W Barcelona
Barcelona - Plaça Rosa dels Vents, 1 - Passeig Joan de Borbo
W Barcelona is a striking sail-like structure next to Barceloneta Beach, offering breathtaking design and fantastic views over Barcelona.
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The Barceloneta district, a tongue of land torn from the sea a stone’s throw from Barcelona’s historic centre, seems split in two.
The interior is a neat weave of parallel and perpendicular alleyways on which stand council houses, once inhabited by local fishermen, and typical neighbourhood bars where you can sample some of Barcelona’s best tapas and drink a cerveza in the company of friendly old men who like to chat.
The promenade is frivolous and mundane. Barceloneta beach is where young people go to play sports and flirt, professionals recharge their batteries after a long day’s work and tourists cool off with a dip in the water after many visits to museums and monuments.
You choose how you want to experience this district. You can go in search of Barceloneta’s popular soul in the streets, bars and traditional restaurants in the interior, or you can have fun on the beach, day or night. Or do both: no one is forbidding you, you are on holiday!
The Barceloneta district is located in the heart of the city of Barcelona and stretches out towards the sea like a small peninsula: on some sides it is washed by the Mediterranean Sea while on others it borders the very central Barrio Gotico on one side and Poblenou on the other.
Getting to Barceloneta is very easy because the district is served by the yellow metro line (L4). You will have no trouble remembering the name of the stop to get off at: it is called… Barceloneta!
The real top attraction of the Barceloneta district is its legendary beach, a golden sandy shore where Barcelonans and tourists go to sunbathe and swim but also to play beach volleyball, have a drink overlooking the sea, flirt, play bongos…
Crowded at almost all hours of the day (and on weekends even at night), Barceloneta beach is certainly not a place to admire the sea in silence, but even those who don’t like the hustle and bustle can take advantage of its proximity to the centre for some outdoor relaxation.
Very long, the beach in the Barceloneta district actually comprises two beaches, Platja de San Sebastià and Platja de la Barceloneta, but it is difficult to tell where one ends and the other begins. Running parallel to the beach is the Passeig Maritim, a long pedestrian avenue with a cycle lane, also used as a roller blade track.
There are no must-see attractions like the city’s most important museums or monuments in the Barceloneta district: it is the district itself that is the real attraction! In fact, after the Old Town, it is one of Barcelona’s most visited districts by tourists.
The MHCAT, or Museu d’Historia de Catalunya (sometimes also abbreviated as MHC) opened in 1996 to make Catalan history and culture known at home and abroad. Publicly owned and inspired by the public interest, the MHCAT is designed to be a museum of society as it encourages interaction between history and other social sciences, focusing on the present day. It is not only a museum but also a cultural centre open and accessible to all, with a programme offering visitors opportunities for learning and education, debate and analysis, as well as relaxation and entertainment.
Unlike other processes that have led to the creation of museums in Barcelona or abroad, the MHCAT did not arise as a consequence of a logic of heritage conservation or necessity, but rather from a legitimate institutional determination: just like other countries around the world, Catalonia needed a museum that could express its national identity.
After considering a number of options, in 1993 the Catalan government decided to install the museum in a section of the Palau de Mar, a building located in the old port of Barcelona. The renovation and adaptation of the building as a museum was carried out according to a basic functional plan, the main purpose of which was to organise a large permanent exhibition on the history of Catalonia, from prehistory to 1980.
The beach of Barceloneta is the best place to admire in its entirety the symbolic monument of maritime Barcelona, the Golden Fish (in Catalan Peix d’Or): despite the many beautiful girls and boys who hang around here, it is this enormous bronze-coloured steel fish that is the most photographed subject.
56 metres wide and 35 metres high, it stands out against the blue sky of Barceloneta, which almost seems to be the sea in which this enormous fish swims. On sunny days, which are certainly not lacking in Barcelona, this enormous sculpture reflects the natural light and almost seems to light up. An enchantment.
The work was commissioned to Canadian architect Frank Gehry in 1992 for the Olympic Games in Barcelona.
Barceloneta also has its own local market. It is located in plaça Poeta Bosca and is housed in a modern glass and steel building. If the architecture is modern, the atmosphere inside is that of yesteryear: a real popular market where the residents of the neighbourhood go shopping.
It is certainly less famous and probably offers a smaller selection of products than the Boqueria Market (local produce and fresh fish predominate) but it is still pleasant to wander around its stalls.
Walking along Barceloneta’s Passeig Maritim you can’t fail to notice a curious sculpture that looks like a lopsided apartment block.
It is the work Homenatge a la Natació by German artist Rebecca Horn, an elegant tribute to the dilapidated houses that once stood on the seafront. This work, like Gehry’s Golden Fish, was commissioned from the artist for the Barcelona Olympics.
