Barcelona touring

[onthegogirl]

Will have a couple of days in Barcelona before my cruise and would like to see something of the city. I'm a woman of a certain age ;)traveling alone and would love advice as to the safest and most cost effective way to get around and also the MUST SEES.

 

As always, thanks for you help!:)

[OttoCal]

Check out the Barcelona page over on Trip Advisor, lots of great tips there!

 

Everyone's must-sees vary- do you like museums? architecture? churches? shopping? food?

 

Things I liked in Barcelona:

Gaudi Architecture- Casa Batllo', La Pedrera, Sagrada Familia

Chrurches- Sagrada Familia (again...), Catedral, Santa Maria del Mar

Museums- Miro, MNAC, Tapies were tops, MACBA if you like contemporary, Picasso for the buliding and the Las Meninas study only,

Shopping- El Corte Ingles for a huge one-stop experience, including a restaurant on top and a grocery in the basement, Passeig de Gracia for high-end shops, Barri Gotic for espadrilles at La Manual Alpargata and pottery at Escullders

Parks- I liked Ciutatadella and Montjuic. Many adore Parc Guell, which is pretty, but crowded.

Food- oh, where to start?? just eat everything :p

 

Transport was very easy and economical on the metro, a T-10 card is less than 8 Euros and good for 10 rides on metro or bus. A taxi at night if you feel uncomfortable is easy to do. The Aerobus is 5 Euros and goes from the airport to the Placa de Catalunya, and that is an area where you should concentrate your hotel search.

[Kerry's Girls]

I stayed near Sagrada Familia and felt very safe at all hours walking alone with my children - it's a very busy, pedestrian area with easy metro access. I also found the metro to be very easy and made getting around the city extremely fast and inexpensive. I did take a cab to/from the airport and to/from Parc Guell for the sake of convenience, but otherwise walked and metro'd everywhere else.

 

Best,

Mia

[onthegogirl]

Thank you both for the info. The metro/bus pass sounds like the ticket. Looking forward to the food:D Will certainly visit a museum and a church and may see if there is an opera or ballet of concert happening.

 

You hear so much about muggings and pickpockets so I will not be carrying a pocketbook. Planning for a safe fun time.:)

[OttoCal]

Check here for concerts of many types in a beautiful setting- concert + architecture in one visit!!

http://www.palaumusica.org/

 

I would suggest staying close to Placa Catalunya- easy walking distance to L'Eixample, Barri Gotic, Born neighborhoods, many hotels to choose from. The area around Sagrada Familia is nice, but there isn't much else there that is useful for a tourist with a limited amount of time, since you will have to add the metro in to every other place you visit with the exception of SF. :p

[chipmaster]

All the Gaudi sites/mueseums are worth a look, as is the Gothic district, and Las Ramblas.

 

We stayed at the top of Las Ramblas and during our day and half of walking and taxi there was nothing that I saw that made me feel that a single traveler with good sense should worry especially about.

 

My dad and kids did wander the most notorious of dangerous areas at peak time and did very fine.

 

The metro look reasonable and well used so I'd think safe. We walked and taxied everywhere and felt that was safe and reasonable. It was a 5-10 euro jaunt to most places from Las Ramblas and with the good exchange rate these days even more resaonable :)

 

Its a cool city, you'll enjoy it!

[FinelyRetired]

Will have a couple of days in Barcelona before my cruise and would like to see something of the city. I'm a woman of a certain age ;)traveling alone and would love advice as to the safest and most cost effective way to get around and also the MUST SEES.

 

As always, thanks for you help!:)

 

What a coincidence, I'm the "same" age as you are.;)

 

I spent a couple of days Solo pre-cruise in Barcelona and loved it.

 

I stayed in l'Eixample area.

