Winter in Barcelona, Spain: 3-Day Itinerary

So our time in Barcelona was a little goofy. We had three nights on the front end of the trip and one on the back end. The first three nights, we stayed at a lovely hotel right on Las Ramblas. The silly part was that my grandparents and I had to share one room with one bed and me sleeping on a pull-out chair. Not pull-out couch...but chair. So along with the jet lag forcing us to nap every day at about 4 pm, we were crammed into a pretty tiny living space. 

Silliness aside, though, Barcelona retained much of the magic that I remembered from when I visited back in 2014. The kind of magic that makes you think, "I kinda want to live here someday." And you really feel like you could, because the city is so modern and cosmopolitan. Not to mention beautiful, with it's little oceanfront walkway and wrought iron terraces and blue skies and the like. 

I wanted to put this post together so that others could not only know what exactly to do in Barcelona, but have the most blissful, stress-free, magical experience in one of my favorite cities in Europe. Read on for what to pack, where to stay, what to eat & drink, and the perfect Barcelona, Spain 3-day itinerary. Enjoy!

Walking the edgy streets of El Ravel. Overall solid winter weather outfit for Barcelona. 

What to pack:

I did a full packing list for two weeks in Spain & Portugal during the winter! Check it out here. And learn from my mistakes :)

How to get there:

From San Francisco, I took a round-trip Lufthansa flight for just $500 and laid over in Frankfurt both ways.

On the way home, my layover was about 18 hours, so I stayed in a hostel in Frankfurt overnight. I highly recommend taking advantage of long layovers, like I did in Shanghai last year. 

One of the many glorious churches in Barcelona.

Where to stay:

• Hotel// La Meridien
  • Location: right on Las Ramblas
  • Perks: free tickets to Palau Guell, Golin + Moetz amenities 
• Hotel// Barcelona Airport Hotel
  • Location: near the airpot
  • Perks: free airport shuttle, really lux for low price

Make sure a walk through La Barceloneta is part of your 3 day itinerary. 

What to eat: 

• Breakfast// Brunch & Cake (Order: the matcha pancakes)
• Breakfast// Federal Cafe
• Lunch// Bo de B
• Lunch// La Boqueria 
• Lunch// La Bombeta (Tip: Cash only, no wifi, very little English except on menu)
• Dinner// Cerveceria Catalan (Tip: Get a seat at the bar if it's busy. Waiter might not be friendly.)
• Dinner// Sensi Gourmet Tapas (Order: croquettes, chorizo, and truffel ravioli)
• Dinner// Arume (Order: the duck paella)
• Drinks// Bar Dow Jones
• Note: Yelp was actually a helpful tool in Barcelona, so I used that to collect food ideas and TripAdvisor for activity ideas!

Brunch & Cake had the most innovative dishes & presentation.

Starting off dinner at La Bombeta with the famous bombas y sangria.

Selection of house tapas at Cerveceria Catalan, including croquettes, shrimp, crispy smelt, poblano peppers, and the best clams we had.

Huge fan of the vegan zucchini ravioli at Sensi Gourmet Tapas.

Even bigger fan of their truffle pasta ravioli *drooling emoji*

What to do:

• Go on a Free Walking Tour
• Walk through the Christmas markets (Note: Fira de Santa Lucia is the biggest one)
• Shop on Passeig de Gracia
• Explore the following neighborhoods:
  • La Barceloneta: gorgeous waterfront area with dining and shops
  • El Gotic: oldest and most architecturally awesome 
  • El Raval: edgier part of the city 
  • Eixample: modern, up and coming 
  • Gracia: bohemian, boutique shops
• Catch a free show at the Magic Fountain of Montjuic
  • Tip: Get there 20m early and bring your own tapas & cava!
• Tour Palau Guell and Park Guell
• Feast your eyes on the Sagrada Familia
  • Tip: Tickets to go inside are about 15 euros, but order ahead online because they are for certain time slots.

Sunset in La Barceloneta. 

