Barcelona Travel Guide

Barcelona is the capital and the most populous city of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, with a population of 1,621,537 in 2009. It is the sixth-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, London, Ruhr area, Madrid and Milan, with a population of 4,200,000. About 5 million people live in the Barcelona metropolitan area. The main part of a union of adjacent cities and municipalities named Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB) with a population of 3,186,461 in an area of 636 km² (density 5.010 hab/km²).

It is located on the Mediterranean coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs and is bounded to the west by the Serra de Collserola ridge (512 m/1,680 ft). Barcelona is recognised as a global city because of its importance in finance, commerce, media,entertainment, arts, international trade, education and tourism. This is a major economic centre with one of Europe's principalMediterranean ports, and Barcelona International Airport is the second largest in Spain (handles about 30 million passengers per year). Barcelona was the 12th-most-visited city in the world and 4th most visited in the Europe (after London, Paris, Rome) also the most popular tourist attraction in Spain (about 5 million tourists every year). According to lifestyle magazine Monocle, Barcelona occupies 15th place in the world on ranking World's most livable cities. According to Innovation Analysts 2thinknow, Barcelona occupies 13th place in the world on ranking Innovation Cities globally. Founded as a Roman city, Barcelona became the capital of the Counts of Barcelona. After merging with the Kingdom of Aragon, it became one of the most important cities of the Crown of Aragon. Besieged several times during its history, Barcelona is today an important cultural centre and a major tourist destination and has a rich cultural heritage. Particularly renowned are architectural works of Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner that have been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The city is well known in recent times for the 1992 Summer Olympics. The headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean are located in Barcelona.

As the capital of Catalonia, Barcelona houses the seat of the Catalan government, known as the Generalitat de Catalunya; of particular note are the executive branch, the parliament, and the Supreme Court of Catalonia. The city is also the capital of the Province of Barcelona and the Barcelonès comarca (shire).