The Catalonian Experience - Barcelona, Girona, and Montserrat

Barcelona was the most logical choice to begin my adventure because it is a huge travel hub so I had plenty of reasonably priced flights to choose from. Furthermore, most people include Portugal in the same trip, so I felt that logistically it was a good idea to start from the eastern coast of Spain and make my way westward. If you want to avoid tourist season (June-August), October- November is a great time to visit. If you have never flown on Norwegian Airlines, please take a look at their options. They are known as the Spirit Airlines of international travel because they consistently have the lowest priced flights to Europe. As a budget traveler I am willing to trade this off. My flight to Barcelona was ~$240 whereas if you travel during peak season the price would be double that amount.

Lodging

I stayed at Yeah Hostel for my three nights in Barcelona. They are located in a safe and central in Barcelona as it was a 5-7 minute walk from several subway stations. You can also walk to several of the Gaudi buildings and if you’re feeling adventurous, even walk to Park Guell.

Other hostel options I researched that I recommend due to the price, the proximity to public transportation, and the ease of meeting other fellow globe trotters:

• Rocket Hostels – Gracia

• Mediterranean Hostel Barcelona

• 360 Hostel Arts & Culture

• Party Hostel Kabul

If you want to pack a day's worth of fun in Barcelona, I would recommend catching the sunrise at the Bunkers Del Carmel and then walk over to Park Güell right when it opens at 9:30am to avoid the crowd. The bunkers were built in the late 1930s during the Spanish Civil War and they offer a panoramic view of the city. Catching the sunset here works too but I opted to visit it in the morning since it is an 18-20 minute walk from Park Güell.

Park Güell is arguably Barcelona's most popular tourist attractions. The park was designed by Antoni Gaudi and was originally meant to be a housing community for the rich. The architecture around the park is outstanding so expect to spend about 1.5 hours admiring everything the park has to offer.

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Once you wrap up at the Park, you can either take the bus back to central Barcelona or walk back to grab some lunch around the central part of the city. If you’re interested in a Spanish-Asian fusion tapas place, check out Mosquito Tapas. La Tasqueta de Blai is another fabulous lunch option! This little gem has various different types of tapas for you to put on your plate, and it’s fairly cheap!

Sagrada Familia is a great option to check out in the late afternoon as you can go up to one of the towers to catch the sunset. This church is another can't miss attraction in Barcelona; construction started in 1882 and.... it's still not quite yet finished.

Reservations are highly encouraged and tickets can be found here https://sagradafamilia.org/en/home

You are given an option to choose 1 of 2 facades/towers to go up to: Nativity or Passion. I chose to go up the Nativity tower because this was the tower built under the supervision of Gaudi; the Passion tower was constructed after Gaudi's death. It just feels more authentic to choose this tower. I also thought that you have a better view out from the Nativity Tower since you're facing the seaside. I was able to catch some magenta in the sky right before the sunset.

This should take you into the evening, and you absolutely cannot leave Barcelona without going to a Flamenco show! There are several highly regarded shows with different time slots during the week. I reserved my seat at Palau Dalmases and it was definitely an unbeatable atmosphere. The Picasso Museum is right next to the venue so you can also explore the museum beforehand if you have some free time.

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I usually treat myself to a more upscale restaurant once or twice on my trip, and I highly recommend Bar Canete as a dinner option. The restaurant is situated in a narrow, intimate space and when I went to see the host, she said it was a 1.5 hour wait. Luckily, I was by myself and just so happened a seat at the bar opened up so I got sat within ten minutes (perks of traveling solo!)

Other Thoughts On Barcelona

Personally, I was not a fan of Las Ramblas area nor the Passeig de Gracia street. IT is a huge tourist trap. Upscale stores are not what I look for when I travel. However, it is a wonderful and vibrant street to walk through at night. You can walk to Plaça de Catalunya, which is the main square that is generally considered as the city center. Be mindful of your belongings as you walk around since pickpocketers are known to roam around since they know the tourists frequent the area. Another sight see spot everyone talks about is Casa Mila. Unless your bucket list includes visiting every Gaudi building, save yourself 29 Euros and skip this experience.

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Girona

There are several surrounding cities worth spending time on if you have a few extra days to spare. I did a ½ day in Girona and another ½ day in Montserrat. The former is a great place for all the Game of Thrones fans out there; several of the scenes and locations in the show were filmed in Girona! The city is a 45-minute train ride from Barcelona, and it is extremely walkable. Costa Brava is the coastal region in northeastern Spain, and it has quickly become a great spot for the avid beachgoer. If you are visiting over the summer. It is an excellent choice to add to your itinerary after Girona. If you visit the area in November like I did, I advise you to do Costa Brava another time since it’s probably not advisable to sunbathe in the cold.

3 Sight Sees You Must Visit in Girona

1. The GoT buildings

The city was a filming location for Game of Thrones; its streets and buildings served as buildings in the city of Braavos and King’s Landing. The most famous building is the Cathedral of Girona, where the façade and stairs were used for the Great Sept of Baelor in the show. The next locations are known from the Waif and Arya scenes when the former chases the latter around. The Banys Arabs is located just behind the cathedral and this is where Arya ducks inside the bathhouse from the pursuit. Arya throws herself over the bridge into the water at Riu Galligants to avoid the Waif, but don’t expect any water down below when you visit. Score one for CGI! Lastly, there is also the small square where Arya watches the play while spying on the actress that portrays Cersei Lannister.

2. The Cinema Museum

If you would like to learn more about the origins of cinematography and photography, then I would highly recommend spending a few hours in this museum. Entrance fee is only €6 and the collection is rather impressive. I was pleasantly surprised with the collection of the evolution from still pictures to motion pictures. There are over 20,000 pieces in the Tomàs Mallol collection so you will not be disappointed!

3. Eiffel Bridge (Pont de les Peixateries Velles)

Girona has 11 bridges that connect the riverbanks, and the Eiffel Bridge might arguably be the most well-known of them all. If you’re wondering why it is called the Eiffel Bridge… it’s because it was constructed by the same guy that did the Parisian Eiffel Tower. I have to admit I stumbled upon this bridge while walking around the city, and later read up the history behind the bridge.

Honorable mention: La Fabrica Cycle Café. You can read their backstory on their website here It’s quite fascinating on how this café became to be. This is a few blocks away from the Eiffel Bridge and makes for a great stop for a coffee and small bite. AND, it’s vegan friendly!

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Montserrat

Montserrat is another great option for a ½ day adventure outside of Barcelona. It takes ~ 1- 1.5 hours to get to Montserrat from Barcelona, and there are several ticket options. Once you arrive at the bottom of the mountains, you have the option to take the cable car ride up to the monastery and an additional option for the funicular rides up to the different parts of the mountains. Be sure to read up on which tickets to buy at the train station in Barcelona. With that said, this is one of the few times where I opted to join a tour group because it was a spontaneous decision on my end to visit Montserrat; I finished my Girona trip early and wanted to fit another adventure in.

The Montserrat monastery is known for its religious importance, and tourists come here because of the statue of the Black Madonna, the patron saint of Catalonia. If you are here during the day, you can even hike some of the trails in the Montserrat Nature Park right outside of the monastery. Lastly, it also has some breathtaking panoramic view of the surrounding area. You can even catch the Pyrenees if you squint your eyes just enough!