(see the Shopping section).La Rambla has the same place in the psyche of the city as the Champs Elysées in Paris or Oxford Street in London, but is far less snooty than the former and far more attractive than the latter. Lined with trees, cafés, restaurants, flower stalls, shops and newspaper stands, La Rambla is the perfect place to stroll and soak up the unique Barcelona atmosphere. Plaça Reial, just off La Rambla, is one of the most attractive squares in the city - elegant nineteenth-century houses look down on palm trees, lampposts designed by Gaudí, and an eclectic mix of people enjoying the lively atmosphere at outdoor cafés.
Barri Gòtic
The maze of streets known as the Barri Gòtic or Gothic Quarter contains an exemplary collection of Gothic buildings dating from Catalonia's Golden Age in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, interspersed with Roman ruins, delightful squares and numerous bars and restaurants. Plaça Sant Jaume, at the heart of the district, is the epicentre of the city's political life. The square is overlooked on one side by the Renaissance-style Palau de la Generalitat - location of the Catalan government, and on the other by the Ajuntament (town hall). Nearby, the Palau Real on Plaça del Rei houses the Museu d'Història de la Ciutat. The remains of the Roman city of Barcino were uncovered underneath the Palau in 1931 and Roman streets are still visible in the vast cellar space which stretches as far as the Cathedral (see below). The museum admission fee gives access to the cellar and to a number of beautiful medieval buildings.

Plaça del Rei
Tel: (93) 315 1111 (Museu d'Història de la Ciutat).
Transport: Metro Jaume I.
Opening hours: Oct-Jun Tues-Sat 1000-1400 and 1600-2000 and Sun 1000-1400; Jul-Sep Tues-Sat 1000-2000 and Sun 1000-1400.
Admission: Pta1000 (concessions available).
Catedral de la Seu
Catedral de la Seu was built in the fourteenth century on the site of an earlier basilica, but the spire and façade were not added until the end of the last century. Highlights include the spiritual space of the cloisters, the carved choir stalls and the Capella de Lepanto.

Plaça de la Seu
Tel: (93) 315 1554. Fax: (93) 315 3555.
Transport: Metro Liceu or Jaume I.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1330 and 1600-1930; Sat and Sun 0800-1330 and 1700-1930.
Admission: Free.
Santa Maria del Mar
Santa Maria del Mar is generally considered to be the most beautiful church in the city and a prime example of Mediterranean Gothic architecture. It is located just to the northeast of the Barri Gòtic in the Ribera district. A fifteenth-century rose window adds colour to the simple harmony of the columned interior.

Passeig del Born 1
Tel: (93) 310 2390.
Transport: Metro Jaume I.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 0900-1330 and 1630-2000; Sat and Sun 1000-1330 and 1630-2000.
Admission: Free.
Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia
Recently the subject of much controversy over who should pay for its completion, Gaudí's unfinished masterpiece and the city's most outlandish landmark, the Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family, towers crazily above the grid-like streets of the Eixample. Despite being very much a building site the cathedral has a certain beauty that somehow emerges despite the omnipresent construction. The extraordinary structure has elicited cries of astonishment, awe, amusement and anger from visitors and residents alike, but remains one of the city's most visited attractions.

Carrer de Mallorca.
Tel: (93) 207 3031. Fax: (93) 476 1010.
Transport: Metro Sagrada Familia.
Opening hours: Nov-Feb daily 0900-1800; Mar, Sep and Oct daily 0900-1900; Apr-Aug daily 0900-2000.
Admission: Pta800.

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