Is Barcelona child-friendly?
With a bit of planning and preparation, most destinations can be child-friendly but Barcelona is particularly well suited to kids with an array of fun attractions, green parks and beaches. There are plenty of kid-friendly hotels to choose from and restaurants are welcoming to families. It's also a great jumping off point to explore the Costa Brava and beyond. Spain's biggest theme park, PortAventura World is around a 90-minute drive from the city.
Some of our favourite family-favourite attractions in Barcelona include:
Cosmocaixa (Science Centre)
Montjuïc (Magic Fountain)
Tibidabo Amusement Park
Barcelona Aquarium
Kids & Family Gothic Quarter Walking Tour walk
Chocolate Museum
Barcelona Zoo
Museu Blau (Natural History Museum)
When is the best time to go to Barcelona?
Barcelona is a great year-round city break destination. Temperatures can be pleasant in January and spring sees mild sunshiney days. Its peak season is between March and September, when you'll see lots of outdoor events and festivals taking place throughout the city. People flock to the city's beaches between May-August. Be prepared for hot city streets if you're sightseeing in the summer months - aim to head out early and plan a dip in the sea to cool off later on.
Where can I get cheap flights to Barcelona?
It’s always worth checking price comparison sites like Skyscanner or Momondo to find a deal. Be flexible with your dates to find the best prices. Flights are often cheaper the further you book ahead and Tuesday is always one of the cheapest departure days. You may get lucky with some last-minute deals but not usually in the school holidays. It’s also worth looking out for package holiday deals with companies like easyJet and British Airways.
Do I need to hire a car in Barcelona?
Unless you’re travelling further afield, hiring a car is usually unnecessary on a family trip to Barcelona. Especially when public transport is widely available and easily accessible across the city.
About the author
Rachel Erdos is an Editor at Mumsnet where she commissions, edits and writes content with a focus on family travel, product reviews and homeware roundups.
She's a mum of two and travels as much as she can with her kids. She's written destination guides, hotel reviews and travel tips for publications including the Guardian, Four Seasons Magazine, Visit Britain, Visit London and TripSavvy, and loves seeking out, recommending and writing about fun family-friendly attractions, destinations and hotels.
She can often be found scouring the Mumsnet holiday forums for top tips from parents that have been there and done that.
How we chose our recommendations
Finding good hotels in popular cities is no easy task, particularly when searching for hotels that are suitable for families. Before we start any research, we always consult our Mumsnet holiday forums to check which family-friendly Barcelona hotels Mumsnetters have stayed in and would recommend to others.
We then look at hotel reviews from previous guests, assess child-friendly on-site amenities, location and proximity to attractions that appeal to kids and look at overall quality. Taking all of this into consideration, we then narrow down our findings to produce an in-depth list of the best family hotels in Barcelona. We’ve done all the research for you, and feel there’s something here for everyone.
Why you should trust us
As mums ourselves, finding the best family-friendly hotels in Barcelona is important to us both professionally and personally. Therefore, we work hard to bring even-handed advice that you can count on. Although we do use affiliate websites (click-to-buy) links in our articles, this does not sway our judgement and is only used to help us fund helpful articles like this one.