Barcelona has emerged as one of Europe's most popular tourist destinations, and it's not hard to see why. With a stunning diversity of architecture, from the medieval of the Barrio Gótico to the Modernism of Antonio Gaudí, works from artists such as Roy Lichtenstein and Claes Oldenburg on street corners, world class museums and galleries, and dance and music festivals such as The Festival del Grec every June, the city has a wealth of culture. The city is divided into different barrios, which all have a very different look and feel and are perfect to explore on foot. Barcelona is enjoying a culinary renaissance, and boasts some of the most inventive cuisine in the world, as well as lively bars and more traditional tapas restaurants, which are ideal for soaking up the atmosphere of this vibrant and cosmopolitan Catalan city. Barcelona was voted best overseas city in the Readers' Travel Awards 2001.

BORN HOTEL
Calle Princesa 50 entresuelo, El Born (00 34 93 295 4652; www.chicandbasic.com). The Born Hotel is in a quiet spot between the busy El Born district and lush Parc de la Ciutadella, a 15-minute walk from the sea. This 19th-century palace is revved up with a quirky, white-on-white palette. Guests include young Europeans and plenty of Brits. There are 31 bedrooms in 'medium', 'large' and 'extra-large' sizes. It's worth paying extra for a balcony looking onto bustling calle Princesa. The hotel's White Bar annex doubles as a hip breakfast room, at night there's light Mediterranean fare in a retro-disco atmosphere. The black-and-white lounge has free Wi-fi and snacks. £

CASA CAMPER
Carrer Elisabets 11 (00 34 93 342 62 80; fax: 342 75 63; www.casacamper.com ). Located in the heart of the Raval with its trendy bars and restaurants, and minutes away from the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Centre of Contemporary Culture and the Ramblas, the hotel is a great base to explore the city. Casa Camper is owned by the Mallorcan shoe company of the same name and designed by Catalan Fernando Amat. With a private 'mini-lounge' across the corridor from each room where guests can watch TV from a hammock, blood-red walls in the bedrooms, and instructions to 'express yourself' and 'walk not run', this is a quirky and fun place to stay. Casa Camper featured in The Hot List 2005. ££

GRANADOS 83
Calle Enric Granados 83, Eixample Esquerra (00 34 93 492 9670; www.derbyhotels.com). Situated on a leafy, semi-pedestrianised street among the smart townhouses, restaurants and bars of the Eixample Esquerra, Granados 83 is loft-like, with exposed wood, steel and brick, plus antique Buddhist and Hindu art. There are 73 luxurious bedrooms, all with high-speed Internet, leather furniture and wooden floors. There is also a plush terrace for breakfast; a deli-food service by the rooftop plunge pool, a classy vodka bar and 'Klub' lounge. Duplex-suite guests share use of the hotel's Mercedes Smart Car. Standard double rooms are small, and rates based on occupancy means the price can vary no matter the season.

GRAN HOTEL CENTRAL
Via Layetana, 30 (00 34 93 295 7900; fax: 268 1215; www. grandhotelcentral.com; email: info@grandhotel.com). In a prime location, with the fashionable Born district, the Cathedral and the Barrio Gótico on its doorstep, this elegant 1926 building has been sleekly renovated to provide spacious rooms in muted tones, with generous sized bathrooms complete with Molton Brown toiletries. The rooftop infinity pool offers spectacular views of the city. Chef Ramon Freixa presides over the Actual restaurant, serving innovative Mediterranean cuisine. ££

GRAN HOTEL HAVANA
Gran Vía de Les Corts Catalanes 647 (00 34 93 412 1115; fax: 412 2611; www.granhotelhavana.com; email: hotelhavana@hoteles-silken.com). A slightly cheaper alternative to the Claris, which is located in the same district. The old façade is still in place, whereas tradition has been dispensed with inside, with sleek modern rooms. The hotel offers 145 rooms and suites, and has a good restaurant, as well as a rooftop pool. ££

GRAN HOTEL LA FLORIDA
Carretera Vallvidrera al Tibidabo 83-89 (00 34 93 259 3000; fax: 259 3001; www.hotellaflorida.com). This 74-room hotel sits regally atop Mount Tibidabo, 500 metres above Barcelona, and it attracts those who prefer to be removed from the city's frenetic bustle while still keeping it in their sights. The panorama of the city and the Mediterranean beyond is jaw-dropping, especially from the marble showers in the Sky Terrace suites. The hotel also has a L-shaped, stainless steel pool that spills out to the outdoor terraces. La Florida opened in 1925 and achieved iconic status with regulars such as Ernest Hemingway and James Stewart. Despite three new underground floors and an added wing, the white and boxy exterior has changed very little during the years. Interior designer Dale Keller has decorated the rooms with muted colours and wood floors. The hotel offers a spa, restaurant and bar. The Gran Hotel La Florida featured in The Hot List 2004. £££