Although it still looks like a working-class neighbourhood, with very old houses, Barceloneta has changed a lot in the more than 200 years of its history. One obvious difference between the original Barceloneta and today’s Barceloneta lies in the size of the houses.
You can realise this by visiting the Casa de Barceloneta (also called Casa de la Barceloneta 1761), one of the few houses in the district that has remained in its original size.
The house has been renovated and houses a cultural centre for the preservation and promotion of the district’s history and traditions. On the ground floor you can visit a permanent exhibition narrating the historical evolution of Barceloneta; the upper floor is used for temporary exhibitions.
Another historical building in the Barceloneta district is the Church of San Miquel del Port (Sant Miquel del Port in Catalan), a Baroque church with a sober façade. It was built in the 18th century and its height was determined in such a way as not to interfere with the cannon firing at what was then the fort of Ciutadella.
The church is famous for the statue of the Archangel Michael that decorates its façade: his pose reminds many of a bodybuilder, and this has caused hilarity and controversy. The other statues depict Saint Elm and Saint María de Cervelló, protectors of fishermen.
In the house next to the church lived for some years Ferdinand Lesseps, the French engineer who designed the Suez Canal.
A hotel that is also a (controversial) monument: we are talking about theHotel W Barcelona, also known as the Hotel Vela, an extremely luxurious five-star hotel located directly on the beach of Barceloneta, a stone’s throw from the port.
Designed by architect Ricardo Bofill, it is a 99-metre tower with a very recognisable shape, an enormous caravel sail, which has become an essential element of Barcelona’s skyline.
Since its opening in 2009, the Vela hotel has divided Barcelonans and tourists into enthusiastic admirers and fierce detractors, the latter criticising above all its excessive proximity to the sea, less than 20 metres. If you don’t share these criticisms and you have the money to afford it, treat yourself to a night in one of its 400+ rooms. You will enjoy splendid panoramic views of the Mediterranean over the city.
In the following map you can see the location of the main places of interest mentioned in this article.
Barceloneta is the best area in Barcelona to eat fish. Its seafood restaurants are legendary and at least once during your holiday in Barcelona you must treat yourself to a paella with a sea view. True, paella is not a typical local dish but it is still a traditional Spanish dish, isn’t it?
Seafood restaurants are concentrated close to the beach, while for the best tapas bars in Barceloneta you have to move a little further inland.
Barceloneta is one of Barcelona’s key nightlife spots. While peace and quiet reigns in the neighbourhood (let’s not forget that Barceloneta is essentially a residential district!), on the seafront the party mood is unleashed.
Barceloneta’s chiringuitos (xirinquitos in Catalan), or beach bars, are a true legend and should definitely be put on your list of things to do in Barcelona.
They are the ideal place to start the evening: you start with an aperitif overlooking the sea, then one mojito follows another and in no time it is already time to go clubbing. If you get hungry, you don’t need to move because many chiringuitos are also restaurants and offer full menus that go far beyond a simple sandwich.
You can find chiringuitos all along Barceloneta beach. They are open until 11pm or midnight, but there are some that stay open until 2am.
Want to try a unique experience? On the Somorrostro beach you can have a cocktail in the Barcelona Icebar, a bar where everything is frozen!
Only when it gets very late is it time to go clubbing: don’t go at midnight because you won’t find anyone there. Moving towards the port you will find some of the coolest discos in the city.
And after the disco? People go out when it is already morning but hardly anyone goes straight to sleep. Many young people camp out on the beach, continuing the ‘evening’ by chatting. Some daredevils even go swimming. Others go in search of the nearest churreria to have breakfast with hot chocolate and churros, a tradition much loved by Spaniards, even in Barceloneta!
La Barceloneta is a district with a dual soul: on one side are the narrow streets of the former fishermen’s houses, where you can still breathe in the strong soul of the district’s community, and on the other is the flamboyant and trendy seafront, full of people walking, running, cycling, skating and of course on the beach, lying in the sun or exercising in the specially equipped area.
Both sides of Barceloneta, however, have plenty of accommodation, in the form of flats and bed and breakfasts, as well as large hotels. We have already talked about the W Barcelona hotel: it is the symbol of the area, and although it was built and opened only a few years ago, it overshadowed the other 5-star hotels in the area. But if you’re looking for more low-key accommodation, you’ll be spoilt for choice: many are old houses, beautifully renovated and equipped with all comforts, a short distance from the sea and with an old-world atmosphere.
The Barceloneta district stretches from Barcelona's Port Vell to Port Olimpic; the beach of the same name marks its eastern border.
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