TRAVEL: Enjoy a family-friendly break in Barcelona

IT’S hard to imagine a city more desirable than Barcelona, the jewel in Catalonia’s crown that oozes culture and history in equal measure.

Apart from the breathtaking Gaudi architecture that lends the city its unique look, Barcelona is very much a modern, thriving place that’s as popular with fashionistas as it is with culture vultures and foodies.

Choosing a major European city as a family holiday destination may not seem like an obvious choice. But Barcelona is a surprisingly child-friendly place, with an abundance of parks, funfairs and attractions to keep them entertained and stimulated.

The fact that it’s just over two hours away from Ireland makes Barcelona extremely popular, either for a short weekend break or full-length holiday. There are plenty of options via Aer Lingus, Vueling or Ryanair, flying to Barcelona’s main airport or into nearby Girona.

The real magic of Barcelona is its metro system, making all parts of the city so easily accessible. Unlike some underground systems in major cities, this metro is easy to navigate and is a very cost-efficient way of getting around. The metro has the effect of making Barcelona feel like a compact city rather than a sprawling metropolis.

Barcelona Bus Turístic is another great way of seeing the city, allowing you to hop on and off at all of the city’s main sights.

As we had young kids in tow, our plans to visit the city’s incredible array of museums were jettisoned in favour of more family-friendly attractions. We managed to savour a few cultural nuggets, such as the iconic La Sagrada Familia – Antoni Gaudi’s masterpiece.

We did coax the kids along to a particular museum, albeit one dedicated to chocolate (Museu de la Xocolata). 

From here, we took a leisurely 25 minute stroll down to Barceloneta Beach, which was buzzing with a mix of sun worshippers and trendy tourists cruising the promenade on rented Segways while the beautiful people posed outside the multitude of local restaurants, cafes and bars.

Being so close to the city, Barceloneta can get pretty busy. It’s worth noting, however, that the city itself has almost five kilometres of beaches. And if you really want to avoid the crowds, a short bus or train ride outside the city can bring you to 100 golden beaches dotted along 95km of the Barcelona coastline.

Next on the list was the ‘L’Aquarium where the sharks and other creatures of the deep kept the children occupied. Speaking of wildlife, Barcelona Zoo is also within walking distance of the port area and is a great day out for the entire family. 

With the Mediterranean sun gods shining on us all week, plans were hatched for a full day of water sports activities at Port Olímpic. The options here are endless: there’s parasailing, jet skiing, scuba diving, kayaking, sailing and paddle boarding – to name but some. We chose banana boating, which is basically being pulled along on a long rubber raft by a high-speed boat. While it sounded like the most sensible option for a family with young children, we soon realised we had bitten off more than we could chew as, one by one, the youngsters were catapulted into the sea, bringing a premature end to our family adventure.

The lesson learnt here is that we should have checked in advance if the activity was age appropriate. Once safely back on shore, the kids got over the shock of their ordeal and started proudly boasting of their ‘near death’ experiences.

Another highlight of the week was a visit to FC Barcelona’s Nou Camp, which was something of a near spiritual pilgrimage for our two soccer-mad boys. The Nou Camp Experience is a self guided tour of one of the most famous stadiums on the planet and is an unmissable highlight of any visit to Barcelona. While the tour itself is reasonable value, the stadium’s megastore will hit you hard in the pocket if you’re not careful.

We brought home many lasting memories of Barcelona with us: bathing our feet in the cool waters of the fountains at Plaça de Catalunya; the sights and sounds of La Rambla – one of Barcelona’s most famous streets; visiting Gaudi’s magical Park Güell; and viewing the city from the top of the Christopher Columbus monument. There is a long list of things that we didn’t get to see or do during our week in Barcelona – all the more reason to start planning our next visit in the very near future.

Finally, a good tip is to purchase the Barcelona Card, which gives you access to many of the city’s cultural and leisure activities for free or at a reduced price. Tickets to all major attractions can be booked through www.tickets.visitbarcelona.com

For further information, visit www.visitbarcelona.com