I'm planing a trip to Spain on vacations, and have some questions?

Question

-what is the best time of the year to visit Barcelona? Im going on february

-What other cities I can visit, with a limited budget and short time (5 days)

-Is there a cheap flight from Roma - Italy to Barcelona? or is cheaper to take the train?

-What are the must-see attractions in Barcelona and close by locations?

-what are some tips yo can give me to this trip? Im going to Spain from Italy and I'm from Peru in South America

Thanks a lot!!!! any advice on this or other subjects will be greatly appreciated

Answer 1

OKay, first, yes, you should be able to get a cheap (about 100€ each way) flight from Roma to Barcelona.

Second, you want to find a place near the Ramblas, because that will put you pretty much in the center of town.  The metro system is very good, but, especially in the subway and other crowded places, be especially careful with your valuables.

I´m not sure about the BEST time to go to Barcelona, I have only been there in June, and it was hot and muggy.  I´m pretty sure it is a very mild climate, but I´m not sure about the best time.

If you only have 5 days (total?) spend it all in Barcelona.  There is enough to do right there.  You migh take a daytrip to Montserrat - the famous monestary and home to the  black virgin.  It´s very nice.  Other side trips would include any of the nice little beach towns along both the north and south coasts.  I really wanted to go to Cadaqués, a center for the impressionists, but didn´t have time.  Figueres was the home of Dalí, and from either of those towns it´s only a half-hour or so shot to the French border, should you want to be able to tell people you went to France for coffee (it was a cool idea for us Yankees, but, again, time ran short).  We also liked Gerona, a cute little town whose heyday was around 5 or 6 centuries ago.  Sitges has a good reputation, as well, and there are several cities with neat little castles, and the like all up and down the coast.  Going South, we went to Tarragona, just to see the Roman Ruins, there.  Some of the best preserved in the country.  Of course, if you´re living in Rome, that´s no great shakes for you.

In Barcelona, you must go through the Barrí Gotic, the Poble Espanyol is really neat, if not very authentic.  We expected to find handicrafts that were typical of the different regions, like the buildings, but found modern crafts, instead.  You must walk up and down Las Ramblas, from the port to the Plaça de Cataunya, just to see the street performers and the stalls of things for sale.  You should definitely spend a day or two in the Eixample, see the Casa Milá, and Casa Battlló, as well as the absolutely not to be missed Templo de la Sagrada Familia, and the Parc Güell.  All four were designed by Gaudí.

The zoo is world class, and there are two amusement parks, Tibidabo is in the city, and there was something like a six flags outside of town, as well as a water park which surely is closed during the winter.  They may all be closed during the winter months.  Also, the Picasso museum is supposed to be incredible.  (I went many years ago, and wasn´t terribly impressed, but I understand it has expanded greatly in recent years).  The Palau Música is incredible, but we couldn´t get in when we went, so check in advance, make sure it´s really open during it´s posted hours.  The cholocate museum was fascinating, and the cafe at the end was great!  

Definitely have some outstanding seafood meals at the port, and if you have time, have chocolate and churros at the Cafe de la Opera, across the Ramblas from the Opera building.  That would be a morning thing to do, best on Sundays, but we went a couple of times.  

As you are from Perú, you will have no problem communicating, as everyone speaks Spanish, and it only took me a couple of days to pick up on Catalán, I can´t speak it, but I understand enough.

One caveat.  Don´t think, once you have been to Barcelona, that you have experienced Spain, as it is almost a different country.  The people will let you know they aren´t Spanish, but Catalán, and you can actually feel a change as you travel on further South or into the central part of the country.

I wouldn´t try to go too far from Barcelona on your time constraints, though.  You really want to give the town its due.

¡Disfrute!

Answer 2

Contact the spanish travel office in Rome.Tey will gve you a lot of suggestions. Furter, and more important, contact the one in the airport of Barcelona or in downtown. There you will get everything, including maps. Ask for the turist buses. They have a stop at about every atraction, ther you can hop off/on.

From the airport take either the train (www.renfe.es) to downtown or the airport bus. Both bring you right into the center of town. Do not rent a car. Traffic is as dense as in Roma and parking is near to impossble and very expensive. Move around with public transport (www.tmb.es most probably).

Look into www.barcelona.es too.

Some of the locals are very unpolite. They refuse to speak castellano even with a foreigner. Don´t mind those a..holes and enjoy your stay in BCN!

for the weather look into www.inm.es. February can be quite cold there, like in Rome.

Answer 3

if you want to find cheap flights from Rome to Barcelona it is possible with ryanair www.ryanair.com. You can find reallt cheap flights and you can hire a car with Hertz at the aerport for your 4 days. It's quite cheap.

Answer 4

Sue's answer was really good, but I have to differ in some things.

Firstly, not everyone in Barcelona feels Catalan and not Spanish. Both things are not contradictory and most part of society feel proud to be both, even if they choose to speak Catalan rather than Spanish. Don't worry because Catalan is co-official and any person working for the public needs to speak both. Catalunya varies a lot from North to South, as does Spain. Obviously, Catalunya is very different from other Spanish regions, but so is Galicia from Madrid, Asturias from Andalucía, Euskadi from Castilla...Every area is different from the other and all worth a visit.

Secondly, I doubt you will have time to visit amusement parks, but the good one, and one of the best in Europe by the way, is Port Aventura, near Tarragona.

I personally find feb is not the best month to visit Barcelona, as it may be a bit cold. I would say the best months would be between April and June, or maybe September. But I'm sure you'll have a great time.

All the sightseeings Sue pointed out are great, maybe I would add Mirablau (it has nice bars and clubs with a great view, good for the evenings/nights), Camp Nou (if you like football)