Where to stay in Barcelona: 8 of the city’s best areas

Stay here: Housed in an iconic modernista building built in 1908 by Catalan architect Lluis Domènech i Montaner, the Hotel Casa Fuster G.L. Monumento is a monument in itself.

Beyond Eixample lies the low-rise barrio of Gràcia. Once an independent town, it was swallowed up as the city spread, but it retains its own identity and is one of the most popular and vibrant districts in Barcelona. Gràcia is famed for its Festa Major, a weeklong street fair and party in which the streets are decorated by neighbourhood associations. The neighbourhood is also home to some architectural highlights, including the clock tower in Plaça de la Vila, the modernist Casa Fuster, Gaudí’s Casa Vincens and (stretching the boundaries a little) Park Güell.


If you do just one thing: Take a break on a bar or restaurant terrace in one of Gràcia’s many spacious, tree-lined squares: Plaça del Sol, Plaça de la Virreina, Plaça de la Vila...

Stay here: On Barcelo Raval Hotel's roof terrace, you can grab a snack and a drink while taking in the panoramic views of the city, which are even better at sunset.

The Raval is Barcelona's most multicultural neighbourhood. You can see it as soon as you get there, with Indian- and Pakistani-run markets living alongside shops that have been around for hundreds of years and restaurants, bars and other venues that are much more modern (and doing a roaring trade). Once a no-go area for tourists, El Raval has been transformed – and it’s not done yet. Some of its gems have been around for years, like Gaudí's medievalist Palau Güell, but others are newer: the revival began in 1995 with Richard Meier's monumental MACBA, housing the city's main collection of modern art as well as serving as a mecca for skateboarders from around the world, and carried on in 2008 with the futuristic Barceló hotel on the Rambla del Raval. From the hotel you have easy access to other nearby neighbourhoods, such as Sant Antoni and the Gothic Quarter, and it's a nice walk to the city beaches.

If you do just one thing: Wander from one end to the other of Carrer Joaquín Costa and discover all this busy street has to offer, from a scrumptious cocktail in Negroni to a special gift in Fusta'm or Fantastik to a one-of-a-kind perfume in Les Topettes.

Stay here: TOC Hostel, with its Nordic design, might just convert even the biggest hostel sceptics. 

Ildefons Cerdà’s plans for Eixample ended up with the neighbourhood being so expansive that it was divided into two, the Dreta (Right) and the Esquerra (Left), with the latter being segmented yet again into the Nova (New) and the Antiga (Old), though they all work together as one district. The Esquerra is not as bustling as the Dreta – with its modernista buildings – but it's no less interesting. The Esquerra is where you'll find the Joan Miró park, the Novecentista Mercat del Ninot, the University of Barcelona gardens (host to concerts and markets throughout the year), and the prison La Modelo, which stopped serving as a penitentiary and opened its doors to free tours in 2017 until the city starts the works to make it into a blooming green space. We also focus on the Eixample Esquerra neighbourhood of Sant Antoni here, which has become a thriving and hip area with a bar or restaurant every few feet.

If you do just one thing: La Bodega d'en Rafel, in Sant Antoni, is where locals come together. Recent arrivals to the neighbourhood share marble tables with Sant Antoni veterans, drinking beers surrounded by barrels of wine, all under the affable watch of the owner, Rafel, who looks after all his customers with extreme dedication.

Stay here: Barcelona Hotel Colonial stands on the border of El Born and the Barri Gòtic, so you've got all of central Barcelona close by. 

What most people call El Born is really a neighbourhood with the long-winded name of Sant Pere, Santa Caterina i La Ribera. It's also sometimes referred to as La Ribera (the Waterfront), a name that recalls the time before permanent quays were built, when the shoreline reached much further inland, and the area was contained within the thirteenth-century wall. The most uptown area of downtown, El Born is a curious blend of the ecclesiastical, the elegant and the edgy, and now commands some of the highest property prices in the city. Label-loving shoppers throng the primped pedestrian streets, where museums, restored thirteenth-century mansions and churches alternate with cafés, galleries and boutiques. It's also home to the spectacularly reinvented Santa Caterina market, a great alternative to the often overcrowded Boqueria on La Rambla.

If you do just one thing: If need a hit of nature, get yourself to Ciutadella park: it’s got 17 hectares of green space, museums, the Barcelona Zoo, a lake with rowboats for rent, and a rather majestic waterfall designed by Josep Fontseré and his apprentice, a young Antoni Gaudí. 

