Barcelona has an incredible variety of shops and shopping areas. We offer you a guide with the best places in the city to go shopping.
The cultural and architectural richness of many of its shopping streets, along with the different proposals of markets, shopping centers, luxury boutiques, artisan and local shops make Barcelona the second best city in the world for shopping.
This is the conclusion published by the consultancy Global Blue Center, which highlights the hours of light along with the cheap and safe public transport as other factors that put Barcelona at the forefront of shopping. So that you do not miss anything and know where to go according to your tastes, needs and pocket, we review the most important commercial areas of the city.
1. La Rambla
Walking out the door of the hotel you will find yourself on Las Ramblas, the most famous street in Barcelona. From Port Vell to Plaza de Catalunya, you will discover centenary shops, souvenir shops, beautiful flower stalls and local products, street performers and living statues that give a special charm to one of the most colorful and full of life areas.
If your thing is the gastronomy, in La Boquería Market you can find typical Catalan dishes as well as the most exotic products from countries around the world. Meanwhile, in the Raval neighborhood (which surrounds Las Ramblas) you will find ethnic, second-hand clothing and unique handcrafted pieces
2. Plaça Catalunya
After crossing Las Ramblas you will reach Plaça de Catalunya, a civic and cultural area where are often organized different kind of activities and events that make it the heart of Barcelona.
In addition, the plaza has gained commercial vitality in recent years and now you can find macro-shops of big companies such as Zara, Apple or Desigual, as well as shopping centers and the headquarters of banks and other companies.
And not just that, Plaça Catalunya is the central axis of the main points of commercial interest of the city, also knowned as the Shopping Line of Barcelona: La Rambla, Rambla de Catalunya, Passeig de Gràcia, Portal de l’Àngel and Diagonal Avenue.
3. Passeig de Gràcia
Passeig de Gràcia offers the most modern, luxurious and commercial side of Barcelona. Along the street you will find the most glamorous and exclusive stores, alternating the top international brand names like Valentino, Louis Vuitton, Prada or Carolina Herrera with boutiques of Spanish designers like Roberto Merino or Antoni Miró.
An ode to luxury, fashion and design in the heart of Barcelona, which is also surrounded by some of the modernist gems of the city such as La Pedrera and the well-known Manzana de la Discordia, which joins together in a single facade La Casa Batlló, La Casa Lleó y Morera and La Casa Ametller.
4. Portal de l’Àngel
It’s another epicenter of fashion in Barcelona. In this pleasant pedestrian street you will find practically all the big clothing companies such as Zara, Nike, Benetton, H&M, Springfield and many more, as well as shoe stores, accessories stores and El Corte Inglés (like a Spanish version of Harrod’s, Galeries LaFayette or Macy’s) .
Its privileged location (connecting Plaça Catalunya with the Cathedral of Barcelona and the Gothic district) and the large number of visitors it has received have made the Portal de l’Àngel one of the 20 most expensive streets in the world to open a store.
In addition, as a curiosity you can admire the Cottet’s giant thermometer, which measures 22 meters, weights two tons and has been showing the temperature of Barcelona for more than 50 years.
5. Ciutat Vella (Gothic and Born district)
At the bottom end of Portal de l’Àngel you will be able to immerse yourself in the Gothic district. There, you will find not only souvenir shops and the main fashion brand names, but also a wide range of antique shops, bookstores and local designer shops that keep alive the uniqueness of the traditional Barcelona shops.
For its part, the shops of el Born synthesize the cosmopolitan, bohemian and multicultural spirit of one of the most fashionable neighborhoods in Barcelona.
The commercial area surrounds the wonderful basilica of Santa Maria del Mar, where streets like Argenteria, Mirallers, Ambaixadors or Sombrerers are the perfect spot to find creations of independent designers and the most innovative trends in fashion, crafts and decoration.
Shops that combine originality, personality and quality in equal parts and run away from the mainstream trends, helping Barcelona to keep its own spirit.
In future posts we will be reviewing the main shopping centers and the most important markets in Barcelona. If you go shopping in the city and you have any doubts, do not hesitate to ask our staff!
