How to find your way around Barcelona
If it's your first time in Barcelona, some streets, especially those in l'Eixample (where the Barcelona Century is located), may seem the same and disorient you when you want to go out for dinner, explore shops, or simply return to your hotel after a walk.
Barcelona is actually quite manageable in size. You could even call it a small city. It covers an area of 100 square kilometers, making it perfect for exploring on foot or by bike. Plus, it's pretty easy to get your bearings; just look over the buildings to see where the Collserola mountain range is (in many parts of the city you can even spot the Collserola Communications Tower, the Sacré-Cœur Basilica, or the Tibidabo Ferris wheel), and you'll quickly realize that the opposite direction is towards the sea. But to help you even more, here are a few tips to help you find your way around more easily.
View of the Collserola Tower, at the intersection of Valencia and Comte d'Urgell.
Sea side, mountain side
This is something you hear very often when you talk to people from Barcelona. It's quite common for them to specify, when giving you directions, whether it's on the mountain side or the sea side. This makes it much easier to find. For example, Barcelona Century Hotel is at Calle Valencia, number 154 … sea side. It's that simple!
It's also very common to hear things like, "Barcelona Century is on Valencia at the corner of Villarroel," meaning it's near the intersection with Villarroel Street. Or , "on Valencia, between Villarroel and Comte d'Urgell." This is often used to quickly pinpoint the address in your mind, as many streets in Barcelona are quite long. Sometimes it's better to give the cross street or the streets it's located between as a reference point, rather than stating the exact address number.
Address Besós, direction Llobregat
Another characteristic of the city is that, in addition to being bordered by the Collserola mountain range (west) and the Mediterranean Sea (east), it is also bordered to the south by the Llobregat River and to the north by the Besòs River. So don't be surprised if you're on the Rambla de Catalunya and, when you ask for directions to our hotel, someone tells you, "It's on Carrer de València, towards the Llobregat." They're clearly telling you to head south.
Neighborhoods and Districts
We could tell you at length about the neighborhoods that make up Barcelona, but we'll leave you with the link to the app that the Barcelona City Council has prepared, with the most interesting points of interest in each neighborhood and district of the city. To download it, click here. As a side note, Barcelona is divided into 10 districts, and these, in turn, are divided into 73 neighborhoods.
The Barcelona Century is located in the Eixample district (more specifically in the Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample), very close to many points of interest and with excellent transport links. To give you an idea of our location: we are below Avenida Diagonal, above Gran Via, and towards Llobregat, near important streets such as Muntaner, Balmes, and Passeig de Gràcia. Just a few meters from our building you'll find a metro station (lines L3 and L5), and only 5 meters away, a bus stop (H10) that will take you to the city center, the Sagrada Familia, and more.
Bus stop, a few steps from the Barcelona Century, sea side.
In a previous post, we also explained three easy bike routes to explore some of the city's points of interest while cycling. You can download the guide here. And, as always, you can ask at reception about any place you'd like to visit, restaurants we can recommend, or the quickest route to… (wherever you want).
We hope these explanations will make it easier for you to find your way around our city. And remember to visit our website's DEALS page. Booking through it guarantees you the best price.