 

And, while it was not inexpensive, I had a private guide meet my early AM flight into Barcelona and did a one-half day "Highlights" tour with him. He took me to some of the farther points on my "must see" list, ie Park Guell where his driver dropped us at the top and he & I walked downhill eventually meeting the driver at the bottom. It was a beautiful place and quite intriguing to learn of the origins of the park, the methods used to build it, etc. We toured inside Familia, drove up and around Montjuic and he gave me walking tour of Barri Gotic. Before he dropped me and my luggage at my hotel, he drove me around and oriented me for walking days on my own to the other "must sees" on my list and others that he suggested.

 

So, I walked on my own to tour La Pedrera, look at Tapies' Cloud & Chair sculpture, toured Casa Batlio, looked at Amatlier & Morera houses, walked 2/3 of La Rambla, wandered Boqueria market, the El Corte Ingles Dept store, more around in the Barri Gotic, etc.

 

As I looked back on it later, when I got home, my walking time somewhat mirrored what is defined and mapped in the section titled: "The Best in One Day" in Frommer's Barcelona Day by Day. Maybe take a look.

 

I never felt unsafe. Ended up not needing the Metro.

 

You will love Barcelona. As a Solo traveller, my favorite pre/post cruise cities are: Barcelona, London & Venice.

 

Enjoy

 

Martha

[smoothsailors]

:) Definitely plan to see the Palau de Musica...very centrally located, walkable from the Cathedral area and near Metro stop. It is truly magnificent and (in our opinion) even more impressive than all the Gaudi. You can book a tour of the interior online, or may be lucky enough to catch an actual performance there. The Palau has a website with detailed information. There is a cafe there or many places to eat in the area. Enjoy and don't miss...it is beautiful!

[onthegogirl]

Smoothsailers: Thanks for the information. Will certainly look into that.

 

FinelyRetired: Do you remember who you booked your tour with? It's sounds like a perfect start to my trip.

 

Carole

[onthegogirl]

My favorite pre/post cruise ports are Copenhagen and Sydney. Both are awesome.

 

Carole

[FinelyRetired]

Smoothsailers: Thanks for the information. Will certainly look into that.

 

FinelyRetired: Do you remember who you booked your tour with? It's sounds like a perfect start to my trip.

 

Carole

 

Carole:

 

Jose Soler, www.pepitotours.com He's informative and fun. Since that tour, I've done a 1/2 day Montserrat Tour with hotel pick-up in AM & drop off at ship at 2:00pm. Both of those I did Solo. And last Fall 5 of us off the Ruby did a tour to Girona and the Costa Brava with him.

 

Martha

[FinelyRetired]

My favorite pre/post cruise ports are Copenhagen and Sydney. Both are awesome.

 

Carole

 

Carole: I've never been to Sydney. Nice to learn first hand its a favorite of a solo traveler. I had a day in Copenhagen on a cruise itinerary and it was very enjoyable and walked most of it on my own. Got a taxi to Rosenberg Castle as I was running out of time. That was a Baltics cruise and it started in Amsterdam which was a fun, comfortable pre-cruise stay on my own.

Martha

[onthegogirl]

Carole: I've never been to Sydney. Nice to learn first hand its a favorite of a solo traveler. I had a day in Copenhagen on a cruise itinerary and it was very enjoyable and walked most of it on my own. Got a taxi to Rosenberg Castle as I was running out of time. That was a Baltics cruise and it started in Amsterdam which was a fun, comfortable pre-cruise stay on my own.

Martha

 

I stayed in Copenhagen pre and post Baltic cruise last year and the only taxis were to and from the airport and ship. I even bonded with the driver who picked me up at the pier and he arranged to take me to the airport. It's such a walkable city and I just wandered around, enjoyed Tivoli and the Rosenberg Castle and felt safe and comfortable all the time.

 

Sydney is a blast! It's beautiful and has good mass transit and I felt safe on the trains and buses and really enjoyed the ferries. Got a week "all transit pass" and just hopped on one ferry and then another, one bus or a train then another. You will love it if you have the good fortune to go.

 

Carole