HOSTAL D'UXELLES
Gran Via 688 (00 34 93 265 2560; fax: 232 8567; www.hotelduxelles.com). Barcelona fairly heaves with cheap lodgings but few have anything like the charm of the Uxelles. The hostal is on the principal (the Barcelona term for the piano nobile) floor of an Eixample apartment block on a busy corner of the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes and calle Girona. The décor is best described as 'budget Louis XV' with stuccoed ceilings, gold-framed mirrors and fancy furniture, while, in the bedrooms, swags of fabric hang over iron bedsteads and white walls are painted with fripperies. Most of the rooms have balconies, and seven have pretty terrazas for sitting out of an evening. The small bathrooms, lined with Spanish tiles, owe more to Seville than Barcelona. Two possible drawbacks of the Uxelles might be the lack of air conditioning (rooms have ceiling fans) and the traffic noise from the four-lane Gran Via. Otherwise, this is an eminently good-value place to stay. £

HOSTAL GIRONA
Calle Girona 24, 1r 1a (00 34 93 265 0259; fax: 265 8532; www.hostalgirona.com). The 19th-century Eixample was Barcelona's answer to Hausmann's project for Paris, designed on the grid plan with wide streets running north and south. The Hostal Girona is a historic pension occupying three floors of an Eixample apartment building, run for the past 20 years by the López Berlanga family. The Hostal is architecturally fascinating: the central staircase is a piece of gloomy modernismo, looking like something out of Fritz Lang's Metropolis, and the marble fireplaces, decorated ceilings and coloured floor tiles are all original. All 20 bedrooms have air conditioning but a few only have a shower. The Hostal's public places are full of antiques and paintings. The whole place is immaculately maintained. Service, courtesy of Senor Lopez's widow and three of their children, is friendly and efficient. For an extra 10 euros a night, its worth asking for an external room: they have balconies onto the street. In any case you'll need to book at least two months in advance. £

HOTEL 1898
La Rambla 109 (00 34 93 552 9552; fax: 552 9550; www.nnhotels.es; email: 1898@nnhotels.es). Housed in the empty shell of the Filipinas Tobacco company building, Hotel 1898 was opened in October 2005. 1898 has two libraries, a gym, out- and indoor pools, and a spa. Its 169 rooms are stylishly decorated in white, red and black and are all soundproof. Located in the Raval, at the heart of Barcelona, the hotel has close access to a great number of Barcelona's must-see sights. ££

HOTEL ABBA RAMBLA
Rambla del Raval 4 (00 34 93 505 5400; fax: 505 5401; www.abbahoteles.com). This excellent three-star is the first hotel to be built on the new Rambla del Raval, an avenue created by blitzing 10 blocks of the scruffy Raval neighbourhood. There are still elements of inner-city roughness in the area (watch your bag), but these will surely diminish as gentrification continues. In the meantime, for those who enjoy the unique buzz of an urban barrio that has so far made few concessions to tourism, the Abba is a clever and reasonably priced hotel option. At this price, the hotel can't be described as luxurious, but the streamlined décor and up-to-date facilities are more than agreeable. Of the 49 rooms, 41 overlook the palm-tree lined Rambla. All have parquet floors, air-conditioning and plasma screen TVs. One ground floor room is specially designed for the disabled. The hotel also has wireless Internet access and a garage: a real bonus given the Raval's chaotic parking situation. Another major plus is the number of restaurants to be found close by: the Colibri in calle Riera Alta (see Where to Eat), for example, is a pioneer of Modern Catalan cooking in the neighbourhood. £

HOTEL ARTS
Carrer de la Marina 19-21 (00 34 93 221 1000; fax: 221 1070; www.ritzcarlton.com/hotels/barcelona). Located in one of the twin towers of 1992's Vila Olímpica, Hotel Arts is worth considering for its magnificent views. From its windows you can see the low-rise city stretch back to Mount Tibidabo, the beaches and the Mediterranean. This champagne-coloured skyscraper has elegant interiors with an abundance of flowers. The rooms are light-filled and spacious and combine unobtrusive, sleek furniture with arresting views. Two Michelin-starred chef Sergi Arola's new-wave tapas restaurant has an exclusive chef's table; the terrace is a hot spot for cocktails. The fantastic Six Senses spa on the 43rd floor has stupendous views and there are hammocks in the garden. Hotel Arts featured in The Gold List 2007. ££££

