Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain. It is located in north-east Spain on the Mediterranean coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs .
Barcelona Climate & Travel
Barcelona Parks & Museums
Barcelona Beaches & Entertainment

Barcelona is a major economic centre with one of Europe's principal Mediterranean ports, and Barcelona International Airport is the second largest in Spain . The airport mainly serves domestic and European destinations and is connected to the city by highway, commuter train and scheduled bus service.

Barcelona is served by a comprehensive local public transport network that includes a metro, a bus network, two separate modern tram networks, a separate historic tram line, and several funiculars and aerial cable cars.

Barcelona has a Mediterranean climate with mild, humid winters and warm, dry summers but the western Mediterranean climate is one of the most irregular climates in the world. Normally June is one of the driest months but some years the beginning of June is still cool and rainy, like April and May. On average, the rainy seasons are autumn spring and and the dry ones are winter and summer.

Barcelona and London have the same annual rainfall, but London's climate is not as irregular and torrential as Barcelona's. In Barcelona December, January and February are the coldest months, averaging temperatures over 10°C in the city. July and August are the hottest months, averaging temperatures of 24°C.
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Barcelona's old town, or Ciutat Vella, is the heart of the city. It's made up of many small neighbourhoods, full of old-world character and linked by narrow, winding streets.

The best way to get a feel for Barcelona is to take a walk along Las Ramblas towards the sea. Observe the wave of colour created by flower sellers who have been a feature of this pedestrian area for over 200 years, and listen to the chatter of caged birds up for sale. Whilst walking on admire Joan Miró's huge mosaic in the middle of the pavement. . At the top of the fifth and final street, Rambla de Santa Mònica, is Teatre Principal and also the Museu de Cera (Wax Museum) as well as many pavement artists, performers and musicians in the centre of the pedestrian area.
Finish by going to the top of Monumento a Colón (Columbus Monument) for aerial views of the city, or continue to the harbour area of Port Vell and Maremàgnum, a modern shopping centre.

Barcelona contains sixty-eight municipal parks, of which twelve are historic parks, five are botanical parks, and 6 forest parks. Te remaining forty-five are urban parks.
The largest of Barcelona's parks is Montjuïc and is located on the mountain of the same name. Next is Ciutadella Park which houses the Parliament building, the zoo and several museums. Another park of note is Park Güell which was designed by the architect Antoni Gaudí famous for the still unfinished church of the Sagrada Família, which has been under construction since 1882, and is still financed by private donations. As of 2007, completion is planned for 2026.

Barcelona has a great number of museums covering different areas and eras.
The National Museum of Art of Catalonia possesses a well-known collection of Romanesque art while the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art focuses on post-1945 Catalan and Spanish art. The Fundació Joan Miró, Picasso Museum and Fundació Antoni Tàpies hold important collections of these world-renowned artists. The Erotic museum of Barcelona is among the most peculiar ones.
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Barcelona has seven beaches, the largest being the Sant Sebastià and Barceloneta beaches, both 1,100m (3,610 ft) in length, and are the most frequented beaches in Barcelona.

Barcelona has many venues for live music and theatre, including the world-renowned Gran Teatre del Liceu opera theatre and the Palau de la Música Catalana concert hall. Also two major pop music festivals, the Sónar Festival and the Primavera Sound Festival. take place in the city each year. Barcelona also has a thriving alternative music scene,

For evening entertainment Barcelona has much to offer. The most popular nightclubs are within walking distance of each other down by the harbour area, in Port Olímpic and Maremàgnum. The variety is endless from techno and rock to salsa and Spanish pop music.

The district of L'Eixample has many live music venues and there are also live shows in the Gòtic district . To enjoy alternative and Spanish local bands, take the metro to the Razzmatazz, Sidecar or BeCool. Districts. If you like dancing you'll find a number of discos with plenty of atmosphere and different kinds of music in the Maremàgnum and Port Olímpic districts.

The Port Vell area is home to the Maremagnum (a shopping mall), the IMAX multiplex cinema, and Europe's largest aquarium, containing 8,000 fish and 11 sharks contained in 22 basins filled with 6 million litres of sea water.
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