How to spend 48 hours in Barcelona

Barcelona is a must visit destination on any Spain holiday itinerary. It would surely be a crime to go to Spain without visiting the thriving heartbeat of Catalonia.

Due to limited time to make our way to the tomato throwing festival, La Tomatina, in Buñol we found ourselves with just 48 hours in Barcelona. This might not seem like very long but if you prepare for a whirlwind adventure, you’ll get to see the top attractions in Barcelona and a little extra.

Here’s the Aaron and Rosie guide to squeezing all the juice out of 48 hours in Barcelona.

Stay in El Born

We love getting the most out of our holidays wherever we go especially when there’s limited time. Barcelona has a number of attractive suburbs to stay in and we based ourselves in El Born. It’s location is faultless. El Born is walking distance to most of the city’s most popular attractions including Las Ramblas and Colon (Christopher Columbus statue), the famous Picasso Museum and the beach. The hip suburb has a great atmosphere with no shortage of funky restaurants, cafes, designer boutiques, cocktail bars and charming medieval alleyways. Perfect for getting lost together (if you’ve got the time!).

La Sagrada Familia

A trip to Barcelona wouldn’t be complete without visiting Gaudi’s lifelong masterpiece, La Sagrada Familia. It blows our minds that this incredible Roman Catholic Basilica began construction back in 1882 and is still being constructed to this day! We were both in complete admiration of the nature-inspired architecture. La Sagrada Familia is an attraction where you’ll have to book your entry ticket in advance to avoid disappointment. We also recommend a guided tour to learn the intricate history of La Sagrada Familia and Gaudi, the man who transformed it. We hear that this masterpiece will be complete by 2026 – so this might be the perfect time to plan your trip (if you can wait that long…)!

Las Ramblas

The beautiful tree-lined avenue of Las Ramblas is perfect for wandering aimlessly and connects Plaça de Catalunya with the famous Christopher Columbus Monument. The pedestrian only street runs for just over a kilometre and we spent our time ogling at the street food, listening to talented street artists, poking around pop up stores, admiring surrounding architecture and absorbing the summer buzz. You can weave Las Ramblas into a walking tour of the city to make the most of your 48 hours.

Barceloneta Beach

Barceloneta Beach is the place to be in the city to seek relief from the intense Catalan sun. The stretch of sand overlooking the iconic W Hotel is home to rustic make-shift bars offering overpriced sangria in exchange for shade and sea breeze. While the sangria may be a little overrated here, it’s a great place to people watch and experience the summer vibe of Barcelona. For better quality watering holes, stray away from the main tourist strip where prices are more reasonable and the atmosphere is local.

Park Guell

Gaudi’s Park Guell is another must visit attraction in Barcelona. Unfortunately after deciding to walk for more than an hour in 30 degree heat we found out that there weren’t actually tickets available to buy onsite and that if you want a guaranteed visit, you need to book your ticket online in advance (to be honest, we thought we could just walk in). We arrived around 10 am and the next available entrance was at 4 pm. After walking around the outskirts of the park which offered spectacular views of Barcelona and doesn’t require a ticket, we went away and returned 6 hours later. The fairytale-like architecture that resembled gingerbread houses from the setting of Hansel and Gretel was definitely worth visiting but be prepared to bump shoulders with fellow tourists if you’re there in or around Summer.

Join the foodie scene

There is no shortage of great restaurants and bars on the streets of Barcelona, particularly in and around El Born and the Gothic Quarter. You can try delicacies from all around Spain from the Basque specialty of Pintxos through to paella. Whatever you do, don’t miss out on a Crema Catalana – the Catalan version of creme brulee. One of our favourite food stops was a little place called Sensi Tapas in the Gothic Quarter which had a great range of Spanish specialties served with a modern twist.

Absorb Catalan Culture

We coincidentally found ourselves in Barcelona on the National Day of Catalonia (11 September). This day-long holiday attracts proud Catalans from all over the region into the city. During the national day, the streets are packed with locals proudly donning the yellow and red flag of Catalonia. People spill out from restaurants onto the streets, music blares at pop up music festivals and Catalans rally together to recognise their unique culture.

Walk everywhere, see more

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We’ve never done so much pavement pounding in our entire lives. On our first day we clocked 44,000 steps (just making room for more eating and drinking…). At this point our feet were forcing themselves in front of each other, and our map was well worn. We walked from our hotel, Banys Orientals in El Born, to admire the charms of Gaudi’s architecture including Casa Batlló, La Segrada Familia and Park Guell. We find that walking is one of the best ways to explore any city and gives you a chance to observe the rhythm of local life while racing from pillar to post.

Accommodation in Barcelona

El Born was the perfect base to explore Barcelona. Hotel Banys Orientals was located in the heart of El Born. Our room was spacious and quiet and we received a great orientation from the staff on arrival which was helpful for our 48 hour stay.

Rosie & Aaron

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