Barcelona boasts an incredible array of things to see and do, far too much for one day. Long sandy beach? Tick. A rich culinary scene? Tick. Striking architectural gems? Tick. Winding neighbourhoods to get lost in? Tick. So how do you decide what to focus on if you have just one day? After all, it’s impossible to see the best of this vibrant city with such limited time. And as the penultimate port on our Med cruise, we wanted to make the most of our one day in Barcelona.

We visited Barcelona as part of our 2 week cruise on P&O Arvia, also stopping in La Coruña, Palma De Mallorca, La Spezia, Marseille and Cadiz. You can find similar P&O Mediterranean cruises here!

Barcelona is forever linked with the modernist architecture of Antoni Gaudi. His influence is everywhere and still shapes the city today. I planned our day ashore around the two biggest tourist highlights: Sagrada Familia, and Park Guell, picking up as many other iconic sights as we could on the way.

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A quick beginners guide to Gaudi

Born in 1852, Gaudi has architectural gems all over Barcelona. An isolated and sickly child, Gaudi was fascinated with nature and design, and this strongly influenced his innovative architectural methods. His focus on detail was second to none, using broken ceramic fragments to form mosaic decorations. Peers dubbed him “God’s architect” due to his faith and biblical imagery used in his works.

He lived almost all of his life in Barcelona, in the Eixample neighbouhood and at Park Güell. In 1926, Gaudi was knocked down by a tram and left unconscious. Without identification, no-one realised who he was and a few days later he died from his injuries in hospital. But his legacy lives on. Gaudi inspired scores of other architects, including Juergen Mayer Architects who created the undulating Metropol Parasol – Las Setas – in Seville.

Our Barcelona Travel Diary

It’s not technically the first time I’ve been to Barcelona. However eleven year old me would have looked at the city through very different eyes. Last time, we arrived on an excursion coach, herding us from location to location. My highlight was purchasing Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” album on cassette from El Corte Ingles, popping it into my Alba Walkman and discovering it wasn’t all in Spanish as I’d feared. My second highlight was purchasing a light up yoyo from a seller around the dancing fountains of Montjuïc. The cassette lasted longer than the yoyo.

Getting from the cruise port to the city

The cruise terminal is relatively close to the city but there’s nothing to see but an industrial area! There’s a port shuttle to Plaça de les Drassanes; it costs €4,50pp for an all day ticket and they take cash or use a QR code to prepay by credit card. The journey is about 15 minutes. Make sure when you return you get off at the correct cruise terminal!

Our Select package with P&O meant that we had a free return journey on the cruise shuttle bus. This is usually priced at £5 for adults and £2.50 for under 12s. The shuttle bus dropped us near Plaça de les Drassanes, close to the Columbus monument and Las Ramblas.

A taxi will cost €10-€15; the black and yellow taxis will be queued up outside the cruise terminal. Plaça de Catalunya is your best drop-off point to start exploring if you’re focusing on finding Gaudi creations. Alternatively, you can get a taxi straight to Park Guell or Sagrada Familia.

The cruise shuttle drops us close to the 60m high Colombus Statue (Mirador de Colom). This marks the start (or end) of Barcelona’s famous pedestrianised street La Rambla and the entrance to Barcelona’s port. If you wanted to take a tour on one of Barcelona’s Hop On Hop Off buses, you can pick up the West (Orange) Route at Stops 4 or 5 (HoHo Bus Route Map here)

La Rambla

With tickets booked for 11:15am at Sagrada Familia, we take a stroll along Barcelona’s famous tree-lined La Rambla. It’s still early so we don’t encounter the street performers, artists, living statues and buskers, hoping to part tourists from a few euros. Or the notorious pickpockets, also hoping to part tourists from their belongings. Vendors are just starting to set up their stalls, and restaurants are starting to set tables on their outdoor patios.

Fun fact: Las Ramblas refers to a collection of distinct streets which make up this area. La Rambla is the famous 1.2km pedestrianised street.

We wander away from La Rambla briefly, and happen upon Plaça Reial. The “Royal Square” is in fact home to Gaudi’s first – and only – public works, the colourful street lamps. This elegant pedestrianised square is filled with delivery trucks – one of the pitfalls of visiting a city in the morning as restaurants, cafes and bars restock from the night before.

