Visit Barcelona at Christmas
Visiting the Catalan capital of Barcelona is a rewarding experience all year round as this vibrant city is a constant swath of colour and vivacity. At Christmas time, as you can imagine, Barcelona is especially exuberant with lights adorning the streets in a truly spectacular fashion and festivities taking place round every corner.
The mayor of Barcelona usually turns on the Christmas lights towards the end of November and for the next few weeks the long shopping street of Carrer de Sants beckons shoppers with even greater allure. And it’s not just the city’s main shopping street where lights dazzle all that walk down it, as the Xmas lights of Barcelona cover a distance of about 60 kilometres and weave in and out across the city.
Augmenting the idyllic festive urban landscape further is an outdoor ice rink erected in the Plaza Catalunya, providing great entertainment for all the family. Not far from the popular ice rink is Barcelona’s biggest Christmas tree in the atmospheric pedestrian street known as Portal del Angels. The Magic Fountain of Montjuic located in the Montjuic neighbourhood of the Catalan capital is also crafted into Christmas spirit with a special water and music show providing free entertainment for all.
Barcelona at Christmas sees many Christmas markets and one of the best is by the cathedral in the Gothic region of the city. This magical market, adorned in fairy lights and festive aromas, has been here every Christmas since 1786 and it remains Barcelona’s favourite Christmas market.
To experience a really different Christmas Day you could join the hundreds of swimmers that all take a dip in the harbour on the 25th.
Asides its spectacular lights, Christmas markets, ice rinks and Christmas Day swims, another reason to visit Barcelona at Christmas is the temperature during December, which is typically around 15 degrees Celsius at midday. The temperature can tend to plummet when the sun falls behind the mountains so despite the blue skies and warm sunshine during the daytime make sure you’re equipped with a jumper and jacket for the evenings.
Maybe you will fancy a little flutter on the Spanish Christmas lottery “El Gordo”, which is the world’s biggest lottery? El Gordo kiosks litter Barcelona’s streets during this holiday season.
In short, there’s something for everyone in the swinging city of Barcelona, especially at Christmas time.