Barcelona is located on the coast facing the Mediterranean Sea. It is only 160 km (100 mi) south of the Pyrenees and the Catalan border with France.

The city is sheltered to the northwest by the Collserola coastal mountain range. Its highest point is the Tibidabo and the views from the top across the city are stunning. To the southeast is the 17th Century castle Montjuïc which overlooks the harbour. Today, the fortress is a museum and is home to sporting and cultural venues, as well as Barcelona's biggest park and gardens.

Barcelona's cultural roots go back over 2000 years.  It is a bilingual city where Spanish and Catalan are both official languages and widely spoken. The Catalan spoken in Barcelona, Central Catalan, is the one closest to standard Catalan. Barcelona is designated as a world-class city with many fascinating and interesting mueums, parks andf of course the infamous Nou Camp Football Stadium, home of Barcelona. Espanyol also play thier football in Barcelona.

The Gran Teatre del Liceu opera theatre is one of the most famous venues alongside the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya, the Teatre Lliure and the Palau de la Música Catalana concert hall.

The Sonar Music Festival takes place every year around June/July. The Barcelona and Catalonia National Symphonic Orchestra is the largest symphonic orchestra in Catalonia and performs around 75 concerts per year.

Barcelona has a number of museums covering a whole range of interests. The National Museum of Art of Catalonia possesses a well-known co llection of Romanesque art while the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art focuses on post-1945 Catalan and Spanish art. The Fundació Joan Miró, Picasso Museum and Fundació Antoni Tàpies hold important collections of these world-renowned artists.

The City History Museum, the Museum of the History of Catalonia, the Archeology Museum of Catalonia, the Barcelona Maritime Museum and the private-owned Egyptian Museum are other museums that cover different aspects of loacl and National interests. There is even an Erotic museum in Barcelona for those looking for 'something different'.

The Gothic Quarter is the centre of the old city of Barcelona. Most buildings date from medieval times with some dating from the Roman era. Barcelona has a great number of world heritage sites. Look out for work by architect Antoni Gaudi. There are many examples in the city, the most famous being the unfinished church, Sagrada Familia, which has been in construction since 1882.

Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion was designed in 1929. It is an amazing building designed by one of the most influential architects of the 20th century.

The port is a vibrant area with many restaurants and bars. No visit to Barcelon would be complete without seeing the famous fountains that dance at night to music. This event is ever popular. Barcelona is of course home to the Olympic Park that held the 1982 Olympics.

All of this and more is available to you when you visit Barcelona. So, make an online hotel reservation in Barcelona and visit one of the most historic cities in Europe.