A weekend in Barcelona: your local guide in pocket size

 
Barcelona has everything a tourist’s heart desires: sunny weather, exquisite food, impressive buildings, pearl-white beaches and that inexplicable, exciting feeling that washes over you as soon as you set foot on Mediterranean turf. But there is way more to Barcelona than meets the eye. Our brand-new digital weekend guide A weekend in Barcelona shows you the city’s real face. Because, away from La Rambla and the Camp Nou Experience, there is a world, waiting to be explored.

When it comes to city tripping, nothing compares to travelling alongside a local. They know the best places around, can entertain you with quirky facts and anecdotes here and there and make sure you don’t miss out on anything important. Unfortunately, locals willing to accompany you for an entire weekend for free are hard to come by. Therefore, we usually have to settle for the combined knowledge of a handful of stuffy travel guides and whatever information we can find on the internet. Luckily, there now is A weekend in Barcelona, a Barcelona local in pocket size.

“Barcelona is for everyone”

The e-book A weekend in Barcelona does what it says on the tin. The handy, digital weekend guide shows you as much of the city as you can possibly see in one weekend. Of course, it passes all the world-famous hotspots that drag so many tourists to Barcelona, but there is also time aplenty for some off-the-beaten-path attractions which other travel guides fail to mention. As A weekend in Barcelona is entirely written by a local, it even guides you to spots of which many locals hardly know they exist.

“One of my favourite parks in Barcelona, Jardins de Joan Maragall, is one of those hidden gems,” explains Arne Adriaenssens, editor of Discover France & Spain and author of A weekend in Barcelona. “Although it is located mere meters away from MNAC, the majestic museum near Plaça Espanya, hardly any tourist pays this lush garden a visit. Nonetheless, the grand staircase of this urban oasis serves you one of the best views of the city’s skyline, without you having to conquer a humongous herd of tourists.”

And like this one, the quirky weekend guide counts plenty more need-to-know spots, far away from the street vendors and faux-paella restaurants that you find at La Rambla.

“Barcelona is so multi-faceted that it has something for everyone. The city counts hundreds of picturesque corners, plenty of amazing museums and some of the best bars and restaurants in all of Spain. On top of that, the city is surrounded by the crystal-clear Mediterranean Sea and multiple impressive peaks like Mount Tibidabo and Montjuïc, perfect for a morning hike and a stunning vista.”

The old town and the modern Eixample

For your convenience, the weekend guide is already divided into three parts: Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Where that first day is all about getting settled, catching a first glimpse of the city and immersing yourself into its amazing culinary culture, the real city tripping starts on Saturday. On that day, A weekend in Barcelona strolls through the city’s three historic neighbourhoods: Barri Gòtic, El Born and El Raval. Although all three of them have been around for centuries, they all date back to another era and tell a story of their own. The mammoth souvenirs of Medieval wealth and power in Barri Gòtic are very different from the humble alleys of the fishermen’s quarter that is El Born.

On Sunday, the weekend guide turns its back to the old town and explores the giant maze of octangular buildings of Eixample. In this huge neighbourhood – which covers half of the city – you stumble upon most of the masterpieces of Modernist masters like Antoni Gaudí, Lluís Domènech i Montaner and Josep Puig i Cadafalch. Besides an elaborate visit to the legendary Sagrada Familia, we also take our time to gaze at the colourful madness of Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau – a way less touristic, but undeniably stunning complex, nine times as big as the Sagrada Familia.

The final pages of the weekend guide are filled with the greatest festivals, events and holidays in the city. Because, as beautiful as the city is on a regular day, as vibrant is it during its many ‘festas’.

Entirely for free

All of this and way, way more, you find in this unique weekend guide, A weekend in Barcelona. And the best thing is: you can download the e-book entirely for free. So, book a flight, pack your bags, charge your phone or tablet and take us along with you on your next trip to the Catalan Capital. We are sure even the biggest Barcelona aficionado might be surprised by the hidden gems in this entertaining-yet-informing weekend guide.

A weekend in Barcelona can be downloaded for free as a PDF by pressing the arrow on the top left of the e-book below.