Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
extraordinary ride up to the monastic eyrie by cable car or mountain railway.
Sitges
is the
local beach town
par excellence
, while with more time you can follow various trails around
the local
wine country
, head south to the Roman town of
Tarragona
or Gaudí's birthplace
of
Reus
, or north to medieval
Girona
or the Dalí museum in
Figueres
.
LA BOQUERIA
When to go
Barcelona is an established city-break destination with a year-round tourist, business and
convention trade. Different seasons have different attractions, from summer music festivals
to Christmas markets, but there's always something going on. As far as the weather is con-
cerned, the best times to visit are late
spring
and early
autumn
, when the weather is still
comfortably warm (around 21-25°C) and walking the streets isn't a chore. There might be a
chill in the air in the evening, but Barcelona in these seasons is sometimes nigh on perfect.
However,in
summer
thecitycanbeunbearablyhotandhumid,withtemperaturesaveraging
28°C (but often a lot more). August, especially, is a month to be avoided, since the climate is
atitsmostunwelcomingandmanyshops,barsandrestaurantscloseaslocalinhabitantshead
out of the city in droves. It's worth considering a
winter
break, as long as you don't mind
the prospect of occasional rain. It's generally still warm enough to sit out at a café, even in
December, when the temperature hovers around 13°C.
Out of Barcelona, the weather varies enormously from region to region. On the coast it's
best - naturally enough - in summer, though from June to September tourist resorts like
Sit-
ges
are packed.
Tarragona
, too, can be extremely hot and busy in summer, though it's worth
