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quarter of
Barceloneta
, past the
Parc de la Ciutadella
and out along
the promenade to the cafés and restaurants of the
Port Olímpic
. This
whole area is where Barcelona is most like a resort, with city beaches
right along the waterfront
from Barceloneta as far as
the conference and leisure
zone of
Parc del Fòrum
at
Diagonal Mar
.Art- and garden-lovers, meanwhile, aim for the fortress-
topped hill of
Montjuïc
to the southwest, where Catalunya’s national art
gallery (MNAC), the Miró museum, botanic garden and main Olympic
stadium are sited, among a host of other cultural attractions.
At the top of the Ramblas,
Plaça de Catalunya
marks the start of the
gridded nineteenth-century extension of the city, known as the
Eixample
,
a symbol of the thrusting expansionism of Barcelona’s early industrial
age. This is where some of Europe’s most extraordinary architecture
– including Gaudí’s
Sagrada Família
– is located. Beyond the Eixample
lie the northern suburbs, notably
Gràcia
, with its small squares and lively
bars, and the nearby
Parc Güell
, while you’ll also come out this way to
see the famous
Camp Nou
FC Barcelona stadium or the city’s applied art
museums at the
Palau Reial
. It’s worth making for the hills, too, where
you can join the crowds at Barcelona’s famous
Tibidabo
amusement
park – or escape them with a
walk through the woods in the
peaceful
Parc de Collserola
.
The good public transport
links also make it easy to head
further out of the city. The
mountain-top monastery of
Montserrat
is the most obvious
day-trip to make, not least for
the extraordinary ride up to the
monastic eyrie by cable car or
mountain railway.
Sitges
is the
local beach town
par excellence
,
while with more time you can
follow various trails around the
local
wine country
, head south
to the Roman town of
Tarra-
gona
or Gaudí’s birthplace of
Reus
, or north to medieval
Girona
or the Dalí museum
in
Figueres
.
La Seu
| INTRODUCTION |
WHAT TO SEE
| WHEN TO GO
Antoni Gaudí is the most famous of those
who left their mark on Barcelona.