14 Things to know BEFORE visiting BARCELONA | Guide and Tips

during our recent Barcelona vlog there were a number of thoughts I wasn't able to share practical tips like what's the best travel card which attractions should you book online where should you stay why you should think twice about buying attraction tickets from third-party sites the best food we didn't show and much much more and you better believe I'm going into more detail than the average YouTube Barcelona video because this time I'm bringing spreadsheets if you're new here we make travel videos from around the world hoping you might just find your next holiday inspiration this is suitcase monkey with 14 tips on getting the most from Barcelona now we had four days and three nights in the city which i think was about right you could however visit the city over two nights assuming you arrived early morning so I not only wanted to list all the attractions we did here in one place but put them in order of what is absolutely must do to what's due if you have the time for the itinerary of what we got up to check out our full three days in Barcelona video which are linked below sitting firmly in the must do camp is Parc güell for this I would highly recommend you buy your tickets online in advance and for a few reasons now most of the park itself is free to access but for only 10 euros you get access to one of the Barcelona views the impressive serpentine bench covered in intricate mosaic tiles and you'll get a nice clean empty photo of the world's most famous salamander if people of course would just get out of the way there we go the 10 euro ticket also includes a shuttle bus which runs from the Alphonse ex metro station so it's also the quickest way to reach the actual park the other reason why you should pre-book is this we purchased our tickets at 9:30 for a 1:30 entry to the restricted area when we arrived at midday this was the queue to purchase tickets and the next available slot was 5 p.m. if you are just visiting to wander around the free area there is still easily 90 minutes of exploring to do so it's still worth the trip the closest metro or bus lines are on the screen now and then it's a 10 to 20 minute walk from there while we're on the subject of buying tickets online be aware of third-party ticketing websites or Google sponsored results when trying to book park well I clicked onto a site that seemed official enough coming up top but this site added a 3 euro per ticket service fee even Barcelona com which you would assume was semi official wanted to add a whopping 4 euro cost per ticket which is 40% for all you mathematicians out there and here for Sagrada família with a 7 euros surplus charge per ticket now I'm sure there are reputable third-party sites out there but my point is just be aware of add-on fees in terms of choosing a good location for accommodation anywhere here will have most attractions within walking distance the three areas that are good central districts are el born the Gothic quarter and where we stayed in each ampler via our hotel was a 10-minute walk to Casa FeO and 15 minutes to Sagrada família and only a few minutes from the el34 and five metro lines it also meant that we had one simple direct train on the r2 nord from the airport the area is known for its stylish boutiques bars and restaurants and we had a great breakfast nearby which I'll cover later the hotel itself was funky quiet affordable modern and extra friendly for example we had an issue where our safe would tell us with some sarcasm that our piles were open and it just wouldn't lock they quickly fix this left a charming note and some sugary goodness for the trouble again I'll leave a link in the description for those wanting to check it out and you'll actually be supporting this channel if you click it even if you booked a different hotel in a different country at no extra cost to you so thank you in advance if you've seen our accompanying video you'll know how much I was in awe of the Sagrada família one thing I wish we'd done was to go up one of its two towers this will give you a unique and close-up view of the structure as well as one of the highest view points in the city now there are two towers to choose from at named passion and Nativity since you have to specifically choose one when booking the nativity side seems to be the better choice and for three main reasons one is that Gaudi himself oversaw the building of this tower before his death to these sculptures on this side are said to be much more decorative and thirdly it's the only tower that features an outside bridge letting you cross from one tower to the next these tower trips will sell out so definitely book in advance for the relatively inexpensive seven euros and the last tip here you can also get a hefty 50 percent discount if you are below 30 and visit on a wednesday thursday or friday during the last two hours of opening which if my YouTube analytics are correct will make about 30 percent of you very happy few crazy kids now for a few general Barcelona tips that are useful to know in regards to tipping it's actually not considered customary to give gratuity here however it seems to be the general consensus that if you wish 5% is appropriate for good service and 10 for great and exhaustively speaking however we found that service rarely went beyond as expected and was the one area here that was just ok still would you rather spend not percent to receive the bare minimum of acceptable service or 20% for outstanding and actually I do I actually don't know the answer to that it is safe to drink from the taps here one tip if you've finished a bottle of water is to keep a hold of it there are hundreds of free public drinking fountains all over the city so keep your eyes out for a free top-up whilst wandering around even at night we found Barcelona to be a very safe city that being said it has unfortunately been called the pickpocket capital of the world now we didn't have any trouble or see any trouble during our time here but just always keep your valuables in sight and attach to yourself Barcelona much like the rest of Europe uses the to pin around connectors for its sockets if you are looking for the ultimate travel adapter to be used all over the world then look no