I know that August isnīt the best time to travel to Barcelona but itīs the only time I can take a vacation.
Has anyone been to Barcelona in summer? How did you like it?
Any recommendations for restaurants and bars?

Thank you!

I was in Barcelona back in the 70's. Franco had just died and Juan Carlos was making his first visit as "real" King. The main street is called "Las Ramblas" and the Basque separatists were marching up Las Ramblas in the afternoon-then the fasciasts marched down Las Ramblas at night. The politics were extremely exciting, but aside from that Barcelona is one of the most beautiful cities in all of Europe-it's right on the coast (as opposed to Madrid which is also beautiful but set up in the hills).

As for restaurants, check out:

http://www.10best.com/destinations/s...rants/spanish/

Enjoy your trip! You can also catch a boat from Malaga over to Morocco if you want to experience a taste of Africa.

everyone has reported that it was a pretty good time to head there... as it is also the end of summer and full of tourist... remember that the Europeen take their vacation in August as they hit the beach... also check out fodors.com, frommers.com, lonelyplanet.com for more advice... I am planning on going there in September... and I cannot wait... even as I a writing to you now, I am smilling from ear to ear.... hope the websites help... ciao ciao.. and keeps us updated...

I went last summer in the beginging of June and it wasn't any worse than where I live in VA, imo. mid to high 80's I'd say.

I personally was not impressed w/ Barcelona. I loved the Sagrada Familia, absolutely beautiful. Don't listen to the guidebooks that tell you not to go inside, since it's amazing to look up once you get inside to see how vast it is. Also, if you pay to enter you can take the elevator to one of the steeples and walk the stairs down. Took us about an hour to get in the elevator and it was supposed to be $5 or so, but no one collected our money, so it was free lol. It was a lot of fun to see all of the different points of the basilica since you can see different angles as you walk around.

Gaudí's park, Park Güell, was also a lot of fun to wander around, but wear comfortable shoes when you go. It's a bit of a walk from where the bus drops you off and the park is huge! Other than the park, I'd skip his apartment and the Casa Milā, the building he created. It's fun on the roof, and the outside looks impressive, but the Casa Milā was highly under-impressive on the inside, so I wouldn't waste the 15 dollars. Everything else I went to in Barcelona wasn't overly impressive. We went to up Montjuïc to where there is a fort of some sort, but other than the view of the ocean, it wasn't worth the trip.

We stayed in a hostel right off of Las Ramblas, lots of bars, tourist shops and restaurants, plus the subway is right there on the strip. Never had any issues, although it was rather loud at night when we were trying to sleep. I can't really recommend restaurants since I went w/ my sister who is a vegetarian, so we never ate tapas or anything like this, since they all have meat in them. We mainly stuck w/ random places we could find that appealed to her lol. HTH :)

I loved Barcelona. Such a great place. We went in May/June. Some days were hot. You can shop and walk around..there's public transportation to go pretty much wherever you want. There are beaches you can get to by train. "Sitges" was very nice and maybe 30 minutes from Barcelona. Very sweet little beach town with restaurants to grab lunch. I will warn you that we found out the hard way that there is a nude beach (tons of old men). I did not have my glasses on and so we walked to the beach furthest away because that "looked nicest"...as I got closer I realized.
We stayed in a great hotel. Hotel Hi Tech. Very centrally located and close to transportation.
My favorite section was El Born...sort of like soho in new york. Tons of people just hanging out, walking around and wonderful restaurants.
Port Olimpic has a big "night scene". Carpe Diem is a place with beds used as seating and is a club/lounge/restaurants on the beach. I did not like hte food there so if I was going to go back I would just go back for drinks.
Besides Carpe Diem we didn't go anywhere super touristsy (in terms of restaurants). If I saw pictures of food in the window, i didn't go because that seemed like it was meant for tourists. We found lots of great places.

Originally Posted by IcansPotaFake32

My favorite section was El Born...sort of like soho in new york. Tons of people just hanging out, walking around and wonderful restaurants. Port Olimpic has a big "night scene".

Sounds great!

Thank you for all your recommendations. I canīt wait to visit Barcelona. It has always been one of my biggest dreams.

I was in Barcelona 10 years ago and Im going to visit again in August! Can't wait!!!!

why August isnt the best time for visit Barcelona? for me its perfect time!!

^ I read somewhere that a lot of the restaurant and tourist attractions shut down or shorten their working hours in August thatīs why I was worried.

I used to spend every July in Barcelona. It can get really hot. Most spanish people flee the city in August. Make sure your accommodation has a AC or fan.

Originally Posted by otilia

^ I read somewhere that a lot of the restaurant and tourist attractions shut down or shorten their working hours in August thatīs why I was worried.

That's typical in most European cities ... they get 5 weeks vacation and so all go elsewhere to be on vacation.

I was there in August though and no issues. It was quite warm, but we headed for the beach. Definitely go see all the Gaudi architecture - Parc Güell is an absolute must!

Have a great time and enjoy all the great sites and food!!!

I wasn't there in August but it was warm weather--late May, I think. Barcelona is one of my all time favorite cities! It's so unusual and cosmopolitan with tons of history and architecture.

We hired a car and driver for several hours to drive us around on a private tour concentrating on Antonin Gaudi's buildings and public works--Parc Gueill, La Sagrada Familia, etc. It was amazing. Plus there is a Picasso Museum, the Gothic Quarter, Las Ramblas with the best collection of buskers (street performers) ever.

You'll have a great time. (Be careful with your pocketbook. Spain is rife with pickpockets.)

I was there in August & it was super hot, but definitely worth it! I loved it. Honestly, it's one of my favorite cities in Europe. There's just something so unique about it.

It'll be hot, just hydrate & don't be afraid to sneak into a cafe for a cool drink. Barca has so many cute little hidden gems, that's part of what makes the city so great. You can also spend time in the heat at the beach. I met a bunch of people at my hostel & we ended up spending a day on the beach swimming in the sea & drinking cold cheap beer while we dried off. It was one of my favorite days of backpacking that summer.

Has anybody stayed at Hostal L'Antic Espai? If so, what room did you stayed on? Is it walking distance from everything?

Anybody has stayed in Barcelona within this last year? Any good experiences with any of the hotels there? Or bad ones that i should avoid?

I cannot recommend the Hotel Jazz highly enough. Amazing location, rooftop bar, rooftop pool (tiny but still), super modern and very chic. It is technically only a three star hotel I think, which keeps the costs right down, but it's clamouring for boutique status. I don't stay anywhere else!