The Rough Guide to Barcelona 8 (Rough Guide Travel Guides)

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April–Sept 9.30am–8pm) runs from Port Olímpic to
the Forùm site at Diagonal Mar and back, via the
beaches. Tickets (valid for all routes) cost €20 for one
day, €26 for two days (children aged 4–12 €12/16
respectively). The ticket also gives discounts at various
sights, attractions, shops and restaurants. Buy online,
or on board the bus, at any tourist office, Sants station
and TMB customer centres.
Walking tours
Barcelona Walks T932 853 832, W www
. The Pl. de Catalunya tourist
office coordinates a popular series of walks and tours,
including a 90min historical walking tour of the Barri
Gòtic (daily 10am; €11). There are also 90min Picasso
walking tours (Tues–Sun 10.30am; €13.50, includes
entry to Picasso Museum), a two-hour Modernisme
tour (Fri & Sat 4pm; €11) and two-hour Gourmet and
Cuisine tour (Fri & Sat 11am; €15, includes tastings).
Times given are for the current English-language
tours, advance booking essential (discount for
online bookings).
Follow the Baldie W .
Follow erudite, self-professed baldie tour guide and
longtime Barcelona resident, Trevor, on walks around
anarchist Barcelona or over the hills to Tibidabo,
tracking tarantulas near Sitges, or staggering from bar
to bar in rural Catalunya. These are not your normal
tours, as a perusal of the website soon shows. Trips
from €35 per person.
My Favourite Things T637 265 405, Wwww
. Highly individual tours which reveal the city
in a new light – whether it’s bohemian Barcelona,
where and what the locals eat, or the signature tour,
My Favourite Fusion, which gives an insider’s view of
the city. Tours (in English) cost €26 per person and
last around four hours, and there’s always time for
anecdotes, diversions, workshop visits and café visits.
Tour numbers are limited to ten, and departures are
flexible, so call or email for latest information or tailor-
made requests.
Water tours
Catamaran Orsom T934 410 537, W www
Afternoon catamaran trips
around the port in season (Easter week & June–Sept
daily, May & Oct daily except Tues & Thurs; €12.50)
and summer evening jazz cruises (daily June–Aug;
€14.90). There’s a ticket kiosk at the quayside
opposite the Columbus statue, at the bottom of the
Ramblas (o Drassanes), but you should call in
advance to be certain of departures.
Las Golondrinas T 934 423 106,W www
. Daily sightseeing boats depart
from Pl. Portal de la Pau, behind the Columbus
monument (o Drassanes) – trips are either around
the port (35min; €5.50), or port and coast including
the Port Olímpic and Diagonal Mar (90min; €11.50).
Departures are at least hourly June–Sept; less
frequently Oct–May but still daily.
BASICS
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Information
Information
The city tourist board, Turisme de Barcelona (W ), is
the best first stop for information about Barcelona, with a really useful English-
language website and offices at the airport, Barcelona Sants station, Plaça de
Catalunya and Plaça de Sant Jaume.
There are also staffed kiosks in main tourist
areas, such as outside the Sagrada Família
and on the Ramblas, which should be able
to point you in the right direction. For infor-
mation about the wider province of
Catalunya, you need the Generalitat’s infor-
mation centre (Centre d’Informació de
Catalunya) at Palau Robert, while events,
concerts, exhibitions, festivals and other
cultural diversions are covered in full at the
Institut de Cultura in the Palau de la Virreina
on the Ramblas.
For anything else you might need to know,
you can try the city’s T 010 telephone
enquiries service (Mon–Sat 8am–10pm).
They’ll be able to help with questions about
transport, public services and other matters,
and there are English-speaking staff