Give your family a fun-filled 3 days in Barcelona

3 days in Barcelona during Christmas

The days leading up to Christmas make a great time to visit Barcelona. Visitors to the town at this time will find the residents of Barcelona enjoying a fascinating mix of Catalan traditions and Christian celebrations.

Despite the usually mild Mediterranean weather there are less tourists here than during the summer months this makes December and January the perfect opportunity to explore the city without the crowds.

There is far too much here to see in one day or even a weekend so plan a family trip of at least 3 days in Barcelona to make sure you can take everything in.

What can you see in Barcelona?

There are several seasonal events to enjoy at this time of year if you can plan your journey to coincide with them it will make your trip extra special. There are celebrations for both Christmas day and New years day although these are not the biggest public events to be found in Barcelona. Much more significance to given to early January when there is a procession to mark the feast of the Three Kings on the 5th of January followed by the celebration of the Epiphany on January 6th. Families with young children will particularly enjoy this time as sweets are passed out to children and there is plenty of entertainment to keep them occupied.

Even if you can’t arrange your 3 days in Barcelona at a time when there is a procession taking place there are still lots of good reasons to visit Barcelona at this time of year.

First of all you could try the city tour. This is especially helpful if you have never been to Barcelona before as it will acquaint you with the major city landmarks and give you an idea of anything that you may want to visit later during your stay. After the tour there are all of the traditional Barcelona attractions including the cathedral and the open air market to enjoy there is also the well known pedestrian walkway called La Rambla to explore. These attractions may be available all through the year but it is so much easier to enjoy them when the crowds are smaller at this time of year. There are also the nativity scenes arranged at the Barcelona cathedral and Sagrada Familia to enjoy there so make sure you don’t miss this extra Christmas treat.

If you prefer to restrict yourself to specifically seasonal activities then spending a day touring the Fira de Santa Llucia and the Fira de Nadal is a good use of your time here. These historic Christmas markets run all through the month of December and are the ideal place to shop for handicrafts and all sorts of Christmas items that would be hard to find anywhere else in the world.

The Barcelona Christmas lights are turned on at the end of November and from that time onwards visitors and locals come out onto the streets to admire the displays while engaging in their Christmas shopping and sampling churros with hot chocolate. Christmas shopping in Barcelona doesn’t have to be the rush and the wearing experience it so often turns into at home.