Post Valentines Trip: Barcelona, The Day

I have not long come back from a week skiing in Chamonix, and last Friday we packed our bags and headed for the skies yet again -I know I know, living the high life, aren't we, but this time we are swapping our thermals and ski's for beachwear and sunglasses (well maybe not the beach wear just yet as it is still a bit breezy here) and taking in some of our most favourite sites in Barcelona. 

I initially thought we were just going for a few days during the weekend, but my sneaky boyfriend actually booked us off a full week from work without me knowing and also booked us into 2 amazing 5 star hotels, it was honestly the best surprise trip a girl could wish for!! Here's the low down on what we got up during the day time in the famous Spanish city. I will be updating you with our night time activities soon so keep an eye out for that one!

Where we stayed: W Hotel & Grand Hotel Central 

On our last trip in 2015 we stayed on the popular tourist street Las Ramblas, we stayed in the Hotel 1898 and really loved our stay. I am true believer though that you should never stay somewhere twice (unless it really is that special). I am usually a sucker for luxury chain hotels, and very rarely try out smaller boutique hotels, but since my last trip in Chamonix where we stayed in a smaller hotel with just 30 odd rooms, I am slowly beginning to get out of my comfort zone hotel wise. I am also not as picky when it comes to the ratings now, and have stayed in some really lovely four star hotels (Hotel 1989 being one of them).

This year we chose the luxury 5 star W Hotel Barcelona. This hotel has been recommended to us on more than one occasion, and when we got here it was hardly surprising to see why! If you are someone who prefers the celebrity treatment and likes to be waited on hand and foot, this hotel is the one for you. It was honestly one of the most relaxing hotels I think I have ever stayed in and well worth the money! They have some fantastic facilities on offer including a spa, two pools  including an infinity pool (which was heated when we stayed)  three restaurants a gorgeous rooftop bar overlooking the city and beach (depending which side you sit), and then you have the rooms! 

The hotel was really busy when we arrived, and all of the rooms were fully booked which meant we certainly were not getting any upgrades on this trip, but that didn't matter to us too much because we were more than happy with what we were given, which was a 'fabulous double room' with an extra large double bed (this must be arranged prior to arrival- we booked this through booking.com and they gave us the option for additional's on their website). Our room was lovely and spacious, with beautiful views of the Barceloneta Beach (you may also have get given a room with a city view, but do ask before arrival for which view you prefer). The rooms are fully equipped with all the latest technology including flat screen TV's, an Ipod docking station and fancy coffee machines. The bathroom was equally as nice with its rainfall shower, free bathrobe, slippers and mini toiletries sets.

Hotel W has an array of restaurants and bars available to guests and non guests, including two gourmet restaurants one called 'BRAVO24' which is run by Michelin-starred chef Carlos Abellan & another called 'Wave'. They have a roof bar called 'Eclipse' which can be found on the 26th floor serving some of the best cocktails and spirits, or if you don't fancy cocktails inside head to one of their other more relaxed bars 'W Lounge' which feature comfy sofas and fancy-pancy bar stools. If you are looking for something a bit more snack like or family orientated make sure to check out the 'SALT Beach Club & Restaurant' which sell some fantastic Burgers and fries paired with summery delicious cocktails, which you can sip by either one of their two pools 'SUN Deck' or 'WET Deck' surrounded by lovely chic white sun loungers.

W Hotel Bar

W Hotel Restaurant

Grand Hotel Central 

I already knew ahead of the trip that I was staying in W Hotel and of course was so excited for it, what I didn't know was my boyfriend had a little secret up his sleeve for the last 2 nights of our extended holiday. He had booked us into ANOTHER magnificent 5 star hotel behind my back (I still to this day don't know how!), this time in the Gothic Quarter & close to the very stylish El Born district. The hotel is called the 'Grand Hotel Central'. It was such a great idea to book a second hotel in a different part of the city, as we have now stayed in all three of Barcelona's main tourist areas and managed to get a complete over view of the city thanks to this trip. My favourite area of all three is actually the Gothic Quarter, it is more lively there is more to do during the day and you a right in amidst of all the action day and night. In La Rambla where we stayed last time I felt a bit too claustrophobic, but the Gothic Quarter felt just right. This hotel is right opposite the cathedral (right in the next street), it is also not too far away from the beach area we stayed in before (around a 17 minute walk or a 5 minute drive in a taxi) it has great metro access too for any other places you may wish to visit. 

In terms of the actual hotel it was really quite similar to the W Hotel we stayed in previously, the rooms were laid out in the same modern setting, the bathroom featured another rainfall show & there was lots more freebies thrown in again including free wi-fi connection. One thing which did make this hotel stand out though was their complimentary mini bar which was replenished daily, it included soft drinks, fruit juices, water and crisps and other snacks. This was perfect for us because we didn't have breakfast included in this room so we often ate out instead. We did try their room service breakfast one morning and that was a lovely treat (see photo below).  

This hotel also had a fitness centre with a fully equipped gym available for all guests to use free of charge, and an in house spa room which offered a massage service, we didn't bother using these facilities this time round, but we did have a dip in their very impressive infinity pool up on their rooftop bar it was just as lovely as the other pools mentioned in the W Hotel, all in all a very pleasant way to spend our last few remaining days in one of our favourite cities. 

Sights, Shopping, Eating & Drinking: 

Barcelona Cathedral

Having been to Barcelona before a few years ago, we pretty much did the main tourist attractions on that visit, so this time round we wanted to explore some of the things we didn't get to last time round. This also included lots more shopping!! Barcelona is fantastic for shopping, especially if you are a Sephora-aholic like myself, this is always number 1 on the list when I come here, and most people also share the same feelings because it is always packed sometimes you even have to queue up!. Barcelona has some other world wide famous brands too including Zara, H&M, Mango, Apple, Pull & Bear and so many more!! These can be found scattered round the city. You must also come to the designer shopping street Passig de Gracia, where you will find the likes of Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Longchamp, Versace and many other designer brands. Even if you don't fancy shopping here the streets are beautiful to walk up and down! You will never get bored of the views of the quirky buildings.

H&M Flagship Store

We did go round again and visit a few of the main sites (can never hurt to get too many photos can it?). We didn't visit the aquarium or the Zoo this time, as we just thought once you've visited these once you don't really need to again. But we did try to get a few different shots of the main landmarks, we mostly stuck to the Gothic Quarter as we felt this is the place we wanted to see more of on our last trip. We also spent a lot of time in the El Born district which was a stones throw away from our hotel, it was really lovely here and I spent most of my time meandering through the back streets and into their lovely little boutique shops. 

Another favourite past time in Barcelona is sipping freshly ground coffee in one of their delectable cafes. There are SO many in Barcelona it can be difficult to know which ones to choose I advise staying clear of Starbucks, even though I love a Starbucks in the UK or USA, there are so many better independent cafes here in Barcelona to visit, here's a few of our favourites. 

La Rambla 

Gothic Quarter

Gothic Quarter


So there we have a little round up of some of the stuff we got up to during our weekly stay in Barcelona, during the day. My next post will be all about what we got up to during our evenings where we mostly ate out in some of Barcelona's best restaurants and partied our nights away in some amazing bars. Can't wait to tell you all about what else we got up to!

I will also be doing a similar post to the one I did in NYC last year, where I will be showing you where all the famous sights are in Barcelona and how you can access them via the Metro, again this is something I think as a tourist you may find useful (hopefully), that will be coming soon on the blog!