Plaça Catalunya

The bustling Plaça Catalunya marks the other end (or start) of La Rambla and it’s where the new and old parts of the city meet. It’s a busy transport hub, and a popular shopping area. For panoramic views for the price of a coffee, head to the ninth floor terrace cafe of El Corte Ingles department store. We don’t have time to browse after finally locating the toilets, although I do have a brief flashback of buying that Madonna tape 25 years ago. We have a date with an unfinished architectural masterpiece that has taken years to complete. The same could be said for HS2.

Public toilets are a rare find in Barcelona. I recommend paying a visit to the El Corte Ingles department store on Plaça Catalunya – you’ll find toilets on what “I think” was the third floor. The customer service desk on the ground floor will point you in the right direction, but it was a bit of a maze!

Sagrada Família

Barcelona’s crowning glory is Antoni Gaudi’s Sagrada FamÍlia. And it is impossibly grandiose, inside and out. 18 spires are dedicated to important biblical figures, with the tallest remaining a metre shorter than the highest natural point of the city at Montjiuc. Currently only 8 spires have been completed. The main entrance is via the Nativity Facade, the only part of the church completed within Gaudi’s lifetime.

Construction began in 1882, although Gaudi didn’t take over as chief engineer until the following year. He dedicated his life to the project until his death in 1926. Construction is still taking place to this day; the skyline punctuated by cranes. The aim is to complete in 2026, to commemorate the centenary of Gaudi’s death. His tomb lies below La Sagrada Familia, surrounded by burning candles.

Getting to Sagrada Familia

If you’ve arrived into the city by shuttle bus from the cruise terminal, the simplest way is to head to Drassanes Metro Station. From here, take the Green Line (L3) towards Trinitat Nova and change at Diagonal for the Blue Line towards Vall d’Hebron. It’s just two stops to Sagrada Familia station. A single ticket is €2.55 and can be purchased from the machines at the station.

It’s about 50 minutes altogether from the port to La Sagrada Familia so make sure you factor that it when pre-booking your timed tickets.

How NOT to get to Sagrada Familia

With a little time to kill, we decide to carry on walking up La Rambla, beyond Drassanes to the next station on the Green Line, Liceu. And then I wonder if we should walk direct to Diagonal, which would save us messing around with changing trains. After all, Ma Lee is nervous on the London Underground; I’m unsure how she’ll take to the even less familiar Barcelona Metro.

It’s actually quite the walk to Diagonal. About 30 minutes in fact. We go from a casual stroll, with plenty of time to spare, to practically sprinting along Rambla de Catalunya. Poor Ma Lee was NOT expecting this. She’d have rather taken her chances with the Metro. We don’t even take the prettier route down Passeig de Gracia, where at least we’d have (briefly) seen Casa Battló and Casa Milà, other highlights on the Gaudi Trail.

Finally we reach Diagonal, sweating and exhausted. The ticket machines are dead easy to navigate and we get straight onto the next Metro to Sagrada Familia. Just three minutes away. Ma Lee is just happy to be sitting down.

And we arrive with perfect timing at 11am. The recommended 15 minutes before our admission time. I couldn’t have planned it better. Well, I could. One that didn’t involve hot-footing it 3 miles across Barcelona in ever-increasing temperatures.

Visiting Sagrada Familia

With pre-booked skip the line tickets (booked via Get Your Guide) in hand, it was quite easy to identify our entrance point. There’s barely any queue before us, but we do have to go through airport-style security. I highly recommend buying your Sagrada Familia entrance ticket in advance, and plan to get there as early as time will allow if you’re on a cruise stop with limited time. Unsure of what time we could disembark, we booked tickets for 11:15am.

Our entrance ticket came with an audio guide which sadly none of us could get to work. Rather than wasting time trying to speak to someone, we all agreed to just enter. There is “apparently” a dress code for Sagrada Familia but to be honest, we saw visitors in all kinds of summer gear, so you don’t need to worry too much about flashing your shoulders or your knees. Just be respectful, as you should always be when entering any religious institution, and come prepared with a cover-up if you are worried about immodesty.

