Barcelona lives up to its well-deserved reputation as a mecca of art, architecture, food, style, and sports, and when you book any one of the many available Barcelona shore excursions before your Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona, you’ll be able to attest to this reputation first hand. The city bears the mark of its Romans founders as well as its Muslim roots, its Christian conquest, and a resurgence and renewal that began in the mid-19th century, and continues today.
Among the most popular Barcelona cruise excursions are those offering combination bus and guided walking tours that cover the city’s history and its stunning architecture, including Antoni Gaudi’s still unfinished masterpiece, La Sagrada Familia basilica, or an enjoyable highlights bus tour through the city, where you’ll see the city’s most important sights, as well as park and harbor views.
If you’re looking for a close-up and more in-depth look at the architecture and art of this fascinating city during your Mediterranean cruise, there are Barcelona excursions specific to Gaudi’s architecture, and also one that takes in both Gaudi’s works, and the city’s most celebrated artist, Pablo Picasso, with a visit to the Picasso Museum.
Enjoy shopping? Barcelona’s historic Gothic Quarter has quaint, narrow streets lined with shops and artisan markets featuring leather and jewelry. Walk the old Jewish Quarter, to see the old synagogue and enjoy a coffee. Then, walk at your leisure to Plaza Catlunya, the city center, for upscale boutiques, and Las Ramblas for souvenir shopping.
If you find that food is the most fascinating aspect of Barcelona you’re looking to explore, schedule one of the guided the Barcelona shore excursions that offer a tour of tapas (Spanish appetizers) restaurants, or indulge in a tour that offers a guided walk through the exciting La Boqueria, the oldest market in Europe, where you will see the foods that fuel Barcelona – seafood, vegetables, meats, and more. There are even stands that specialize in Spain’s famed salted cod fish, bacalao salado. Grab bite at one or many of the food stands, and soak in this exciting indoor market. Then, visit Santa Caterina Market, housed at the site of an old church and convent. The outdoor stalls are covered by a waved-shaped, multicolored ceramic roof, under which you’ll find amazing food vendors selling fruits, vegetables and meats, including a few that sell only the famous Jabugo ham, a specialty of the town of Jabugo, and that many say is the holy grail of ham.