Stay here: Petit Palace Boquería Garden is located in a small palace and has an impressive, centuries-old garden. Oh, and it’s pet-friendly too.

Combined with a wander down La Rambla, a stroll through the medieval alleyways and lovely squares of the Gothic Quarter is the best possible introduction to Barcelona and the starting point for most visitors upon arrival in Barcelona. For a taste of the town's more grandiose architecture, Plaça Sant Jaume is flanked by two government buildings, the Renaissance palace of the Generalitat and the neo-classical façade of the Ajuntament. And just around the corner, you have the Gothic architecture of the Placa del Rei, the Cathedral, and the magnificent Placa Reial. The Barri Gòtic is busy by day with local businesses and shops buzzing, and at night it is slightly quieter than El Born, its sister neighbourhood across Via Laietana, but there are still plenty of lively restaurants, cafés and bars keeping visitors in the area more than happy.

If you do one thing: Wander around El Call, Barcelona’s Jewish Quarter, just a minute or two on foot from the cathedral. The tucked-away synagogue is a good place to start.

Stay here: Just 300m from Nova Icària beach, Hotel SB Icària has an outdoor swimming pool with a sun terrace and sauna.

This is another of Barcelona's neighbourhoods that has made a name for itself in recent years as a place to live and work, what with all the musicians, painters, dancers, publishers and other creators who have chosen Poblenou to set up shop. At the end of the nineteenth century, it was the most industrial area in all of Catalonia, and was dominated by factories. You can see this in its architecture, such as at Palo Alto, an old factory that was converted into a workspace for creative studios and the location for the eponymous monthly design and craft market that's one of the most popular in the city. The Rambla del Poblenou is the area's backbone, full of life and traditional shops, restaurants and bars. Poblenou is also close to the sea and some of the city's best beaches.

If you do one thing: Take a walk along the Rambla del Poblenou with the locals, and stop at Tío Che to try one of the best horchatas in Barcelona in warmer weather. If it's chilly out, snack on comfort food like churros with chocolate or artisan turrón, a traditional Spanish sweet.

Stay here: Sercotel Hotel Rosellon faces the Basílica de la Sagrada Família, so if you stay here, you can get a good gander at it away from the throng of tourists – including from the rooftop bar.

As you may have already guessed, Sagrada Família is named after Gaudí's most famous building. The magnificent basilica sits to the west of the neighbourhood and is flanked by the beautifully landscaped Plaça de Gaudí, which makes for a pleasant spot to sit. Given the church's notoriety (it is the most-visited attraction in Catalonia and Spain), it's often very busy around here, but there's plenty more to explore in the area, which forms part of the wider Eixample district. It's easy to navigate, too, as the streets are laid out in a grid. Immediately around the basilica, you'll find chain restaurants, but cheaper, traditional cuisine can be had if you venture further out. There are also plenty of bars, shops and other things to do, a lot of which can be found along Avinguda de Gaudí. Also worth checking out is the modernist architecture of Lluís Domènech i Montaner in the Sant Pau Art Nouveau Site.

If you do just one thing: Stop by the Sant Pau Art Nouveau Site, a former hospital (and UNESCO World Heritage Site) made up of 20 pavilions, abundantly adorned with colourful Byzantine, Gothic and Moorish flourishes and set in peaceful gardens. Plus, you can get another fab view of the Sagrada Família.

Stay here: Hotel Jazz is a good, central base for getting to know Barcelona, plus the rooftop swimming pool and terrace have views across the city and transform into a chilled-out lounge bar at night.

Though they are part of the same district, the two Eixamples, Dreta (Right) and Esquerra (Left), have very different vibes. Dreta is sometimes referred to as the 'Quadrat d'Or or Golden Grid, thanks to its affluent residents. You’ll find great shopping along Passeig de Gràcia, bars lining the pedestrian-friendly Passeig de Sant Joan, and the central Plaça de Catalunya, as well as quite a few of the buildings that make up the Ruta del Modernisme.

If you do just one thing: A good way to immerse yourself in a city is to visit a market, blend in with locals, and buy what they do. A good place to do that is at the Mercat de la Concepció, located in a beautiful church-like iron building with three naves that is also home to the Flores Navarro market, which is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.