HOME TOUR

A few weeks ago we spent three days in Barcelona (luckily before the locals started protesting tourism) before flying over to Mallorca for a week. Of all the European countries we’ve visited over the years (last year was Slovenia and Croatia), we had yet to visit Spain. I think I was overwhelmed by the size of this country and all the different regions. And to be honest, I don’t love tapas (I know I know, don’t throw things). With Spain set to overtake France as the most visited country in the world, we thought it was high time for a visit. Now given the state of things, you may want to look elsewhere for a friendly place to spend your hard-earned $$$. Feel like braving the protests? Then this Barcelona, Spain–Summer Wanderings guide is for you!

WHY TRAVEL & OTHER THOUGHTS

If you’re new around you can always expect complete honesty in these guides. We travel on our own dime after saving for months, nothing is sponsored and even if it was, you’d get the full truth so help me God. We travel a lot, all around the world and usually with three little kids in tow and it isn’t always easy. It certainly takes sacrifices to pull off. But experiencing other cultures is important to us and the world is a beautiful place we want our kids to be comfortable in.

With mass tourism, especially from cruise ships overrunning some of these glorious cities, it is hurting the locals and that breaks my heart. I’m trying to be sensitive to this complex problem but spraying tourists in the face with water guns is not the answer, see link to article above. I’m not sure I’d recommend Barcelona at the moment and to be completely honest, I didn’t love it. To be fair, it rained almost the entire time. We had very few moments we didn’t need an umbrella and even after buying 3 we were miserably wet and cold. Our time slot to climb one of the towers of the Sagrada Familia got cancelled because it was simply too dangerous. Travel is a privilege, no one twisted our arm to come here. You don’t always get great weather, that’s just the nature of travel but it does put a very real damper on things and effects how you perceive a place. Everyone we met though was lovely and welcoming, oh and the sangria.

THE COTTON HOUSE HOTEL

We stayed 4 nights at the Cotton House Hotel part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection. Usually when we travel we opt for smaller, boutique hotels rather than name brand chains but I had a hard time finding a hotel with the right vibe. Everything seemed really modern and I wanted vintage Barcelona charm. This one fit the bill and was a lovely stay. Ordinary rooms but really lovely public spaces and the food was delicious. It was also in a really good location for walking. We did not go the airBNB route here because I didn’t want to be responsible for cooking 3 meals a day for my family on vacation.

DAY 1: EXPLORING BARCELONA’S BARRI GOTÍC

With my Rick Steve’s Pocket Guide to Barcelona, Cade and I struck out on a city adventure. Matt was in the hotel room with Kai and Aubrey who were both throwing up. Under other circumstances this would have been alarming but this just seems to be how my little kids respond to time change. It happens after almost every international red eye flight.  They feel yucky the first morning but by noon are fine. Matt and the kids met us at the cathedral for a tour and lunch of tapas.

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EATS & TREATS

All our foodie eats came from either Rick Steve’s suggestion or Gimme Some Oven.

Lunch at Bar Del Pla

El Born | Google Map

We had really good Tapas at Bar Del Pla for lunch. We were so hungry we ordered just about everything. They brought us really good house wines but this is not the place to go if you want sangria. It has a small, tavern-like feel and the employees were kind. We loved it.

Churros and Chocolate at Granja La Pallaresa 

El Gotíco | Google Map

This was a fun establishment for Spain’s classic churros and chocolate. The chocolate is not thin and runny like American hot chocolate. This was thick like pudding and very dark. Only my husband ended up eating it.

RAMBLAS WALK

Walking the Ramblas seems to be a Barcelona right of passage. Be on your guard against pick pockets. I found it busy, nosy and lacking charm but popping in to the Plaça Reial was lovely. This would be a great place to eat. We wandered some side streets down to the harbor.

GELATO AT FARGGI

This cute gelato place has an attached bakery that we didn’t eat at but looked delicious. I loved the pink tile awning over the counter and striped cups. Delicious gelato.

Eixample | Google Maps

DAY 2: EXPLORING GAUDI & MODERNISME IN THE RAIN

We started our day with breakfast in the lovely hotel restaurant and then wandered up Pg. de Gràcia to see some famous Gaudi sites. We mused over the Block of Discord houses and toured the Casa Pedrera following Rick Steve’s walk through the area. The Casa Pedrera was lovely and the audio guide was nice. It started raining while we were on the roof and continued for the rest of the day. We dogged into a “meh” restaurant (I don’t even remember the name) on our walk to the Sagrada Familia to try and wait out the rain. It didn’t work and we were thoroughly soaked by the time we got to the Sagrada Familia.

Red Stripe Skirt (similar option here) | Lace Applique Tank | Cardigan, old from Anthro (Similar Here) | Raffia Bag | Shoes (Similiar Here)

SAGRADA FAMILIA

When I think of Barcelona I think of this church. It is by far the most unique structure I have ever been in and worth a visit. Buying your tickets to the Sagrada Familia in advance is a must. Make sure you’re getting them from the official site too.

The iron and stonework is truly a masterpiece and it is nearing completion. It took us a long time to track down a taxi to take us to Park Guell since it was too far to walk with little kids in the pouring rain.

PARK GUELL

A must-see sight in Barcelona, Park Guell is a Gaudi masterpiece worth seeing even in the rain. You must buy tickets in advance and show up at the right time slot because it is very popular. Which meant that given the weather and lack of available tickets, we went in the rain even though we were all soaked and cold. We had hoped it wouldn’t be crowded but even in awful weather it was packed.

The snack-like mosaic bench was stunning. It was a place I wanted to linger but it was just not lingering weather!

We were wet and cold and taxis were non-existent. We ended up walking almost the whole way back, taking the Metro 3 stops and immediately warming up in a hot shower.  We were so over being wet and cold we ate dinner at the hotel and went to sleep early. The hotel concierge was wonderful. They ended up renting us a car for our third full day so we could take a day trip to Monserrat and Andorra. That guide is coming up soon and then it is on to Mallorca (spoiler alert: my favorite part of the trip!)

I fully planned this family trip. All opinions are my own and we weren’t given any special treatment, discounts or free anything. I do have links to outfits and travel gear which I love. Clicking any link on this blog may give me a small commission which I use to keep this site up and running with NO ads and I greatly appreciate your support.