Things to do · Barcelona · Spain
20 best things to do in Barcelona
20 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: essetefano, CC BY 3.0
Quick answer
The essential sights in Barcelona are Sagrada Família, Park Güell and Casa Batlló. Of the 20 picks below, 7 are free, 8 work on a rainy day and 8 suit children. Allow about 4 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Sagrada Família
- Free sights
- 7
- Good on a rainy day
- Sagrada Família
- Time to see the highlights
- 4 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sagrada Família | Eixample | 1.5–2 hours | Mid-priced |
| Park Güell | Gràcia | 1.5–2 hours | Low cost |
| Casa Batlló | Eixample | 1–1.5 hours | Expensive |
| Casa Milà (La Pedrera) | Eixample | 1–1.5 hours | Mid-priced |
| Gothic Quarter walk | Barri Gòtic | Half a day | Free |
| La Rambla | La Rambla | 1 hour | Free |
| La Boqueria market | La Rambla | 1 hour | Free |
| Barceloneta beach | Barceloneta | Half a day | Free |
| Picasso Museum | El Born | 1.5–2 hours | Mid-priced |
| Santa Maria del Mar | El Born | 45 minutes | Free |
| Palau de la Música Catalana | Sant Pere | 1 hour | Mid-priced |
| Montjuïc | Montjuïc | Half a day | Free |
| Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC) | Montjuïc | 2 hours | Low cost |
| Parc de la Ciutadella | El Born | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Sant Pau Recinte Modernista | Sant Pau | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Palau Güell | El Raval | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Casa Vicens | Gràcia | 1 hour | Mid-priced |
| Tibidabo | Tibidabo | Half a day | Mid-priced |
| CosmoCaixa science museum | Sant Gervasi | 2–3 hours | Low cost |
| Aquarium of Barcelona | Port Vell | 1.5–2 hours | Mid-priced |
The 20 best things to do
Religious site · Eixample
1.Sagrada Família
Antoni Gaudí's basilica has been under construction since 1882, and work continues on its central towers. Inside, tree-like columns branch into the vaults, and stained glass washes the nave in blues and greens on the morning side and reds and oranges in the afternoon. The Nativity façade is the part Gaudí saw built; the Passion façade is its stark 20th-century counterpart.
Book a late-afternoon slot for the warm light through the western windows, and add a tower visit only if you are happy on narrow spiral stairs.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Entry is by timed ticket only and sells out days ahead in high season; buy on the official website.
- Iconic
- Architecture
- Art
- Rainy day
Park · Gràcia
2.Park Güell
Gaudí's hillside park, built between 1900 and 1914 as a garden suburb that never sold, has the mosaic salamander on the main stairway, the Hypostyle Room's 86 columns and a serpentine bench covered in broken-tile trencadís overlooking the city. The Monumental Zone needs a timed ticket; much of the surrounding woodland is free to walk.
Take bus 24 towards the upper entrances to avoid the steep climb from Lesseps or Vallcarca Metro, and book the first or last slot of the day.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Book ahead
- Timed tickets for the Monumental Zone sell out in high season; book online.
- Iconic
- Architecture
- Views
- Outdoors
- Kids
Architecture · Eixample
3.Casa Batlló
Gaudí's 1904–1906 remodelling of a townhouse on Passeig de Gràcia produced bone-like balconies, a scaly dragon-back roof and a light well tiled in graded blues. The visit covers the main floor, the whitewashed arches of the attic and the rooftop chimneys, with an augmented-reality guide that children enjoy.
See the façade lit up after dark from across Passeig de Gràcia, and visit early in the morning for fewer people inside.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Prices rise at peak times; booking online is cheaper than buying at the door.
- Architecture
- Iconic
- Art
- Rainy day
- Kids
Architecture · Eixample
4.Casa Milà (La Pedrera)
Nicknamed La Pedrera, 'the stone quarry', Gaudí's last private building has an undulating stone façade without straight lines and wrought-iron balconies like tangles of seaweed. The visit takes in the brick-arched attic with an exhibition on Gaudí, a period apartment and the rooftop, whose helmeted chimneys look across to the Sagrada Família.
