My trip to Barcelona - Day 1

Barcelona Arch of Triumph

We went to Barcelona in the last weekend of March of 2011.

The weather was marvellous, we were probably lucky, since we had the chance to enjoy one of the first weekends what it was good to go to the beach. The goal of the trip was to see the city, so we did not sunbath, but we enjoyed a nice time to rest in the beach of Barcelona.

We arrived at the Barcelona Airport at 21:30 and we had booked the Zenit Borrel near the Barcelona Sants Station. Since the hotel was near the train station we decided to risk and catch the train instead of the Aerobus.
It was a good decision, that is probably why the train is mostly used by Spanish, it was cheaper than the bus and the station was nearer the Hotel. After leaving the station and eating something at the McDonalds inside the Barcelona Sants Station we grabbed a taxi to the hotel, charging us €7 for a small distance that we did not want to walk since it was dark and we did not know the city.

The colours of a Taxi in Barcelona

Day 1 in Barcelona

The first day we decided to walk to the Plaza de Catalunya, we were told that it was one of the main plazas and where you could catch the tourist bus. However we decided to walk by the city, so we headed to the Gothic neighbourhood, and after that, to the coastal area.

View of the Montjuic from the "Ronda Litoral" the coastal street

The Gothic part of the city is a very different part of Barcelona, it is unique and in the city centre. The curious part is that you are minutes from the beach, which is rare in a big city in Europe.

The Barcelona Beach  near the famous W Hotel.

After walking by the beach and enjoying the breeze we reached the Carrer Marina. It is a nice part of the town, with modern buildings and big avenues. It is not a must see, but it was worth the walk.

View in the Parc de la Ciutadella

Getting back to the tourist part of Barcelona we passed by the Parc de la Ciutadella, the city park.

Small statue in the top of the fountain

The park is also a great spot to rest and recharge your batteries. It has nice benches where you can seat and enjoy the view and fresh air. We decided it was the perfect place to have lunch, so we bought some sandwiches and eat in the gardens.

You can also find the Castle of the Three Dragons in one of the park exits.

Three Dragons Castle in Barcelona

The exit near the castle leads you to the big walking avenue, The Passeig Lluis Companys, that leads you to the Arc de Triomf, the Barcelona arch of triumph.

Since we still had time, we decided to get a little further from the Hotel and visit the Sagrada Familia, a must see.

The Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia and people in the queue

We did not enter inside the Sagrada Familia so we decided to continued our trip to see the buildings of Barcelona, even some regular buildings are artistic, not like La Pedrera, but still good enough to enjoy.

Some examples of the Barcelona unique Buildings.

This is part of the walking path we have done. Maps Google Day 1

Depending on what you are going to visit, and your walking speed, this can be done in eight hours, or you can even take two days to visit everything, you may even want to spend a day in the beach.