Bites on Tour! Barcelona Pt 2

The Essentials

Flights

We flew from Cardiff to Barcelona with bmibaby.

2 x Return Flights (including all taxes, baggage and reserved seats) = £284

Visit bmibaby for flights from the UK to Europe.

Accommodation

We spent 4 nights at the Chic and Basic Gotica Apartments.

The apartment consisted of a double bedroom (above), with fitted wardrobe, separated from the lounge by a sliding door.

The living room had a two-seater Ikea sofa, coffee table, cabinet and TV (only Spanish channels).

A kitchen/diner (above) had a microwave, two electric hob, small fridge/freezer and enough pans/saucepans/plates/utensils to make pretty decent meals for 4 people for a week.

Our only quibble, being tea-fiends, was lack of kettle. But saucepans work just fine!

The bathroom was small with just the usual sink, shower and loo. Added bonus for a long stay was a top-loading washing machine. Handy if you want to whole up for a month or more.

Air-con was godsend in a city which averaged 17 degrees overnight during our stay.

Towels were provided and there is an optional cleaning service (extra).

Plus points: flexible check in times, great location, air con!
Negatives: room not ready on arrival, lots of steps and no lift!

Our stay cost around £60/night.

Chic and Basic have several hotels and apartments across Barcelona, Madrid and Amsterdam.

Getting Around

While staying in Barcelona we found buying a T10 card proved invaluable. You can get them from the Metro stations and they entitle you to 10 full journeys across the transport network, including buses and the metro. What is great is more than one person can use the card!

We got the 2 zone card which was enough to get us all the way up to Parc del Laberint as well as zipping around the city centre. This cost 15.40 euros (approx £13.15).

Safety

Don't, whatever you do, do what we did. I cannot repeat this strongly enough. The stories about Barcelona pickpockets are true and my partner sadly had his wallet taken on the Metro during a diversionary theft.

• Don't carry more cash than you need
• Leave your passport, credit cards and any other valuables in the safe at your room.
• Use a money belt or a zipped pocket inside a bag. DO NOT PUT THINGS IN YOUR POCKET!
• Avoid the Metro at rush hour.
• If someone is being weird and getting in your space, move immediately. They may be distracting you while their friend rifles through your things.

It happened to us on our last full day and it is a horrible experience. Barcelona, until then, had felt safe, and for the most part, it is. Just be a bit more careful than us and you'll be fine.

Enjoy!