Barcelona City

Barcelona has the dynamic and open personality so typical of Mediterranean cities. It is the perfect city to relax in, stroll around and enjoy. Barcelona has its own way of life which makes it unique. Come and experience it for yourself. Barcelona is the capital and most populous city of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, with a population of 1,615,908 in 2008, while the population of the Metropolitan Area was 3,161,081. It is the central nucleus of the Urban Region of Barcelona, which relies on a population of about 5.5 million. It is located on the Mediterranean coast.

Barcelona is a major economic centre with one of Europe's principal Mediterranean ports, and Barcelona International Airport is the second largest in Spain after Madrid-Barajas Airport. Founded as a Roman city, Barcelona became the capital of the Counts of Barcelona. After merging with the Kingdom of Aragon, it became one of the most important cities of the Crown of Aragon. Besieged several times during its history, Barcelona is today an important cultural centre and a major tourist destination and has a rich cultural heritage. Particularly renowned are architectural works of Antoni Gaudi and Lluis Domenech i Montaner that have been designated Unesco World Heritage Sites. The city is well known in recent times for the 1992 Summer Olympics.

Business Hours - Almost everything in Spain - shops, museums, churches, tourist offices - closes for a siesta of at least two hours in the hottest part of the day. There's a lot of variation (and the siesta tends to be longer in the south) blue basic summer working hours are 9.30am-1.30pm and 4.30-8pm. -certain ...

Costs, Money & Banks - Spain is one of Europe's more affordable countries. If you are particularly frugal it's just about possible to scrape by for around US$20 a day. This would involve staying in the cheapest possible accommodation, avoiding eating in restaurants or going to museums or bars, and not moving around ...

Customs - With the Single European Market you can carry most things between EU countries, as long as you have paid tax on them in an EU country and you intend them for personal consumption. Customs will only start asking questions if your car is groaning under the weight of goods and they think you are ...

Electricity - Current in most of Spain is 220 or 225 volts AC (just occasionally it's still 110 or 125V); most European appliances should work as long as you have an adaptor for European - style two-pin plugs. North Americans will need this plus a ...

Email & Internet - The internet has made great inroads into Spanish life and access is widely available at internet cafes (more commonly referred to as cibercafes in Spanish), some computer shops and many locutorios. Prices vary; in cities hourly rates can be as little as €1.80, rising to around €6 in ...

Embassies & Consulates - Entry into Spain and Catalonia is done by presenting your valid passport or identity card, on which the holder's nationality is given. European Union citizens have the right to enter, leave and circulate freely throughout the territory. The British Consulate-General in Barcelona is open to the ...

Health - As an EU country, Spain has free reciprocal health agreements with other member states (you should carry form E111, available from main post offices). Even so, some form of travel insurance is still all but essential; with it, you should be able to claim back the cost of any drugs prescribed by ...

Languages Spoken - Catalan is the language of Catalonia. It has the category of official language along with Spanish, which is official all over the Spanish State. Catalan is also the language of an extensive area covering the eastern part of the Spanish State (the Balearic Islands, Valencia, and a part of Aragon ...

Newspapers & Magazines - Of the Spanish newspapers the best are the centre-left El Pais and the centre-right El Mundo, both of which have good arts and foreign news coverage, including comprehensive regional "what's on" listings and supplements every weekend. Other national papers include the solidly elitist ...

Postal Service - You can send letters from almost anywhere in Spain. To do so you should buy stamps, available at the licensed tobacco shops known as "Estancos". To send the letter or postcard you need to put it in a post box, to be found in the streets, at railway stations and at airports. You can ...

Public Holidays - Fiestas are an absolutely crucial part of Spanish life. Even the smallest village gives at least a couple of days a year over to partying, and happening across a local event can be huge fun, propelling you right into the heart of its culture. Following is a very basic calendar of fiesta ...

Telephone - Spanish public phones work well and have instructions in English. If you can't find one, many bars also have pay phones you can use. Cabins and other phones are adapted to take the euro currency but you're best off buying a phone card (from a kiosko or tabac) which avoids hassles finding the ...

Time - Time in Barcelona is one hour ahead of the UK, six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time, nine hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time, except for brief periods during the changeovers to and from daylight saving. In Spain the cloks go forward in the last week in March and Back again in the ...

TV & Radio - You'll inadvertently catch more TV than you expect sitting in bars and restaurants where the set often blares away on a shelf in one corner. Spaniards are Europe's greatest TV watchers after the British. Most TVs receive between five and seven channels. Two come from the state-run Television ...

Visas and Documentation - Visitors from the U.S., Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the U.K. need a valid passport to enter Spain. Australians who wish to stay longer than a month also need a visa, available from the Spanish Embassy in Canberra. Make two photocopies of your passport's data page -- one for someone ...

Local Customs - Catalonia is very rich in customs and traditions. The squares and streets are full of animation all the year round due to the liturgical calendar or local celebrations. Sardana is considered to be the Catalan national dance. It is danced in circles to the strains of typical wind instruments of ...

Weather - The Barcelona has a sub-humid Mediterranean climate, with annual mean rainfall of some 600 mm (l/m2). On average, there are 84 days of appreciable rainfall a year, of which 17 have more than 10 mm of rainfall. The wettest seasons are the autumn and spring, while summer is the driest season. The ...