further than this video sponsor septics this is literally the granddaddy of world travel adapters and goes way beyond the average travel plug firstly it can handle an impressive 5 devices from one outlet since it fits not only your traditional plug but also three USB and two USB C slots this is really convenient when you're in a hotel room that only has one or two outlets and you end up having to share plugs for all your devices it's suitable for your mobile phone laptop battery chargers tablets and most other things you'll likely have with you when traveling its high 33 watts of power mean it will charge your devices much faster than a normal travel adapter so even a quick 45 minute blast should see you through the day when you'll be taking lots of photos it feels like wait yet well built and sturdy and holds even heavy plugs like the Beast that is my but Pro 16-inch power brick without falling out of the wall the treble adapter also includes surge protection to protect you and your devices from external shock and short-circuit when charging I'll leave a link in the description if you want to check it out and I'll also place a 10% coupon code if you're interested thank you to septics for supporting this channel next is when is the best time to visit Barcelona and this is the bit that you've all been waiting for that's right we've got some spreadsheets coming from the bucketload of destinations that make up our to go list one of the reasons that made us choose Barcelona was that we were travelling in November Barcelona has some of the best winter months when it comes to Europe and temperature as our spreadsheet here demonstrates let's just call him Steve November can experience a high of 18 degrees we wanted to travel in the winter have a short cheap flight and not be freezing cold which we got with it being around 14 degrees if being able to sunbathe on the beach isn't important to you you'll also benefit from a relatively quiet city but the main point I'd like to make is there isn't really a bad time to visit Steve's cousin here Larry had clearly broken down the 12 months for you so feel free to pause and have a closer look now let's talk public transport and how to get the best from your money there are a number of different options here and it can be a bit overwhelming after landing at Barcelona's el prat airport a popular way into the city is the Aero bus which is a 10 euro 20 return this goes from both terminals and takes approximately 20 minutes into the center making it the quickest option from then onwards single metro and public buses are 10 40 each if you'll be traveling more it works out cheaper to get the teak as well priced at 11:35 this gives you ten bus and Metro tickets paying for itself after the fifth journey we actually opted for the Ola Barcelona travel card this gives unlimited travel from two to five days starting at 15 euros although Barcelona is very much a walking City and fairly compact we found this gave us the freedom to zip around without feeling the need to keep tabs on our remaining tickets there are a few more minor details here so Larry's sister Denise has currently put this table together for those who want a bit more info originating in the 1920s the Magic Fountain gained popularity once it was given a new lease of life during the Olympic Games if you want to visit here's a few things that are useful to know firstly it opens as little as three times a week so check in advance what days is actually running there are a couple other sites nearby so allow at least 45 minutes to wander around before showtime in these summer months if you really want a close-up view it's generally suggested to arrive an hour before since we visited off-peak we easily got our place at the front - 15 minutes before alternatively however just arrive late have no concept with the existence of other people and push past everyone to get in front much like these two massive north heads and for extra brownie points taking note of the wind direction before you find a spot I did notice some people getting pretty wet and moving once they realized they were in the spray zone overall though this 20-minute mixture of pop music and jets is a great climax to end your first or last evening in the city next let's talk all the cafes and restaurants I'd recommend you mark on your map I only covered some of them in our travel vlogs so wanted to give a shout out to those I missed to give a quick recap from our previous vlog the number one I would suggest is El quim in La Boqueria market don't stress if it's too busy though there are so many good food options here you'll easily find something we did actually come back another time to sample smaller bites and it's fun just searching around for food and picking things up as you go then in the Gothic quarter was tasket el corral which had this amazing assortment of chorizo cheese and bread some way I didn't show in the vlog was Calum also in the Gothic quarter this pastry cafe was perfect for a quick coffee and sugar rush to get us through the day and if you're in this area looking for tapas you can't go wrong with a stop at bar el Platt finally if you are staying in the area we were a really good breakfast option is the gamja petit Bois nope nope the grandure petit Bois pancakes eggs usually all good stuff check out our full three day itinerary in Barcelona for the full picture of what we got up to and subscribe for more guides and blogs around the world we already have London and Santorini Malta Japan Marrakech Kenya Tuscany roamed the maldis and much more coming so we hope to see you in the next one thanks for watching suitcase monkey

Channel: Suitcase Monkey

Views: 343,522

Keywords: barcelona, Barcelona guide, Barcelona when to go, Barcelona tips, Barcelona hacks, top 10 barcelona, Barcelona vacation travel guide, travel tips 2020, travel guide, first time in barcelona, must visit barcelona, Barcelona weather, things to do in barcelona, Barcelona best, Barcelona must do, Barcelona must see, Barcelona travel vlog 2020, Barcelona things to do, Barcelona must visit, things to see barcelona, Barcelona itinerary, sagrada familia barcelona, vlog 2020

Id: S_9vXP7ouGw

Length: 12min 10sec (730 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 14 2020