodations:
- cheaper: Hotel Marsol or Hotel Roger de Flor - both well rated hotels close to the beach, price approx. €88 even with breakfast
- more expensive: Rigat Park Spa Hotel, where you can also relax in the wellness area or Hotel Santa Marta with breathtaking sea views
For more interesting places around Barcelona, see the article The most beautiful medieval towns and villages in Catalonia - specifically Siurana, Vic, Tavertet, Besalú, Rupit, Castellfollit and Tossa de Mar. If this information has helped you to save some time or money or both, you can perhaps "invite me for a coffee" and contribute to the running of Travel with Donuts :) account number / QR code: 1257951017/3030
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