Barcelona, Spain 3-day itinerary

Day 1

• 9 am Breakfast at Brunch & Cake
• 11 am Free Walking Tours Barcelona
• 2:30 pm Lunch at La Boqueria
• Walk to Barceloneta, wander & shop here
• 5:30 pm Dinner at La Bombeta
• Ride the teleferico from La Barceloneta to Montjuice at sunset
• 8 pm Magic Fountain of Montjuic
• Drinks at Bar Dow Jones

Day 2

• 9:30 am Breakfast at Federal Cafe (El Raval)
• 11 am Tour Palau Guell
• 1:30 pm Walk through Fira de Santa Lucia (Xmas Market)
• 3 pm Lunch at Bo de B
• 4 pm Taxi to La Sagrada Familia & Parc Guell 
• 8 pm Dinner at Cerveceria Catalan
• 9:30 pm Churros con chocolate

Day 3

• Breakfast at Ugot
• Explore Placa Catalunya & Las Ramblas, shop around
• Walk through Arc De Triumph Ciutadella Park
• Lunch at Arume 
• [Built in time for you to check anything off your list! I always get more recommendations locals.]
• Dinner at Sensi Gourmet Tapas - MUST!

The Magic Fountains of Montjuic. The photo never does it justice. 

Why you'll love it:

• Do I even need to list reasons? It's inevitable. Barcelona is the 3rd most visited place in all of Europe. Everybody loves it!
• There's a great energy here. People seem to be happy, like they're really thriving. This might have something to do with bullet point #1 and Spain's booming economy. 
• Very cosmopolitan and modern, but with a ton of beautiful architecture and history. 

Incredible architecture inside Palau Guell, designed by Antoni Gaudi for the richest industrialist of his time. 

La Sagrada Familia was even more breath-taking the second time I visited. 

I hope this guide helps the next Barcelona-bound traveler have an incredible, stress-free adventure. If you're traveling around Spain, check out my Madrid 3-day itinerary here! For more travel guides like this, subscribe to the site here or at the bottom of the page.

Spain & Portugal in the Winter: Packing List

Details

Destinations: Barcelona // Madrid // Porto // Lisbon // Frankfurt

Season: Winter, December 

Weather: Consistently sunny & cold. High of 60 degrees, low of 25. Some rain/snow.

Length: Two Weeks (14 days)

A slightly less bundled look in Porto.

Realizing I look like a huge nerd here, I got this coat to stay warm and get in on the pink/shag trend I was seeing in Europe.

Packing List

Note that I fit all of the below into a carry on-sized suitcase and Northface backpack, but totally forgot to leave room for shopping! Spain & Portugal have amazing clothes at super low prices. I got so much stuff it almost didn't fit in my bag home. 

Also note that if you're using Airbnb, you'll likely have access to a washing machine. This might allow you to bring fewer undergarments, etc. All our Airbnb's had a washing machine, but no dryer. 

Biking in Lisbon! Definitely didnt need this heavy or long of a jacket.

Clothing

• Underwear x 14
• Socks x 14
• Regular bra
• Bralettes 
• Black jeans
• Dark blue jeans
• Light blue jeans
• Army green leggings
• Long grey overcoat
• Heavier waterproof jacket
• Long cardigan
• One active outfit (sports bra, leggings, top)
• One travel outfit (leggings, crewneck, long cardi, socks)
• White sneakers
• Black high tops
• Thigh high boots (only if comfy!)
• Tops x 7
  • Turtleneck x 2
  • T-shirt 
  • Tank top
  • Sweater x 2
  • Denim shirt
  • Going out top 
• Blanket scarf
• Beanie 
• Thin gloves
• Pajamas
• Fold-top crossbody bag
• Optional (if you will be going out at all):
  • Leather jacket
  • Black leather skirt
  • Black tights
  • Close toed booties

Electronics

• Adapter plug - I FORGOT THIS ! 
• Phone (& charger)
• Portable charger
• Headphones
• Laptop (& charger)
• Fitbit

Toiletries

• Toothbrush & paste
• Floss
• Hairbrush
• Hair ties & pins
• Face wash & lotion
• Razor (head detached and stowed separately)
• Probiotics
• Tums
• Prescriptions 
  • Sleeping pills (for the long flight)
  • BC
  • Antibiotics (it's really common to get UTIs on a plane, so doctors can proactively prescribe you antibiotics in case this happens. Better safe than sorry!)

Important/Misc.

• Passport 
• ID
• Credit/debit cards
• Travel journal (you can do this on your laptop if you don't have room!)
• Books/Kindle 
• First aid kit
• Travel umbrella 
• Eye mask
• Ear plugs or noise cancelling headphones
• Neck pillow
• Reusable water bottle 

Prep

• Call credit & debit card banks to let them know you'll be traveling
• Call telecom provider to let them know you'll be traveling.
  • Ask about "Travel Pass" if you have Verizon! $10/day unlimited talk and text. 
• Create a centralized basic itinerary on Google Docs & download to your phone.
  • Print out a copy to keep on hand in case you lose your phone.
  • Include all confirmation numbers and contact information for each flight, accommodation, and reservation.