Inside Sagrada Familia

It’s quite pricey to enter Sagrada Familia – our tickets were around £28/€34 per person – and I wondered whether it would really be worth it, or just another tourist hype. One step inside however, and my trepidation melted away, replaced by awe. A rainbow of sparkling colours beam in through the stained glass windows; blues and greens from the Nativity facade and reds and yellows from the Passion Facade. Columns mirror trees and branches and every surface is intricately decorated. Above the altar, a heptagonal canopy festooned with grape vines and twinkling lights above a suspended Christ on the cross. A dark brooding figure – Saint George, the patron saint of Catalonia – silhouetted against the windows on a balcony at the opposite end of the nave.

The four of us take our own opportunities to stroll around, convening after 20 minutes or so. My family are all as dumbstruck as I am, with few words to describe the magnificent surroundings. We do agree that it’s like being caught up in some sort of fever dream, as the light pouring in constantly changes around us. We exit to the Passion facade, with its bone-like structures and depictions of crucifixion and suffering. I fully recommend getting tickets to visit inside Sagrada Familia, even if you only have one day in Barcelona.

Looking up in Sagrada Familia

Park Güell

We walk a block or two away from Sagrada Familia for a coffee and a pastry before the next stop on our Gaudi Trail. Park Güell is located a little away from the city centre in the La Salut neighbourhood – and mostly uphill – so we return to Plaça de Gaudí to grab a yellow and black taxi. The only direct public transport link from Sagarda Familia is the V19 bus, from Passeig de Saint Joan to Carretera del Carmel. After seeing Barcelona’s traffic, we suspect the bus will be the slowest option.

Our taxi ride costs €15 and takes 10 minutes. All taxis in Barcelona accept card payments, or you can use Bolt (preferable to Uber). I squeeze in the middle back seat between Ma and Pa Lee. The air conditioning blower is pointing directly up my dress. By the time we get out at Rambla de Mercedes I feel like I’ve been straddling an iceberg. The short sharp walk uphill soon warms me back up though. The visitors entrance (and ticket office) is on Carrer d/Olot.

Visiting Park Güell

Park Güell is a magical ceramic extravaganza with fantastical buildings and sculptures all in Gaudi’s inimitable style. Originally envisioned as a luxury housing development by wealthy industrialist Eusebi Güell, only two houses were ever built. In fact, only two families lived in the park: the Güell family, and the Gaudi family.

Fun fact: Surely it should be Parc Güell or Parque Güell in Catalan or Spanish respectively? Güell used the word “Park” as a nod to the English garden cities that had inspired him!

Now, it’s a sprawling hillside park, which attracts 12 million visitors a year. To see the famous Gaudi creations you’ll need a ticket to enter the Monumental Zone. As with Sagrada Familia, I highly recommend booking your tickets in advance. They do limit visitor numbers to 400 per hour, and queues for admission tickets can be long. I pre-booked our tickets through Get Your Guide – our Park Güell Admission Tickets were £12/€14pp.

Inside Park Güell

Not wanting to hit the iconic viewpoint too early, I lead everyone on a merry dance around the park. We stroll through shady glades, along undulating pathways and through sculpted caves. By this time though we all need a sit-down and a toilet break so we make our way down to the main esplanade – La Plaça de la Natura (aka the Greeg Theatre).

This is probably the most Instagrammed spot in Barcelona, as whimsical coloured spires pierce the sky, almost mimicking the unfinished spires of La Sagrada Familia. Broken tile mosaic-covered seating snakes around the perimeter. It’s said that there are no straight lines in the whole park. The sweeping terrace is an excellent spot for unparalleled views of the city and port. Here’s Ma Lee, being an InstaMum.

Giant columns support the terrace, reminiscent of tree trunks. These reflect Gaudi’s obsession with drawing inspiration from nature. I made sure I said hi to the famous mosaic salamander on my way down the Dragon Stairway, before finally passing in between gingerbread style houses to the exit.

We return to the taxi rank at Rambla da Mercedes. There’s just a short wait before we’re back in another taxi – and yes, there’s more Arctic blast – to Plaça Catalunya (€12). If you prefer public transport, you can catch the Green Metro Line to Plaça Catalunya from Lesseps, a 20 minute downhill walk from Park Güell. I’m tempted to search for more Gaudi, but the temptation of a jug of sangria is too strong. After spending most of our time on our feet, we enjoy the opportunity to sit down in the shade of Basílica de Santa Maria del Pi, watching the world go by.

