The Gothic Quarter

The Barri Gòtic is the oldest part of Barcelona and its emotional centre, a maze of narrow stone streets between La Rambla and Via Laietana where the city has been continuously rebuilt on top of itself since the Romans founded the colony of Barcino more than two thousand years ago. You walk through layers: chunks of the Roman wall embedded in later buildings around Plaça Nova; four towering Corinthian columns of the Temple of Augustus hidden in a medieval courtyard on Carrer del Paradís; and, beneath Plaça del Rei, a whole excavated Roman town that you can explore through the City History Museum (MUHBA). Above ground, the quarter is mostly medieval. The Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulàlia is its anchor, with a Gothic interior, a lift to the rooftop for views over the old town, and a cloister with a palm-shaded garden where thirteen white geese live — one for each year of the life of Eulàlia, the city's young martyr. Plaça del Rei, enclosed by the old royal palace, is the most atmospheric medieval square in the city. The neo-Gothic Bishop's Bridge over Carrer del Bisbe, built in 1928, is the most photographed spot. Plaça de Sant Felip Neri, a quiet square whose church walls still bear the marks of a 1938 bombing that killed children sheltering there, is the most moving. And Plaça Reial, arcaded and lined with palm trees, has lamp-posts designed by a young Gaudí. The quarter is free to explore, and the best way is to get a little lost — then emerge at the cathedral steps for your bearings.

Some of the "Gothic" is younger than it looks. Much of the quarter's romantic look was enhanced in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when the city restored and embellished it — the cathedral's ornate façade was completed only in the 1880s and 1890s, and the Bishop's Bridge is a twentieth-century addition — partly to give Barcelona a medieval showpiece for the 1929 International Exposition. That does not make it any less beautiful, but it is worth knowing, and a good walking tour will unpick the real medieval from the revival. The Call, the old Jewish quarter around Carrer de Sant Domènec del Call, has a small interpretation centre and some of the narrowest lanes in the city.

Visiting well: early mornings are magical, with delivery vans, church bells and empty squares; evenings, when the lanes fill with bars and street musicians play under the arches, are lively. Midday, especially in summer and when cruise ships are in port, can be very crowded around the cathedral. The cathedral itself is free to enter at worship times, while tourist visiting hours carry a fee that includes the rooftop and other areas — check the current schedule. Dress respectfully. Petty theft is the quarter's one real problem: keep phones and wallets secure, carry bags in front in crowds, and be wary of distraction tricks. A free or paid walking tour is a good first-morning orientation.

The Gothic Quarter connects naturally with everything else in the old city. To the east, across Via Laietana, lie El Born, the Picasso Museum and Santa Maria del Mar; to the west, La Rambla and the Boqueria market; to the south, the old port. It is also one of the best places to stay for walkers — though rooms can be small and the lanes noisy at night. For food, avoid the menus with photographs on the main squares and duck into side streets for tapas bars and vermouth, or head to El Born for a wider choice. Come back after dark at least once: the stone glows under the lamps, and it is the most atmospheric walk in Barcelona.