Things to do for kids: walking tours and play spaces

It’s not that the walking tour is giant, it’s that there are giants on the tour! Giants play a big part in local festivals and parades. You and the kids explore the Barri Gòtic and hear stories, play games and sing songs that have meaning to the city. Meet giant kings and queens, as well as hear legends from speaking trees. The tour also stops at a candy shop and the Giants Museum, where kids can see how the giants are made (for a small extra fee).

Runner Bean Tours
Duration: 2.5 hours
Prices: free ages 0-3 years, €15 ages 4-12, €15 adults; private tours starting at €155

Find out what Barcelona life was like in 1492 with this interactive children’s tour about Christopher Columbus’s voyages to the New World. The tour starts in the courtyard of the Maritime Museum, where you discover information about the sea, the history of slavery, and the wealth the discovery of America brought to Spain. During the week, the tour ends at Casa Gispert (Sombrerers, 23), one of the oldest food shops in Barcelona, which hasn’t changed much in appearance over the years, but now sells imported products like coffee, tea, vanilla and more.

Kids & Cat
Duration: 2.5 hours
Price: free ages 0-3, €19 children, €15 adults

Barcelona is the city of dragons. Become an investigator and explore Barri Gòtic, looking for dragons and learning their history. Don’t worry, the dragons you’ll find are not evil, but rather kind and protective. By the end of the tour, you and your children will be dragon experts, knowing the difference between Asian and European dragons, marine and forest dragons, and others.

Kids & Cat
Duration: 2.5 hours
Prices: free ages 0-3, €19 children, €15 adults

This guided tour takes your family through the historic quarters of Roman Barcelona. You ‘travel in time’ to learn the secrets of the ancient architecture, and imagine what it was like to be in the Roman Temple of Augustus. Then, you travel to the 12th century, where you see how the medieval city grew and changed. Learn how families celebrated and interacted way back then.

Kids & Cat
Duration: 2.5 hours
Prices: free ages 0-3, €19 children, €15 adults

Choose a self-guided tour or hire a tour guide to show you through Camp Nou Stadium, home of FC Barcelona. Walk through the players’ tunnel and spring out onto the pitch to see where all the Barça magic happens. You can explore the museum that shows off trophies and use the touchscreens available to see replays of spectacular goals. Museum times will vary depending on the game schedule, so make sure you check before you head out.

Camp Nou
Timetable: Mon-Sun 10am-3pm
Prices: online €25 general,  €20 children 6-13, adults over 70; ticket office €26.50 general, €21.50 children 6-13, adults over 70; free ages 0-5

This indoor park for children features slides and sound pipes, Legos and a play area that seems to focus on cooking and shopping. There’s also a separate room for parents to grab a coffee and chat with grown-ups while the kids are playing. Peek a Boo also has creative workshops for the kids each week, with the schedule varying. Great for a rainy day or when the weather is just too hot to be outside.

Peek a Boo
Timetable: Mon closed; Tue-Fri 9am-8pm; Sat-Sun 11am-2pm, 4.30pm-8pm

In the CaixaForum you’ll find an interactive multimedia workshop for kids ages 12 and older every Sunday at midday. Kids can discover what it’s like to be an entrepreneur and what skills are needed. For the littler ones, Quiric (Caixa Kids) has children create shapes, colours and sounds on a computer.

CaixaForum
Timetable: CaixaLab Sat 5pm-7pm; Sun 12pm-2pm; 20 minutes; Quiric Sat, Sun 10am-8pm
Prices: free

Puppet shows, secret passageways and no shoes? El Cau was designed with family fun in mind. Kids can crawl through openings in the bottom of a wall, entering into a labyrinth of passageways with a slide, games, steps, hanging cloths they can climb up, different textures to touch… If your kids are three years old or younger, you can go in with them as well. At the back of the room is an area with a stage where they put on small plays and puppet shows. Plus there are guided activities, and you can book for birthday celebrations.  

El Cau
Timetable: Mon-Fri 10.30am-1.30pm, 4.30pm-7.30pm; Sat, Sun 11am-2pm, 5pm-8pm; Sun closed
Prices: Mornings: €4/child. Afternoons/evenings: €6/child. Ticket packs: €20.