Want more Gaudi?

My time chasing Gaudi around Barcelona had come to an end, but if you have more than a day in Barcelona there are 14 edifices and buildings designed by Gaudi around the city. Two of the other must-see Gaudi attractions are Casa Batlló and Casa Mila – they are only 5 minutes from each other along Passeig de Gràcia. And not far from the Lesseps Metro Station for Park Güell is Casa Vicens

If you’re planning on entering any of the Gaudi attractions, remember to plan ahead and book tickets in advance to save time. It’s not cheap to see all of Gaudi’s buildings. La Sagrada Familia tickets are €34pp, Casa Batlló are €35, Casa Mila is €28 and Casa Vicens is €20. If you wanted to fit as much Gaudi in one day in Barcelona as you can, you might want to consider a full day guided tour like this Barcelona: Guided Gaudi Tour to Sagrada, Houses & Park Guell. It includes admission to Casa Batlló (or Casa Vicens), Park Güell and Sagrada Família with transport in-between.

Barcelona free walking tours

There are plenty of free walking tours too if you would like to find out more about Gaudi’s Barcelona but don’t want to spend time inside the buildings. This one with Free Walking Tours Barcelona meets every day (excluding Tues & Thurs) at 3pm at Plaça Catalunya.

As always with “free” walking tours, make sure you tip generously at the end! A good guide will gently encourage you to donate what you feel the tour may be worth, without putting on any pressure. “Free” tour guides are often freelance and tips could be their sole income – which means they often work harder to give you the best experience possible!

Note: Barcelona has something of an ongoing war against tourism. So be respectful and remember that this is a city where 1.6 million people live and work. They are also pro-independence and long for Catalonia to be an independent nation. Spanish is widely understood but many locals speak Catalan, a separate language.

Getting Around Barcelona

The most popular attractions are quite spread-out. It’s a good idea to make a plan beforehand, and to be prepared to use public transport to get around. I highly recommend that you skip-the-line tickets in advance where possible, although on a cruise stop it may be difficult if you’re not sure on disembarkation and sailaway times.

Traffic in Barcelona is notoriously bad, so buses aren’t really a recommended way of getting around if you’re on a tight schedule. Single tickets (un viatge) cost €2.55 at the time of writing, or you can purchase a T-Casual ticket online. This can be used for 10 journeys, and can be shared amongst a group. The Metro however is safe, inexpensive and efficient. We (eventually) used it to get from Diagonal to Sagrada Familia.

A Hop On Hop Off bus in Barcelona isn’t the best way to get anything but a tiny glimpse of this sprawling city. It is mainly limited to the fringes of the city. But if you don’t want to navigate public transport then it may be a good option if you want to visit La Sagrada Familia, Park Güell, Montjiuc or Camp Nou.

After a final stroll down La Rambla, and an all too short wander around the narrow labyrinthine streets of the Gothic Quarter, we head back to Plaça de les Drassanes to pick up the shuttle bus back to the port. We have just one final destination left on our trip – the seaside Spanish city of Cadiz.

We sailed on a two week Mediterranean cruise departing from Southampton in May/June 2024. Our itinerary also included stops in La Coruña, Palma de Mallorca, La Spezia, Marseille, and Cádiz.

You can find all my thoughts on sailing on P&O Arvia in my detailed review here! I have also blogged separately about the drinking and dining options aboard.

Final Thoughts: One day in Barcelona

One day in Barcelona definitely isn’t enough if you want to fully explore the interiors of attractions. Our day was hot, sweaty and quite frankly exhausting. Although we managed to squeeze in visits to Sagrada Familia and Park Güell, we left with a long list of things to return for.

We didn’t have chance to stroll around Mercat de la Boqueria, a vibrant food market off La Rambla, or spot more of Barcelona’s best architecture on the “Block of Discord”. Our time exploring the historic Barrio Gótico was all too short, with no time to tread in the fictional footsteps of Daniel Sempere and Fermín from Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s Cemetery of Forgotten Books series. And definitely no opportunities to go searching for a light-up yo-yo with a dancing fountain backdrop.

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