Beanie, blanket scarf, leather, jeans & converse worked in Porto, except for when it rained :) 

If this kind of packing list is helpful to you, check out my other lists here & subscribe to my monthly newsletter below! 

Vamos A La Barcelona

Wowowow I don't think I could love Barcelona any more. Although I was only there for a little over 48 hours, the crew and I definitely made the most of our time.

I arrived late Thursday night after a delayed flight - will I ever travel problem-free? - and immediately joined the group at dinner. Dinner in Barce is typically eaten around 10:30-11 p.m., so I was right on time. From there, we headed back to Kate's to get ready and pregame (#teamPB). Come 1:30am, we were ready to head out! The club of the night: Sutton. We are obsessed with this place. Think your average club in LA, multiplied by three in size, accompanied by sexy dancers on raised platforms and live circus performances on stage throughout the whole night. Not to mention the BEST MUSIC in Europe. We stayed out until 5 a.m.

Darn pretty park I can't remember the name of.

Kate, world's cutest host

We woke to the sound of the ringing doorbell at 11 a.m. Uhg. It was Linda. Yay!! We were super stoked that she decided to come after missing her flight on Thursday. This was not the first time. Hours later, we sat down for brunch. It was 1 p.m. and we were early, according to Kate. It was delicious. From there we visited the Sagrada Familia and Parc Guell, two of Barcelona's main sites. Son muy bonitos.

La Sagrada Familia, completely funded by the people, designed by Gaudi.

Parc Guell views of the ocean and city.

Parc Guell, architecture also courtesy of Gaudi.

After a few hours of exploration and walking, we sat down for a few greatly-anticipated mojitos. I've had a few fresh mojitos in my day, and I would venture to say that this was, as they called it, "el mejor mojito en el mundo." Special shoutout to the strawberry flavor.

We hopped from one restaurant to the next, sitting down for dinner on the water. Here we dined on Spanish paella, sangria and some complimentary cava (Spanish champagne). We spiced up dinner with a group game of "Never Have I Ever," which was highly entertaining and informative in regards to my fellow table mates. I got out first and became the self-proclaimed "baddest bitch at the table."

Amazing delicious veggies at dinner.

Sangria & chili sauce.

Chorizo y champinognes paella. Muy delicioso.

We thought we would have time for a classic siesta post-dinner, but the day proved to be too busy. We went straight into get-ready mode, then headed out. The club of the night: Opium. We got in for free (again, so rad), chilled on the beach front for a sec, and then worked our way up to VIP. Another super fantastic night with the BEST MUSIC. I love you, Barcelona.

On Saturday, we were up at a more traditional 1:30 p.m. We hit the Boqueria for brunch, gorging ourselves on fresh fruit, fresh juice, empanadas, croquettes and nachos. From there, we made our way to the waterfront, where we basked in the 75 degree sunshine and chilled for a while. These are my favorite kinds of activities.

A fruit stand at the Boqueria (!!)

The most delicious mango ever consumed.

Nachos aren't Spanish, but damn if they weren't good.

However, what we witnessed next is a close rival. In honor of International Pillow Fight Day, Barcelona held a huge pillow fight in Plaza Catalunya. We prioritized this event and watching it was an absolute highlight of the trip. I even got hit, which I thought was pretty great. #participation

Pillow fight mayhem!

Next, we hit Zara for a literal hour of shopping. Love me some domestic pricing. All this shopping required us to refuel with chocolate con churros, which I had been looking forward to all trip. Kate's pick did not disappoint.

Chocolate con churos y otros postres.

For our last night out, we had delicious Mexican food at Rosa Negra, along with multiple margs and mojitos each (3.50 euros each, like that is practically free). Kate and the boys were stoked to watch the final four games, so we headed over to George Payne to watch. As you can imagine, Linda and I did not last long in this setting. We were itching to go out, so headed back to Sutton on our own. We were so stoked to get in and then BAM rejected for being under the age of 23. What? Ver disappointing, and we went home a little sad.

Honestly, this was probably for the better, seeing as Linda left at 4:30 a.m. to catch her flight, and Rayne and I left at 6:30 to catch ours. We really dont need to be missing any more of those. My flight was, once again, delayed by an hour, but I was already onboard and too dead asleep to actually notice/care. I made it home with little trouble, and the tram operator even let me ride for free when I forgot my chipcard at home! It's the little things, people.

All in all, I will be back to my new favorite city in Europe. Sorry, Rome, I know I'm fickle, but this weekend was just too fun.