Barcelona for Couples: A Sagrada Família Rooftop and the Gothic Quarter

Barcelona was the beginning and the end of our Spain trip, and it gave us two completely different cities. At the start, a rooftop in Eixample with the Sagrada Família right in front of us, a green afternoon in Ciutadella Park and a steak dinner at Carnal. At the end, after Mallorca, the narrow stone streets of the Gothic Quarter and a candlelit dinner in El Born.

Here are both sides: where we stayed, what we did, and what we'd do again as a couple.

Our Barcelona at a glance

The start, in Eixample: a pre-booked transfer to the Sercotel Rosellón, sangria on the rooftop facing the Sagrada Família, a rowboat on the lake in Ciutadella Park and dinner at Carnal Steak House.
The next morning: a transfer to the airport and a short flight to Mallorca (here's our Mallorca for two).
The end, in the Gothic Quarter: back to Barcelona for a last stop at the Arai Aparthotel off Carrer d'Avinyó, and dinner at Carmina in El Born.
Also on our list: a guided tour inside the Sagrada Família, cocktails at Alice Secret Garden, and the Barcelona Cathedral in the Gothic Quarter.

The start: Eixample

A rooftop facing the Sagrada Família

We arrived by transfer and checked in to the Sercotel Rosellón on Carrer del Rosselló, in Eixample, just a short walk from the Sagrada Família. The reason to stay here is the roof: the hotel's terrace looks straight at Gaudí's basilica, so our first drink in Spain was a sangria with those spires right behind the glass.

A hand holding a glass of red sangria with a striped straw on the rooftop terrace, the Sagrada Família behind it — Our first sangria in Spain, on the roof of the Sercotel Rosellón

Our room faced the Sagrada Família too, but honestly, we didn't need it. Insider tip: save on the view room. The rooftop has the view, and that's where you'll want to be at golden hour anyway.

The Sagrada Família, outside and in

From the street, the Sagrada Família is all spires and carved stone, still rising (you'll see the cranes). Inside, it's a different world: tall stone columns that branch out like trees, and coloured light pouring through the stained glass. It's the place in Barcelona that made us both stop talking.

The spires of the Sagrada Família against a deep blue sky with white clouds — The Sagrada Família, a short walk from our hotel

Inside the Sagrada Família: pale stone columns branching like trees into a ceiling of carved stars, with green and gold light from the stained glass — Inside, the columns branch like trees

We went inside on a guided tour. Tickets and guided visits are sold on the basilica's official site, so book ahead.

Sagrada Família tickets and guided tours (official site)

That afternoon

Ciutadella Park

That afternoon we went to Ciutadella Park, Barcelona's big green park on the edge of the old town. It's free to walk in, and there's a lake where you can rent a rowboat. We took one out on the lake. After a travel day, it was exactly the pace we wanted.

Dinner in Eixample

Dinner at Carnal Steak House

Dinner was at Carnal Steak House on Carrer d'Enric Granados, one of the prettiest streets in Eixample. The menu sums it up: "Time to savor both food and friendship." The table is set for taking your time.

The pink Carnal menu cover in dappled light: Carnal, (n). Time to savor both food and friendship — The menu at Carnal

Sliced steak on a wooden board beside a hot stone grill at the table — Steak on the board, with a hot stone at the table

We had the steak, served sliced with a hot stone at the table so you can sear each piece the way you like it.

Cocktails in Eixample

Alice Secret Garden

For cocktails, we found Alice Secret Garden on Carrer de Pau Claris, in Eixample. Walk through and you come out onto a leafy terrace under the trees, with a menu of "Secret Cocktails" straight out of Alice in Wonderland. It feels like a hidden garden in the middle of the city, and it was the perfect cocktail stop.

A hand holding the Secret Cocktails menu, illustrated with Alice in Wonderland, on a garden terrace table — The Secret Cocktails menu at Alice Secret Garden

The next morning, a transfer took us to the airport for the short flight to Mallorca. (Mallorca gets its own post.)

The end: the Gothic Quarter

Back to Barcelona, in the Gothic Quarter

After Mallorca, we flew back to Barcelona for one last stop before heading home, and this time we stayed in the old town. The Arai Aparthotel is on Carrer d'Avinyó in the Gothic Quarter (Barri Gòtic), in a restored 18th-century palace, with a rooftop terrace and pool above the old city. Our room had an exposed stone wall, a whitewashed beamed ceiling and tall linen curtains: old Barcelona, made calm. (More on it below.)

The Gothic Quarter is the Barcelona of narrow stone lanes and little squares, and the Barcelona Cathedral is its centrepiece, with Gothic spires rising above the old town.

The Gothic façade and spires of Barcelona Cathedral in the Gothic Quarter — Barcelona Cathedral, in the Gothic Quarter

Our last dinner: Carmina in El Born

For our last dinner we booked Carmina, on Carrer de l'Argenteria in El Born, a short walk from the Gothic Quarter. It's an Italian-Mediterranean restaurant in a 19th-century house, lit by candlelight, and a lovely way to end a trip. You walk in under a canopy of pink and red flowers, past a red neon sign, onto a checkerboard floor.

Carmina's entrance under a canopy of pink and red flowers, with a red neon CARMINA sign and a checkerboard floor — The way in to Carmina, in El Born

Where we stayed

For the start: Sercotel Rosellón, Eixample. Book it for the rooftop and the Sagrada Família on your doorstep.

Visit the hotel: Sercotel Rosellón

For the end: Arai Aparthotel, Gothic Quarter. Book it to wake up in the old town, a walk from the Cathedral and El Born. Our room had stone walls, beams overhead and space for both our carry-ons (one each, always).

A room at Arai Aparthotel: an exposed stone wall, whitewashed beamed ceiling, tall linen curtains, a white bed against a carved wood wall, and two carry-on suitcases side by side — Our room at Arai, in the Gothic Quarter

Visit the hotel: Arai Aparthotel

Couple tips for Barcelona

Split the city in two. If Barcelona is your start and finish, stay in a different neighbourhood each time. Eixample for Gaudí and wide boulevards, the Gothic Quarter for the old town. It feels like two trips.
Pick a hotel with a roof, not a view room. A rooftop facing the Sagrada Família turned a travel day into the most memorable drink of the trip, and it saves you paying extra for a view room.
See the Sagrada Família with a guide. We booked a guided tour for our visit inside.
Pre-book the airport ride. We booked transfers for both arrival and departure, so we never had to think about it.
Leave the afternoon loose. Ciutadella Park is free. A rowboat on the lake is the perfect reset after a flight.
Book one dinner a day. Carnal in Eixample, Carmina in El Born. One reservation, and everything else stays easy.

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