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Budget · 6-hour walk · Barcelona

The seafront to Poblenou in six hours

The old fishermen's quarter, the city's beaches, the Olympic marina under Gehry's fish and the old factory district now full of design studios.

On foot
5.0 km
Walking
67 min
At stops
235 min
Total
5h 02m
Stops
7

Barcelona turned to face the sea only for the 1992 Olympics, when the railway and the warehouses along the shore came down and the beaches were made. This route walks the length of them, from the grid of fishermen's streets in Barceloneta to Poblenou, the 19th-century factory district once called the Catalan Manchester, now home to design studios and start-ups. Bring a swimsuit in summer.

  1. Port Vell

    The old harbour, crossed by the Rambla de Mar, a wooden footbridge that swings open for the boats.

    15 min here Walk here →
  2. Barceloneta

    The 18th-century grid of narrow streets built for the fishermen, with its market and tapas bars. La Cova Fumada claims to have invented the bomba, a fried potato ball with a spicy sauce.

    45 min here Walk here →
  3. Barceloneta Beach

    The city's busiest beach. Rebecca Horn's tower of rusty stacked cubes, L'Estel Ferit, remembers the beach shacks that were cleared away.

  4. Port Olímpic

    The marina built for the 1992 sailing events, under Frank Gehry's giant copper fish.

    20 min here Walk here →
  5. Bogatell Beach

    Quieter than Barceloneta, with more locals and fewer hawkers.

    40 min here Walk here →
  6. Rambla del Poblenou

    Poblenou's own rambla, a local high street of cafés and ice-cream parlours running inland from the sea. El Tío Che has served orxata here since 1912.

    40 min here Walk here →
  7. Torre Glòries

    Jean Nouvel's bullet-shaped tower of 2005, lit at night by thousands of coloured lights. The viewpoint at the top holds Tomás Saraceno's climbable cloud of nets.

    30 min here Walk here →

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