Barcelona

Travel Advice for Seniors: Barcelona

Barcelona is memorable for a number of reasons. La Sagrada Familia, Park Guell and Las Ramblas to name a few. The fantastic architecture of Gaudi is prevalent and very much worth touring. Las Ramblas is the main thoroughfare in Barcelona heading from the port to the main square. You can feel the energy just walking down the street here. Be warned though, there are plenty of pickpockets and folks selling counterfeit goods.

We spent two full days touring Barcelona and it was barely enough time to do it justice.

The tour of UNESCO heritage site, La Sagrada Familia is a must-do. Gaudi’s masterpiece of architecture has a fascinating history and is the largest unfinished Catholic church in the world. Next stop is another Gaudi masterpiece, Casa Batillo and we finished with a stop by Montjuic.

We took the optional trip to see even more Gaudi masterpieces at Park Guell and La Pedrera. The Park was lovely but very crowded and it was best to keep a hand on your bag at all times. La Pedrera was an interesting tour of the last private residence completed by Gaudi. The interiors were just if not more interesting than the unique exterior of the building.

For our last day in Barcelona, we elected to go to the La Boquaria the large public market adjacent to Las Ramblas for some gifts for friends. We also toured Barcelona Cathedral the seat of the Archbishop of Catalonia, and went by the Museo Picasso to view some sketches and less seen works by the master.

We liked Barcelona but it was very crowded with tourists, mostly coming from the very large cruise ships docked at the far end of Las Ramblas. Las Ramblas itself was so busy the day were walking down to the port that you could barely move without bumping someone. Also a ripe environment for pickpockets. If there is a way you can choose to visit between cruise ship tourist dumps, I would highly recommend it. The main attractions in Barcelona will usually be crowded, but it sometimes does get insane with the cruise ships.   

Where we stayed: Hotel Catalonia Eixample 1864. Nice hotel, breakfast included. Centrally located.

How we got there: Flew from US to Madrid. This was part of a 14-day small group tour through Spain, starting in Madrid and ending in Barcelona.

General Accessibility Information: Major tourist sights, newer hotels, transportation in most major cities are accessible. Visitors can get accessibility support and information through Spain Is Accessible. Call in advance to verify and make specialty arrangements. See our sections on specialty apps and accessible travel for more on accessibility assistance.