THE DIFFERENT DISTRICTS IN BARCELONA
- LOLA J. ESPEJO
- Jul 9, 2024
- 5 min read
I can finally say loud and clear that I found an apartment in Barcelona! But I must say, it’s not the first time, this is like the… Eighth?
I’ve been wanting to find a home for a long time, yet I couldn’t… Sometimes because the neighbourhood was not right or for another series of unfortunate events. This year I decided it was the year I’d find a place that wouldn’t be just temporary and where I could feel I was at home. Having lived in different zones helped me realize what I like and what I don’t, what I can afford and how easy it is to get to places. It is basically an adventure. In this article, I’ll start talking about the pros and cons of every part of Barcelona I’ve lived in, in case you’re thinking about either moving to or visiting this wonderful city. I’d like to say beforehand that this is my opinion, it’s not the only truth but the sensations that I’ve picked up in every part I’ve lived in, I hope you’ll find it useful!
If I start in order, the place I first moved to was Sagrada Familia, which is Eixample district. It's true that I was expecting that there were more tourist when in reality, everyone is concentrated on the Sagrada Familia and if you walk two streets further the tourists are gone. Even so, it seems to me that l'Eixample lacks a bit of personality, it is perhaps more gentrified and that is also why the prices are a little inflated for the apartments, which tend to be a bit old. It is true that in Eixample, apartments usually have high ceilings, beautiful floors and even if they are old they usually have quite a bit of charm. In short, you will find nice but expensive things and the neighborhood is a bit “bland”. However, if you go a little further from the center, to the Clot area, it has a lot more personality and is still well connected, but it is a little further apart from everything.
The Horta-Guinardó district is very beautiful and has small town vibes. There are older people and it’s very family oriented. When I lived in Guinardó I used to go by bus a lot since the metro is not very well connected and there are many, many hills, and there were always cute old ladies. The best thing about this neighborhood is the views, that it’s very quiet and the prices (some of the cheapest in Barcelona). The worst thing is that it is a bit inaccessible, when I had to carry the shopping up those slopes I had a terrible time, or when I came back from work very tired or from a party, it was an ordeal... Also, having that village vibe, everything is a bit dead on weekends, there is not as much life or things to do and you are forced to go to the center all the time. And for me, since I like to ride my bike everywhere, the steep slopes were definitely a problem.
Gràcia, on the other hand, is the hipsters neighborhood par excellence, probably the second most expensive after Sarrià (the poshest neighborhood in Barcelona). Gràcia is very fun because it has many bars, nightclubs, many places to sit and have a drink... But as I said, it is the hipster neighborhood, so the bars are usually very cool, but a little too expensive. I really liked living there because I knew I could leave the house aimlessly for a walk and I would always find a new charming square. Yes, that's the word, Gràcia has a lot of charm and the apartments are usually beautiful. The con is the price, which is usually quite high, but if you go to the part of Lesseps or something a bit higher up, it will be cheaper and you’ll still be close by. People who live in this area don't usually leave because you really have everything at hand.
If you like being near the beach, you will probably be interested in the area of Barceloneta or El Born, although I do not recommend the beach there. I was “lucky” that I moved there in September 2019, when there were not so many tourists because the summer was over and I spent the entire COVID time (in which you could not travel) in that apartment, so I enjoyed the beach and the area without having the bustle of tourists that usually exists (which for me is one of the big cons of this area). For me, since I’m from the south and have lived in Malaga for many years, Barceloneta (the neighborhood, not the beach) reminded me (when there were no tourists) of the little fishing villages on the coast down there, El Palo, Rincón de la Victoria... Honestly, I highly recommend going to Barceloneta to visit or if you come for a few days, but I don't recommend that you live there, because there is a humidity that is amazing (I had mold on my clothes, WTF?), it is not really well connected , there are many cockroaches, there are a fairly considerable number of tourists and people drinking at night and the apartments are usually quite old and deteriorated.
This applies to Barceloneta and El Born, a very different thing is Poblenou, which, although it is very close, does not have the same vibe at all, there are a lot of industrial buildings, the apartments have super high ceilings and are quite new... It is the trendy neighborhood so to speak. It's great because everything is very new and well connected, but it's usually quite expensive (sad story).
And I'd like to finish with my favorite neighborhood in Barcelona, Sants-Montjuic, it's fairly quiet but it has everything, and it's far enough from the center so that there are no tourists, but close enough to be able to go for a walk or by bike. . In addition, it has neighborhood stores, people are super nice... If you are from a small town like me, you will feel at home. And on weekends, the main street that runs through Sants to Plaza España (Carrer de Sants/Creu Coberta) is cut off to traffic and made pedestrian only, it is a delight to go to bars or shops, or simply walk around without having to be swallowing smoke. In short, Sants has charm, it is quite affordable and it is very well connected to the center both by metro, by bike or even on foot if you like walking.
If you've get this far and still have any questions, don't hesitate to leave them in the comments, I'll be reading them!
Comments