The Gothic quarter is the oldest centre of the city, where most historic buildings are situated. It is a charming place where Roman, romantic, renaissance and gothic elements are mixed. We will start our tour at the end of the Gothic quarter, at the Arc the Triomf, constructed for the Universal Exposition of 1988, where it served as entrance.
We go further on the street “Rec Comtal” on the right from the Arc the Triomf and we go right again to get to the “Plaça de Sant Pere”, where you will find the old monastery of “Sant Pere de Puelles”.
Taking the street “Sant Pere més Alt” until the end, you will get to the impressionant “Palau de la Música”, that was declared Human Heritage in 1997. This project was conceived by the architect Lluís Doménech i Montaner between 1905 and 1908 and is one of the renaissance symbols of the Catalan culture. It was created to be the headquarters of the Orfeo Cátala.
The “Palau de la Música” is more than 80 years old. The abundant decoration, interior as well as exterior, shows a specactular polychromy combined with other work. Don't miss a visit to the interior and assist to a concert if you have the chance.
We follow our route on the Via Laietana until Jaume I. There, we turn to the street on the right, that takes us to the Plaça del Rei. This is a charming square where tournaments were organized, and you can see the Palau Reial (Royal Palace) in the distance. Closer, we find the intersting museum of City History, where you can access the roman city of old Barcino.
In the narrow street “Paradís”, you will find the rests of the Roman Temple of the first century: there are four columns and a part of the roof.
We leave the street Paradís towards Plaça Sant Jaume, a traditional point of Barcelona where the two principal streets from the Roman city come together. At this place, you will find the Palau de la Generalitat and the Ayuntamiento with the emblematic “Saló de Cent”.
We leave the street Paradís towards Plaça Sant Jaume, a traditional point of Barcelona where the two principal streets from the Roman city come together. At this place, you will find the Palau de la Generalitat and the Ayuntamiento with the emblematic “Saló de Cent”.
From Plaça Sant Jaume, we take the street “Bisbe”, where we will pass under a beautiful neogothic bridge. Then we turn to the left to the street “Sant Server” to get to the Plaça de Sant Felip Neri, a construction of the 50s and originally a cemetery. On the walls, we can see inscriptions.
We return a little to get to the Cathedral, founded in the 13th century and completed in the 15th century. It is full of precious cult objects, for example the Cristo de Lepanto. Don't forget to have a look at the charming Claustro, inhabited by 13 white gooses, to symbolize the age of Santa Eulalia (the patron of the Cathedral) when she was martyred.
From “Plaça Nova”, next to the Cathedral, we take the street “Palla” until the end, which gets us to the “Plaça del Pi” and “Sant Josep Oriol”, two charming squares filled with life. It is ideal to have breakfast or lunch on one of the terraces here in the summer.
Next to “Plaça del Pi”, in front of the church, starts the narrow street “Petritxol”. We advice you to have a break in one of the farms where they make “churros con chocolate”, suizos (hot choclate with cream) and all types of pastry.