« Whenever Ordering A U.S. Passport Online, Time Is Of The Essence | Home | A day at Fourni Beach – a great beach on Rhodes Island »
Barcelona Tourist Bus
By CruiseDirector | March 2, 2010
Barcelona is the center of Catalunya, one of the richest and most intensely self-governing districts in Spain. Catalan citizens speak their individual language and many do not consider themselves to be Spanish. The golden era of Catalunya was around the twelfth to fourteenth centuries, when Barcelona was the center of the grand seafaring empire of Aragon. In addition to Barcelona, Catalunya is made up of the cities of Lleida, Girona and Tarragona, and the long Costa Brava, stretching from the French border to Valencia.
Barcelona has become a genuine tourist trap for the brilliant mixture of activities on offer there. Its coastal spot attracts sun worshipers who enjoy the beach front resorts down the shoreline, as well as the brilliant nightlife of the city centre. The cultural and historical delights of the town interest the sightseer, visiting for a long weekend, and the more lively will like mountaineering in the nearby mountains, where skiing can be found in winter.
As far as European cities go, Barcelona is a quite simple city to navigate. Its natural mountains and seafront means that it has a gradual incline, and also is very compact. This does however mean that some of the city’s sights are missed, as it’s sometimes tiring walking uphill for half of the day, and downhill for the other half. The city’s metro system is a fantastic method to get around quickly, but you miss out on really seeing the city, and regularly are confused when you get back up to street level (everyone does the same in rotating the map around a few times to double-check where you are!).
The Barcelona Tourist Bus has 3 routes, but I would say only 2 are worthwhile – the red and the blue course (North and South routes). The 3rd green route only takes you to the forum building. So if you concentrate on the red and blue routes, you can go to see all of the city’s sights, and have the additional bonus of being above-ground as you do it, so you actually grasp the whole of Barcelona, too. Noticeably during the spring and summer months it’s fantastic to be on the top with no roof and a pleasant breeze running through your hair whilst you soak up the beautiful architecture of Gaudi, the spectacular Camp Nou football stadium, the magic dancing fountains at Placa España, and many, many more attractions.
The most prominent figure of Barcelona and one sight that all holidaymakers want to visit is Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia. Even persons that have not visited the city will be accustomed with the dripping wax picture of the main façade. The prominent architect started work on this church in 1882, however the task took a long time as the building work relied on donations, and it had not been completed in 1926 when Gaudi was hit by a train and died. Work has since recommenced on the church and a large amount has been added since Gaudi’s mortality, but there is speculation as to whether or not the construction will ever be completely completed, or in fact whether or not it actually should be.
You could pay to go up within one of the towers, of which there are now eight, each one over one hundred meters high. The initial blueprint was intended to incorporate eighteen towers, one for each of the twelve apostles, four for the Evangelists, and one each for Jesus and the Virgin Mary.
Other piece of Gaudi’s masterpiece can be viewed all over the town. You will want to pull the Park Guell, La Pedrera and the Mila house into your itinerary if you possibly can.
If you´re still stuck for idea the Poble Espanyol has become the 4th most popular tourist destination in the city. The model was copied from Modernist architect Puig i Cadafalch, and the creators visited 1600 villages in and around Spain and its islands to re-create 117 scale models of buildings and traditional sites from all about Spain.
Culture lovers will be absorbed by the Fran Daurel foundation, boasting artwork from Picasso, Dali, Miró, Tapies and various others, in addition there is a brilliant Sculpture Garden offering photo possibilities in great quantities of expansive Barcelona below. The village also has some great bars and bistros, as well as some great nightclubs in Barcelona on an evening.
Heres 5 inexpensive things to do in Barcelona
1. Walking in Barcelona – is free, effortless and pleasurable and what better way to really get to know a city. I absolutely love walking around side streets and alleyways in spaces such as Barri Gotic in Barcelona. You encounter a number of cafes, old and rare shops.
2. Relaxing on the beach in Barcelona is evidently incredibly cheap and on a clear sunny day where else would you want to be. If you do not mind spending a lttle bit of cash then there are tons of restaurants and eateries along the boardwalk and if you enjoy sea-food, you can devour anything from mussels to cod.
3. Museums in Barcelona has a great amount of museums and scores of of these are distinctly worth traveling to in Barcelona. Although many of them often charge for access, they are fairly priced and you can definitely waste away a few days of your holiday or trip by traveling to a few of the countless Barcelona museums.
4.Spending time here and there in Las Ramblas and enjoying the street entertainers, shops, general atmosphere and the warm climate is a fantastic way to relax. Grab yourself a chair and a thirst-quencher slightly off of Las Ramblas (to avoid tourist quotes on the key street) and take pleasure in all that Barcelona has to offer.
5.Stay in your hotel room. If you are paying a sufficient amount already for your hotel room or vacation apartment then you may aim to get your money’s worth so why not spend a lot of time in the hotel room. If you have a terrace which comes with the room then lounging out on the balcony with a bottle of Spanish wine from the supermarket and people watching can be a wonderful way to really sense a slice of Barcelona living.
You can get in depth information on the subject of the sights of Barcelona before you go from your travel agent, the internet, or the tourist information office in Barcelona’s main square after you get there. Make sure you pick up a map showing all the key sights as well as the major stores, restaurants and hotels. Also take into account going on a bus tour of the city. It is a great way to get your bearings in a incredibly busy and crowded city, and give you an impression of the distance between places of interest. Speak to your guide, they might be able to give you local information about great eating places and provisional exhibitions that will not be apparent on your map. You will in no way get bored in Barcelona; your only fear will be how to fit in everything you want to catch sight of.
Topics: Best Caribbean Cruise | No Comments »