Visit at the end of the day for rooftop light, and check whether an evening visit with a light show is running.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Architecture
- Iconic
- Views
- Art
Neighbourhood · Barri Gòtic
5.Gothic Quarter walk
The Gothic Quarter's lanes wind from the cathedral, whose cloister is home to 13 white geese, to Plaça del Rei, the Roman temple columns hidden on Carrer del Paradís and the shrapnel-scarred walls of Plaça de Sant Felip Neri. The neo-Gothic bridge over Carrer del Bisbe is its most photographed corner.
Walk early in the morning or after 9pm, when the tour groups have gone.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Architecture
- Photo spot
- Iconic
Street · La Rambla
6.La Rambla
The tree-lined promenade runs about 1.2 km from Plaça de Catalunya to the Columbus Monument at the port, passing the Boqueria, the Liceu opera house and Joan Miró's pavement mosaic. It works better as a corridor between neighbourhoods than a place to eat or drink: its terraces are overpriced and its crowds attract pickpockets.
Walk it once for the Boqueria and the Liceu, then turn off into the Gothic Quarter or El Raval for food and drink.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- History
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Market · La Rambla
7.La Boqueria market
The Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria, under a cast-iron roof just off La Rambla, sells jamón, cheese, seafood, fruit and juices, and its counter bars serve excellent market cooking. The front stalls cater to visitors; the stalls further back are where locals shop.
Come in the morning for breakfast at a counter bar, and buy fruit from the back stalls rather than pre-cut cups at the entrance.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Food
- Free
- Shopping
- Iconic
Beach · Barceloneta
8.Barceloneta beach
The city's most central beach runs from the old fishing quarter towards Frank Gehry's copper fish sculpture at the Olympic Port, backed by a promenade of beach bars (chiringuitos) and seafood restaurants. It is lively, with volleyball nets and paddleboard hire, and very crowded on summer weekends.
For more space, walk 15 minutes north to Nova Icària or Bogatell, and never leave bags unattended on the sand.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Iconic
Museum · El Born
1.Picasso Museum
Five medieval palaces on Carrer de Montcada hold one of the most extensive collections of Picasso's early work, tracing his formative years in Barcelona, plus his 1957 series of 58 variations on Velázquez's Las Meninas.
Entry is free at certain times each month, but those slots still have to be reserved online and go quickly.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Timed tickets are required; book online in advance.
- Art
- Rainy day
- History
Religious site · El Born
2.Santa Maria del Mar
Built in just over 50 years in the 14th century with the help of the Ribera waterfront's dockers and merchants, this basilica is a model of Catalan Gothic: a soaring, unadorned nave with slender octagonal columns and a great rose window. Paid guided tours climb to the roof terraces for views over El Born.
Visit during free entry times for a quiet look at the nave, then book a rooftop tour for a different perspective.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Architecture
- History
- Free
- Off the beaten path
Architecture · Sant Pere
3.Palau de la Música Catalana
Lluís Domènech i Montaner's 1908 concert hall is Modernisme at full volume: mosaic columns, sculpted muses emerging from the stage wall and an inverted dome of stained glass in the ceiling. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and still a working concert hall.
A concert ticket for guitar, choral or chamber music can cost little more than a guided tour, and you see the hall used as intended.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Guided tours run in several languages and fill up; book ahead online.
- Architecture
- Art
- After dark
- Rainy day
Viewpoint · Montjuïc
4.Montjuïc
The hill above the port holds the 1992 Olympic Ring, the Fundació Joan Miró, terraced gardens and a hilltop castle with views over the harbour, reached by the Montjuïc cable car. The Poble Espanyol, an open-air museum of Spanish architecture, sits on its western slopes.
Ride the funicular from Paral·lel Metro, take the cable car up to the castle, then walk down through the gardens.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Views
- Outdoors
- Free
- Kids
- History
Museum · Montjuïc
5.Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC)
The domed Palau Nacional, built for the 1929 International Exposition, holds Romanesque murals rescued from Pyrenean churches and reinstalled in apse-shaped rooms, alongside Gothic altarpieces and Catalan Modernista art. The terrace in front looks down the avenue to Plaça d'Espanya.
Head first to the Romanesque galleries, then step out onto the front terrace for sunset.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Art
- History
- Views
- Rainy day
Park · El Born
6.Parc de la Ciutadella
Barcelona's central park, laid out on the site of an 18th-century citadel, has a monumental fountain, the Cascada, designed with help from a young Gaudí, a boating lake, palm-lined walks and the Catalan Parliament. Barcelona Zoo occupies its southern side, and the brick Arc de Triomf stands at the end of the promenade to the north.
