Top Sights worth seeing in Barcelona

Holiday in Spain, tourist attractions, Sagrada Familia, fantastic views, Montjuic, Olympic Stadium, Antoni Gaudi, Parc Guell, much loved park, favourite places, Barcelona flights, airports, flight times, attractive venue, short break, annual holiday

Any holiday in Spain should build in at least a day or two in Barcelona. Its location on the eastern coast of Spain means that it can offer both city based and coastal based activities. In fact, you could happily spend your whole holiday here, as many people do each year.

There are several hugely popular tourist attractions in the city, but one of the best has to be the Sagrada Familia. This is a church, but the reason why it is so popular is that it has yet to be finished.

This adds an extra degree of fascination, because it has already been in construction for some 127 years! The original architect, Francisco de Paula del Villar, handed the responsibility for the church and its construction over to the famous architect Antoni Gaudi in 1883, just 12 months after the building process began.

He made a huge amount of changes, and only a fraction of the building was completed when he died 43 years later. Perhaps fittingly he is buried in the crypt of the church he helped to design.

It is estimated that we’ll have to wait another 30 years or so before we can see the finished result, but even the work in progress is well worth seeing.

If fantastic views are what you like to see, then don’t miss out on going to Montjuic. This is a hill, but that description doesn’t do it justice when you finally get there. The views are nothing short of spectacular, and if you don’t fancy walking up to the top you can get the cable car instead.

If you do opt for the walk up, there is a park you can stop to rest in. If you saw the 1992 Barcelona Olympics you will also no doubt recognise some of the other buildings on Montjuic, including the Olympic Stadium itself.

While Antoni Gaudi was overseeing the building of the Sagrada Familia, he was also creating the Parc Guell. It was originally intended to be a site full of buildings, but when that failed it became the much loved park it is today. In that respect it could be said it was not a failure at all.

It is a very quirky park though, with mosaic statues, ornate staircases and much more besides to enjoy. There is nothing else quite like it in Barcelona, and most visitors agree that it should be on everyone’s list of favourite places to see in the city.

Barcelona flights are easily caught from many airports and the flight times from across Europe are favourable. All of which makes Barcelona an attractive venue for a short break or annual holiday at any time of the year.