Any tips for family accommodation in Barcelona?

[ProseccoThyme]

Posting in Chat for more traffic. Have been driving myself potty on Expedia & Airbnb looking for an apartment (or hotel) which is central & suitable for a holiday with 2 DC ages 9 &5.

Have been looking at Eixample, Portenou, Gracia areas - also Gothic Quarter. Keen to avoid Las Ramblas itself, or places with lots of stairs.

Will be going in December for a family weekend so beach & pool are not a consideration.

Any ideas? TIA.

something like this may suit you?

www.holidaylettings.co.uk/rentals/barcelona/185864

We were at Plaça de Tetuan, Eixample in an MH Apartment. It was fantastic. Air con, great kitchen, WiFi, and a lift so no messing with stairs and right outside the doors was an entrance to the metro for L2. From there we could get a train every few minutes to all over Barcelona with just up to one change depending where you wanted to go but the system is very, very simple. By day 3 my 11 year old was leading the way!

We bought a T-10 travel pass that got us 10 journeys (changes included) for €10.20 and that could be used by all family members. You just swipe and let them through.

Oh and my kids are 11, 8 and just turned 6 and they loved it.

Thanks- I had a check of the price & it's £300 for 2 nights, which is a bit more than I was hoping to spend. Maybe I'm not being realistic......

We stayed in Glories (in the Ibis) which wasn't super central but was easy to get around, around 30/40 mins to walk to pretty much anywhere or the T-10 travel pass was really easy to use. We didn't have kids with us so don't know if they do family rooms but the hotel although basic was clean and super cheap and included breakfast.

Apologies, I never thought to check the price. We got a really, really good deal as a family member contributed. Looking at it I see it's really quite pricey. However, if you can find something in that area I would recommend it, but more so, anywhere near a Metro station. It is so, so much easier to get around and very cheap too.

Oh and watch your belongings! Barcelona is rife with pickpockets. DF's wallet disappeared on the way to the airport going home. His own fault of course, leaving it in a wide baggy pocket in his shorts after we had warned him.

We stayed in the Bona Vista apartments on the Carrer de Bonavista. It was a few mins walk to the Diagonal metro station. Like a PP we bought T10 tickets for getting around.

Thank you @Cindersdonegood - I've put that on the shortlist. What was the area like?

Sorry, @Cindersdonegood - my previous reply was to the first reply. The MH apartments are about £200 so a better price for our budget.

This is more than you spoke about paying, but we've stayed at this AirBnB, it is huge, legally licensed, and nicely done.

A lovely host too

We stayed in the Bicycle apartments a 10min walk from Placa Espanya, I think it was 4 stops on the metro to Las Ramblas. The apartments were very modern, spacious and clean.

Thank you @Star21 - I've seen these on several sites, so it's good to hear from someone who has stayed there. I will put them in the short list too.

Right outside the apartment there is a huge 4 lane roundabout and I was pretty worried about it (kid's safety etc) but my worries were completely unfounded. The traffic control system is great so we never thought twice about getting across safely. There are restaurants everywhere, two "corner shops" just below the apartments, a wonderful bakery, tapas and what I think was a sushi place? (Walked right on by as I don't eat fish).
A short walk up the road led us to Passage de sant Joan where we found a total gem of a place called Kook. Food and cocktails were great for the whole family.

That looks lovely @ThisIsTheNational - but definitely above budget. Am sure it would be great for a large group.

We stayed here a few year ago
https://www.booking.com/hotel/es/expressbyholidayinnmolinsderei.en-gb.html
Mainly because we had a hire car as had been further down the coast and need some where to park
However it worked really well

• cheaper than being right in the city

-5 min walk to train then when you got if you were right in the centre of Barcelona

• nice to get out of the city in the evening and eat or have a drink in a Spanish town as well as being much cheaper

We stayed here years ago. Aparthotel Atenea.

www.booking.com/hotel/es/aparthotelcalabria.en-gb.html#map_closed

Think it was this one - definitely in Eixample and near the Nou Camp. It was ideal for us as didn't want to be near Las Ramblas at night. There were loads of good, affordable places to eat nearby.