Rent a rowing boat on the lake, then picnic on the lawns with supplies from the nearby Santa Caterina market.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Kids
- Outdoors
- Couples
Architecture · Sant Pau
7.Sant Pau Recinte Modernista
Domènech i Montaner's hospital complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a garden city of Modernista pavilions with tiled domes linked by underground tunnels. Restored after the hospital moved to new buildings, it is far less crowded than the Gaudí sites and sits at the top of Avinguda de Gaudí, about 15 minutes' walk from the Sagrada Família.
Combine it with the Sagrada Família, walking the pedestrian Avinguda de Gaudí between the two.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Architecture
- Off the beaten path
- History
- Photo spot
Architecture · El Raval
8.Palau Güell
Gaudí's early townhouse for his patron Eusebi Güell, finished in 1888 just off La Rambla, shows his first experiments: parabolic arches, a central hall rising to a perforated dome and a rooftop of colourful mosaic chimneys. It is usually quieter than his Eixample houses.
Use the audio guide for the basement stables and the rooftop, and pause in the main hall to look up into the dome.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Architecture
- History
- Rainy day
- Off the beaten path
Architecture · Gràcia
9.Casa Vicens
Gaudí's first house, built in 1883–1885 as a summer home in Gràcia, is covered in green-and-white tiles patterned with marigolds, and its interiors mix Moorish-style ceilings with painted birds and plants. It opened to the public in 2017 and sees far fewer visitors than his later works.
Combine it with lunch in Gràcia's squares and an afternoon at Park Güell.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Architecture
- Art
- Off the beaten path
Theme park · Tibidabo
10.Tibidabo
The 512-metre summit of the Collserola hills holds the Sagrat Cor church and an amusement park opened in 1901, with vintage rides such as a 1928 replica aeroplane that circles out over the slope. The views stretch across the whole city to the sea.
Reach the summit by FGC train and the Tibidabo funicular, or the Tibibus from Plaça de Catalunya, and check the park's operating days, which vary by season.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Views
- Outdoors
Museum · Sant Gervasi
11.CosmoCaixa science museum
This large science museum below Tibidabo has a recreated flooded Amazon rainforest under glass, a geological wall of rock sections and a planetarium, with plenty of hands-on exhibits. It is one of the best rainy-day choices for families.
Pair it with Tibidabo on the same day, as both sit on the northern edge of the city.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Kids
- Rainy day
- Nature
Aquarium · Port Vell
12.Aquarium of Barcelona
The aquarium on the Moll d'Espanya in Port Vell displays Mediterranean and tropical sea life, with a long underwater tunnel through the main oceanarium where sharks and rays glide overhead.
Walk there over the Rambla de Mar footbridge from the end of La Rambla, and go on a weekday morning to avoid school groups.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | Sagrada Família, Casa Batlló, Casa Milà (La Pedrera) and Picasso Museum |
| History | Gothic Quarter walk, La Rambla, Picasso Museum and Santa Maria del Mar |
| Views | Park Güell, Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Montjuïc and Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC) |
| Outdoors and nature | Park Güell, Barceloneta beach, Montjuïc and Parc de la Ciutadella |
| Food and markets | La Boqueria market |
| After dark | Palau de la Música Catalana |
| With children | Park Güell, Casa Batlló, Montjuïc and Barceloneta beach |
| On a rainy day | Sagrada Família, Casa Batlló, Picasso Museum and Palau de la Música Catalana |
What to book ahead
- Sagrada Família: Entry is by timed ticket only and sells out days ahead in high season; buy on the official website.
- Park Güell: Timed tickets for the Monumental Zone sell out in high season; book online.
- Casa Batlló: Prices rise at peak times; booking online is cheaper than buying at the door.
- Picasso Museum: Timed tickets are required; book online in advance.
- Palau de la Música Catalana: Guided tours run in several languages and fill up; book ahead online.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Barcelona?
Sagrada Família. Antoni Gaudí's basilica has been under construction since 1882, and work continues on its central towers.
+What can you do for free in Barcelona?
Gothic Quarter walk, La Rambla, La Boqueria market, Barceloneta beach and Santa Maria del Mar. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Barcelona when it rains?
Head indoors to Sagrada Família, Casa Batlló, Picasso Museum and Palau de la Música Catalana.
+What is there to do in Barcelona at night?
Palau de la Música Catalana are best after dark.