Language
Barcelona is a bilingual city; Catalan is the dominant language of street signs, opening hours, menus etc., although standard Spanish is spoken by pretty nearly everyone. English is not as widely spoken as some travellers assume and any efforts to get by in Catalan or Castilian Spanish are much appreciated.
Currency And Tipping
The Spanish use the Euro, made up of 100 cents. In restaurants, the locals will round up the food or drinks bill by a couple of Euros, but visitors are generally expected to pay a bit more. Tip 10% if the service was good and 5-10% in cabs if the driver has been helpful. In smart hotels, you could leave a few Euros in the room for the cleaning staff, but this is not expected.
Dress Code
Barcelona has a mild Mediterranean climate so light clothes and trusty walking shoes are the order of the day. Winters are too chilly for sunbathing, but you could still go for bracing beach walks if you have packed the pullovers. As for dinner-time: Barcelona is a laid-back kind of place – leave the tuxedo at home.
Safety
Petty crime is a big problem in Barcelona. Keep your bag strapped across you and watch out for scams – particularly ‘helpful’ strangers who say you’ve dropped your keys, for example. Don’t leave valuables in the car and have the glove compartment open to show there is nothing to take.
Travel
The Ciutat Vella (Old City) of Barcelona is very easy to get around on foot. Some major sights will mean a short bus or metro ride and others can be reached by funicular. The public transport network in Barcelona is excellent: clean, efficient, cheap, safe and easy to use. The main hub for buses is Plaça de Catalunya, where you’ll find a display of clear user-friendly bus maps listing the stops made on each route. Single tickets are around 1.50 Euros. For maps and information in English, go to www.tmb.net/en_us/home.jsp. There are five metro lines in Barcelona, identified by number and colour. There are various money-saving choices of tickets: a ten-use ticket costs around 6 Euros.
Travel Tip # 1 The Barcelona Card is a 2-3- 4 or 5 day discount card which offers free admission to some of the best museums in the city, a public transport ticket, a discounts on many leisure and entertainment venues and reductions at certain shops and restaurants. The cost of a card for 2 days is 23 Euros; for 3 days 28 Euros; for 4 days 31Euros and for 5 days 34 Euros. Details at www.europeancitycards.com.
