Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter

Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter, located in the historical and geographical center of the capital of the Autonomous Region of Catalonia, is a rectangle with sides of about 1.2 by 0.5 km. It is bounded by Laetana Street to the northeast, Rambla Boulevard to the southwest, Plaza Catalunya to its northwestern boundaries, and the Mediterranean Sea on its southeastern shore. The political, cultural and tourist life of Barcelona is concentrated here: the government of the city and province meets in St. James Square, musicians, singers and dancers perform in churches, restaurants and in the open air. Thousands of tourists melt into the narrow medieval streets of the quarter, visit its museums, linger in the stores and relax after a successful shopping spree in cafes.

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‘ How the neighborhood was developed

By no means all the objects of the Gothic quarter appeared here in the Middle Ages, during the heyday of the union of the Aragonese Crown State, of which the Principality of Catalonia was an important part. The first surviving stone objects were built in antiquity – these are the ruins of the city wall, the palace of Octavian Augustus and the aqueduct in the vicinity of Tapineria Street and the New Square. The most active territory of the future Gothic quarter of Barcelona was developed in XIII-XIV centuries, but since then Barcelona has gone through a series of historical and natural disasters. The ancient houses burned, came under fire, they were destroyed by earthquakes. As a result, by the twentieth century most of the repeatedly rebuilt buildings required global reconstruction. Modern architectural monuments are a fusion of Gothic, neoclassicism and neo-Gothic, supplemented by the skillful work of restorers.

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‘ View of Piazza Sant Felip Nerihttps://trevaladvisor.com/img%img/Goticheskij-kvartal-Barselonireterte/ulitsy-gotiechskogo-kvartala.jpg” alt=””/>‘ Streets of the Gothic Quarter
‘ Gargoyles on the walls of buildingshttps://trevaladvisor.com/img%img/Goticheskij-kvartal-Barselonireterte/barcelona-cathedral-1.jpg” alt=””/>‘ Cathedral of the Holy Cross and St. Eulalia

Gothic buildings and squares

Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter has generally retained its medieval layout, although many squares have been enlarged by demolishing old buildings. Some of the most popular sites for tourists include St. Eulalia Cathedral, the New Square, and the Church of Santa Maria del Pi.

‘ New Squarehttps://trevaladvisor.com/img%img/Goticheskij-kvartal-Barselonireterte/dom-arkhidyakona-na-novoy-ploshchadi.jpg” alt=””/>‘ House of the Archdeacon on New Squarehttps://trevaladvisor.com/img%img/Goticheskij-kvartal-Barselonireterte/uzkie-ulitsy-gotiechskogo-kvartala.jpg” alt=””/>‘ Narrow streets of Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter

Attractions of the later eras

‘ Barcelona’s Royal Squarehttps://trevaladvisor.com/img%img/Goticheskij-kvartal-Barselonireterte/vkhod-v-muzey-voskovykh-figur.jpg” alt=””/>‘ Entrance to the wax museum

Gothic Quarter Museums

‘ The Ball of Giants in St. James Square

Tourist Information

On the borders of the Gothic Quarter are the metro stations of Line 3 “Liceu” and Line 4 “Jaume I”. From here it is convenient to start exploring Barcelona: the main sights of the city are located within a radius of 2 km. Restaurants and cafes are open at every turn, with a wide range of national cuisine and themed projects such as rock cafes, jazz clubs and the 4 Cats art cabaret. Young Picasso once exhibited here and Albéniz played here. Today the owners of the cabaret try to recreate the bohemian atmosphere of the early XX century: live piano music sounds until 1 a.m. and artists perform. The number of boutiques representing world brands is not inferior to the number of restaurants. There are many small but quite expensive hotels in the neighborhood.

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