It’s hard to shortlist the pros of living in Barcelona as there are many but here I will tell you what I missed and like the most that the Catalan capital has to offer.
Bakeries. Independent bakeries in Barcelona are a big thing. Despite being a multicultural modern city, luckily, independent shops are still appreciated.
In my own street there are five bakeries, and they are all family-run. On a Saturday morning, we love getting a ‘bocadillo de jamón’ on our way to the beach. I miss that now that we are in ‘lockdown’.
Cycle paths. Barcelona is made for being outdoors and cycling.
With Bicing, Donkey Republic and Yego, to name a few, you’re never too far from a bicycle, and the weather is always great for it, even at night, you’re never really cold.
Beer. I love small cold beer bottles, ‘quintos’. Barcelonians know how to drink their beer when it’s hot.
Balconies. Very underrated in my opinion. Almost every flat will have a balcony, or a rooftop, perfect to soak in some sunshine rays while sipping your morning coffee.
Veg & Fruit shops. Like bakeries, they are everywhere. I’m always impressed about how lovely the displays look like.
It’s cheaper than at the supermarket and I always find new veggies, like round courgettes or even blue tomatoes! Love it!
Menu del día. I love these. You can have a complete meal including wine, coffee and dessert, for a tenner. And I’m talking about proper nice fish dishes and all.
Big avenues. I love walking down Passeig de Gracia or Diagonal. You can walks for miles and it’s so pretty.
The weather. Barcelona has perfect weather. It’s very sunny all year long except maybe March and April were you also get quite a lot of rain.
January is normally my favourite month as you get blue skies and an average of 14+ degrees. Who needs summer?
Architecture. Mainly gothic and modernist. Barcelona is a stunning city, it’s an open museum that never stops to wow me.
Whether you live here or are visiting, make sure you check out my recommendations for best eats in Barcelona here:
https://talesfromaredsuitcase.wordpress.com/2020/03/04/latest-food-discoveries-in-barcelona/ and here:
Tales from a Red Suitcase 
I have wanted to visit Barcelona for a while, knowing there are lots of independent bakeries and those photos of the huge avenues and architecture just enhanced that a bit more!
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Hi Chris, I’m glad to hear so! You won’t be disappointed, I’m sure!
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Lovely post! I love Barcelona, it’s such a vibrant city.
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Great post! I especially agree with the good / cold beer scene : )
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Thank you! 🙂
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Yes to the balconies and all the seafood dishes. They really know how to enjoy life there!
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They really do, you’re right! 🙂
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Was that picture really of a street dedicated to bicycles and buses only? Are there many like that? The husband would have us cycling all around Barcelona if I let him. I cycled in central London and it was terrifying. Wouldn’t even consider it in Rome. But with a street like that, well, that changes things…
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That’s actually Barcelona during lock-down, apologies, the picture may not be that representative and I will take a few tonight when I am out doing my exercise. But yeah, Barcelona has some amazing lanes dedicated to bicycles only, nothing compared to London or Rome, where I also think there’s not a safe cycling network.
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Some of London’s roads now have a dedicated bike lane (set off by concrete, which is nice), and those were great, but we were also on some that don’t. When a double-decker bus gets inches from you, your life starts flashing in front of your eyes.
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I will look out for those next time I go. Cannot promise I will try though, we will see 🙂 I have added a few pictures of the actual cycle lanes in Barcelona. It is not perfect, like Copenhagen where you do have almost entire roads for bicycles only, but it’s still the best I have seen in a big European city.
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You make me feel like being on holyday just by your words and pictures. A post for dreaming.
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And you make me realise even more how lucky I am to live in this beautiful city.
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Great post! I love Barcelona, amazing city.
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