The second to last weekend in Spain, I took a Barcelona Free Walking Tour. I was skeptical at first, but it’s actually not a scam.
They offer four different tours: Gothic Quarter, Barcelona Bike Ride (you pay for the bike rental), Gaudí (you need a metro pass and to pay admission to La Sagrada Familia, an optional stop on the tour), and Censored Barcelona (only offered on Thursdays and Saturdays). I took the Gothic Quarter tour.
The start of our tour. I won’t go through every stop because I hope one day you’ll be able to see and learn about it yourself. Let’s see if these pictures give you some wanderlust and motivate you to make the middle count.
Again, the tour in itself is free, unless you decide to give a tip. You can choose to leave or start the tour whenever you please. Overall, my tour guide, Patrick was very knowledgeable, helpful, and kept things entertaining. I will admit I zoned out a bit at times and don’t remember everything that was said, but would I do it again? Yes. First of all, it was free, so there’s nothing to lose. Secondly, you do get a better sense of the history and importance of certain things you might have otherwise ignored.
For a link to the tour click here.
Personally, I think the Picasso Museum is a must-do. It was eye-opening to read about his life in Spain, specifically Barcelona, because I realized, “Wow, I just walked the streets Picasso once walked.”
It didn’t make me think I could suddenly sell my grade A stick figures. But there’s just something about knowing that such talent was on those streets once, wandering, hoping it was going in the right direction. It makes you feel like you are capable of making your own masterpiece even if you’re currently getting lost. It gives you hope that one day, you’ll end up where you always wanted to be.
Now, onto my tips…The Picasso Museum is free all day on every first Sunday of the month and every Sunday after 3 PM. I tried the week before, after my walking tour, and failed to get in before they “sold out.” This means that although they’re free, they have a maximum number of tickets they can give out per day, and by around 5-5:30 the limit was hit. But it worked out because a week later was the start of the Cubism Exhibit.
So on my second attempt, as soon as I stepped off my bus at noon, I went straight (minus a few wrong turns) to the museum. I asked one of the staff members what time I should get in line if I wanted to be there for the free ticket. She told me 2 PM. I went off to enjoy a sangria with tapas, and by 1:55, I was in line. I waited exactly an hour and received my ticket at 3 PM for the 3:15 slot. With the amount of groups that pass by, the hour will fly by if you choose to people-watch solo, as I did, or with a buddy. I would definitely add this to your list of places to go and also search other museums that offer this Sunday special.