oye- I am heading to spain in December- i used to live there 5 years ago and this is my first time back. I am sure the neighborhoods have changed. I was wondering if anyone could let me know where the best neighborhood in Barcelona is. By best I mean minimal american tourists, lots of art and punks. Any advice will be much appreciated. gracias

Hi, the one time I stayed in Barcelona I was fortunate to be located in the Gracia barrio. It's far enough from the centre to avoid too many tourists (although Parc Guell attracts a few, understandably). You have quite a few small easy-going plazas to relax in and take a drink. There seemed to be quite a lot of foreign restaurants (especially Middle-East) to make a change from Spanish and Catalan venues.

La Capoeistra:

Are most of the tourists in Barcelona Americans? Do you want to avoid tourists in general, or just American tourists? I'm just curious....

I see that you are from Detroit. That city's downtown is making an amazing comeback!

Regards,

Dave B.

Dave b -
I don't mind tourists so much as drunken frat boys-you know what i'm saying? I am looking for a more leftist punk vibe than a super commercialized barrio complete with a Mcdonalds and all. I heard El born is cool...any suggestions? i am going with man who has never left the states and i want to make sure he is properly exposed to espana. Vale.
Ciao- La capoeistra

Now the Born is a tourist centre with cool bars, expensive artist studios and posh restaurants.

El Raval is multicultural and it hides some of the city's most carefully-guarded jewels but it's also a bit dodgy with high immigration. Barcelona may have gone trendy but this part has kept its unique charm.

The same as Barceloneta. It's not so dodgy and maybe less interesting but give you an insight into everyday life in the neighbourhood.

Gracia is the place to get away from cosmopolitan grandeur and to sit with old people, kids and catalan youth in a quiet and sunny square.

Now it's your choice.

I agree, Gracia all the way. We just got back from there. We rented an apt. on a nice quiet street & just hung out. No drunken frat boys, no big cruising scene like the Ramblas--which, by the way, is way overrated as far as we could tell.

If you really want to be away from the tourists and yet have easy access to Placa Catalunya, Barri Gotico and the Born, it's Sarria or Pedralbes with Gracia right in there as well. If you go to various hotel websites, look for "Zona Alta." That's the "high zone," literally the neighborhood higher up toward the mountains behind the city. Sarria is now a pedestrian-only historic district, that began as the location of summer farms and villas, so that one could escape the summer dampness and be in "higher" (read fresher) air in the summertime. Many of the old summer "masias" (villas) still exist, and there are a few hotels on its outskirts; Pedralbes is a leafy outskirting suburb--yet with a metro stop nearby, easily accessible to downtown. It's where the Barca futbol/soccer players and their families all live because it is close to Camp Nou, the Barca stadium. Also there's the incredible L'Illa shopping center on Diagnal and the most incredible Rose Garden higher up on Diagonal before one gets to the Rey Juan Carlos Hotel and polo grounds. The Garden started with roses found in Spain and now has expanded to include roses from all of Europe and Asia, etc. Their long-term goal is to include roses from all over the world.

Hope this helps.