Barcelona is an evocative holiday destination, and one of Spain’s most visited cities. Offering much to the discerning traveler, the attractions in this Spanish capital are almost endless. One of the best areas to visit is El Born, a section of the La Ribera district close to the old city centre. Brimming with trendy shops, cafés, tapas bars and museums; El Born is the ideal base for all your Barcelonan explorations. Book a holiday apartment in El Born and you’ll have all of this, and more, right at your doorstep. Need a hand to get started? Ningún problema! Here’s our pick of the most intriguing cultural treasures in the area. So go forth and conquer amigos, Barcelona is waiting for you! Catch a concert at the Palau de la Musica Catalana One of El Born’s major attraction is the Palau de la Musica Catalan; the building itself is worthy of a visit, but it’s catching a concert here which will be the real highlight. Built at the turn of the 20th Century, this auditorium is a collective ensemble of Catalan architecture, avant-garde design and impressive acoustics. Declared a UNESCO heritage site in 1997, the Palau is still at the forefront of Barcelonan entertainment, ...

Barcelona, the second largest city in Spain, is a popular destination for holidaymakers of all ages. Not only does it provide endless hours of entertainment for adults, but it is also an ideal city for a Barcelona family vacation. Barcelona holiday apartments are affordable and the best bet for anyone travelling with young ones in tow. To help you make the best of your visit, we've compiled a list of the Barcelona best child-friendly museums. We suggest you check out their websites for special kids' events during your stay, and keep in mind that most museums are free of charge on the first Sunday of every month. Museum of Ideas and Inventions - Plaça Sant Jaume The MIBA, as this museum is known, is a fantastic place to visit with kids. Home to an extensive selection of outrageous, ingenious (and sometimes useless) inventions, this interactive museum will provide hours of fun for the whole family. The glass-floor entrance can be unnerving for some, but the slide down to the lower floor is an amusing indication of things to come. There are videos to watch, gadgets to inspect and even a kids' zone, where children are encouraged to come up with an inventive design ...

If you want to escape the heat and noise of Barcelona, there is no better place to do it than Montjuic. This expansive ‘green’ belt’ is perched high above the city and despite hosting countless intimate parks and gardens, a handful of the city’s top attractions, and breathtaking city vistas at every turn, it is surprisingly under-used by locals. When Barcelona's beaches are packed to the hilt, head on up to Montjuic for some fresh, pine-scented air. On Montjuic’s uppermost peak is a formidable fortress-castle (best reached by cable-car from the port), which has the most panoramic views and is a great place to let kids run wild. The rest of Montjuic’s architecture stems from the two major events. The 1992 Olympic Games’ heritage is the ‘Olympic Ring’; the stadium (now mainly used for large-scale musical events), water-sports facilities and the Palau Sant Jordi a striking auditorium designed by the Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. At the Plaça Espanya end of Montjuic’s landward, the 1929 Universal Exhibition left a string of pretty pavilions, now the locations of some of Barcelona's best museums, including the National Museum of Catalonia, the Archaeology and Ethnographic Museums. Also here is the Poble Espanyol, a showcase ‘Spanish Village’. In ...

One of the biggest draws to Barcelona is its architecture. From stunning showpieces such as Jean Nouvel’s Torre Agbar to the robust beauty of the Gothic quarter, the architectural variety in Barcelona is quite remarkable. But if there were one singular style that could be termed truly ‘Barcelonese’ it would be modernisme. Most people may be aware of the modernisme through the fluid, almost organic works of Antoni Gaudí, the movement’s most famous exponent. But there are many more notable contemporaries of the great architect, and most of their work can be seen in the neighbourhood of the Eixample (or ‘Extension’) the 19th century, grid-like ‘new town’ that spans northward from Plaça Catalunya. And the best way to see it is on foot. Start your modernisme walk is the Passeig de Gràcia, a high-end shopping strip that is paved with hexagonal-shaped, grey-blue tiles designed Gaudí. Head to the cross street with C/ Aragó and you will be standing in front of the zenith of modernisme: the Manzana de Discòrdia (or ‘Block of Discord). These three buildings are all showstoppers: built for a chocolate baron, the Casa Amatller resembles a fairy-tale Flemish townhouse, whilst the Casa Lleó Morera (now occupied by ...

You’ll see it everywhere in Barcelona, from workers munching on brick-sized bocatas (sandwiches) in the street to the baskets of stuff placed in front of you almost as soon as you sit down at a restaurant table. Pa amb tomàquet is the national dish in Catalunya - the meat to their potatoes if you like - and no other dish brings a tear to a Catalan’s eye quite like a humble piece of bread smeared in tomato pulp and then drizzled with olive oil. Pa amb tomàquet is generally topped with cheese or charcuterie (at this point it is re-named a torrada). Do try something local, such as botifarra blanca, a tripe and port sausage, fuet, a think whip of sweet salami-type sausage or the wonderful or Iberian ham. As for cheese, dryer, firmer varieties seem to work best (they soak up the olive oil) such as an aged manchego. Even salted anchovies (the best ones come from L’Escala on the Costa Brava) are delicious. Whatever you choose, pa amb tomàquet should really be made with the best local ingredients; take a slice of rustic-style bread and toast it. Whilst still warm, rub a peeled clove of on one side. ...

Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s bestselling book in the Shadow of the Wind is as much an ode to his hometown of Barcelona as the mystique of literature, but how much remains of his gloomy, post-war Barcelona for today’s visitor?The central Carrer Santa Anna, where the main character Daniel Sempere and his father lived, is still a bustling commercial hub. Sadly, there is no sign of Sr. Sempere’s second-hand bookshop, but their local church could only be the lovely, tucked-away Esglèsia de Santa Ana.Nearby, the Portal de L’ Ángel (Puerta del Ängel) is where Daniel first spied the sinister Julián Carax observing him from a distance. These days it’s the city’s number one shopping strip, and doesn’t hold much mystery unless you are harbour a theory they that they have invented a way to clone Zara shops. Running parallel to Carrer Santa Anna at Carrer Canuda 6 you’ll find the Ateneu (Ateneo), Barcelona’s literary institution and, as described by Daniel, still "one of the many places in Barcelona where the nineteenth century has not been served an eviction notice." Next door, is the nearest thing the city has to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, the Llibreria Canuda (Carrer Canuda, 4). Scores of encyclopaedias, ...

A little over a kilometre in length, Las Ramblas is the "Champs Elysées" of Barcelona. It begins around the Port Vell and stretches north to Plaça Catalunya. To the east of Las Ramblas is the Barri Gotic (Gothic Quarter) and to the west is an area called Raval. Las Ramblas is mostly set aside for pedestrians although there are two narrow roads that are one way in opposite directions on each side of the main central Las Ramblas Boulevard. Much of central Barcelona has been set aside for pedestrians, making Barcelona one of Europe’s most tourist friendly cities. The ramblas has 1 metro station, right in the middle of the stretch called "Liceu". The "Gran Teatre del Liceu", just opposite the station is an ancient opera house that can be visited at certain times. If you decide to book a Barcelona short term rental in the Las Ramblas area you will be at the heart of fun and excitement: with live music, painters and living statues, Las Ramblas is certainly the most colorful stretch of street in Barcelona. Shopping and eating in Las Ramblas is fun but expensive. The quantity of tourists ensures that the prices remain high but drinking a ...