HOTEL AVENIDA PALACE
Gran Vía Corts Catalanes 605-607 (00 34 93 301 9600; fax: 318 1234; www.avenidapalace.com). Just off the Passeig de Gracia, the principal avenue of the Eixample, this is where the Beatles stayed when they came to Barcelona in 1967. Recently refurbished, the hotel offers 151 rooms. The interior of the hotel, converted from a tearoom and concert hall in 1952, is accentuated by a fine gilded stairway and pleasantly dated period features. £

HOTEL BANYS ORIENTAL
Carrer Argenteria 37 (00 34 93 268 8460; fax: 268 8461; www.hotelbanysorientals.com; email: reserves@hotelbanysorientals.com). Set in the trendy Born area, the low-key entrance in this hotel's 18th-century exterior leads to a beautiful modern and monochrome interior. The 43 rooms showcase Philippe Starck's Perspex Kartell chairs, Iroko four-poster beds and black-tiled showers. The best - and noisiest - rooms are the ones at the front with a view, but the hotel also offers suites in the adjacent building. There is no restaurant or room service in the hotel, but breakfast is served, and the excellent Parellada restaurant shares the hotel's front door. Hotel Banys Oriental featured in The Hot List 2003. £

HOTEL CLARIS BARCELONA
Pau Claris 150 (00 34 93 487 6262; fax: 215 7970; www.derbyhotels.es). Hotel Claris has a lovingly designed interior that includes owner Jordi Clos' Egyptian and Roman art collection. With a health club and pool on the roof, Clos has shown a typically Barcelonan flair for mixing the very old with the very new. The hotel is located in a discreet 19th-century palace in smart, leafy and rationalist Eixample, and boasts three different restaurants. ££

HOTEL ESPANA
Calle Sant Pau 9-11 (00 34 93 318 1758; fax: 317 1134; www.hotelespanya.com; email: hotelespanya@hotelespanya.com). Hotel España, located in the heart of the once infamous Raval (formerly known as Barrio Chino) just behind the Liceu opera house, has been modernised in a fairly unsophisticated fashion. However, it is deservedly famous for the stunning Modernist decor of the ground floor salones, designed by Gaudí's contemporary Domènech i Montaner, one of the period's three great architectural figures. £

HOTEL GRAND MARINA
Moll de Barcelona (00 34 93 603 9000; fax: 603 9090; www.grandmarinahotel.com; email: reserves@grandmarinahotel.com). A luxurious contemporary interior housed in the imposing Lego-like and curved World Trade Centre in Port Vell. The Hotel Grand Marina has 196 double rooms, 38 suites and one Presidential Suite. Even the entry-level rooms are big by Barcelona's standards, and every room has a water-massage bath, which is sheer heaven. The top-floor Presidential Suite, used by Julio Iglesias when he is in town, is the last word in sybaritic luxury. ££

HOTEL INGLES
Carrer Boqueria 17 (00 34 93 317 3770; fax: 302 3338). Rather than revamp itself entirely, the one-star Hotel Inglés, right in the middle of Ciutat Vella, has modernised slowly without losing its local charm. Some rooms look onto the Plaça del Pi, the square in which one of the city's smaller cathedrals is located, and the hotel is within easy walking distance of the Ramblas, Plaça Catalunya and the Mercado de la Boqueria. £

HOTEL JARDI
Plaça Sant Josep Oriol 1, Plaça del Pí (00 34 93 301 5900/58; fax: 342 5733; www.hoteljardi-barcelona.com; email: reservations@hoteljardi-barcelona.com). Hotel Jardí is basic but spotlessly clean. This is a very popular choice given its excellent position overlooking a picturesque square in Barrio Gótico and the competent service. £

HOTEL NOUVEL
Santa Ana 18-20 (00 34 93 301 8274; fax: 301 8370;www.hotelnouvel.com; email: info@hotelnouvel.com). Located on a pedestrian street in the shopping zone of Barrio Gótico, the Nouvel is an excellent spot from which to explore the Old City on foot. Recently restored, the elegant 1917 building has retained its original characteristic tiled floors. The hotel has 54 rooms and a restaurant serving international fare. £

HOTEL OMM
Rosselló 265 (00 34 93 445 4000; fax: 445 4004; www.hotelomm.es; email: reservas@hotelomm.es). Architect Juli Capella's desire to let light in without compromising the guests' privacy resulted in a vast and open ground floor, accommodating a lounge, cocktail bar, tasting tables and a restaurant. The floor overlooks a glass-fronted courtyard with giant bamboo and stainless steel plant sculptures that reflect the light. The Matrix-like corridors upstairs are lined with black rubber and lit by fibre optic strips. The rooms are functional and a 'floating' white-lacquered aluminium unit separates the bedrooms and bathrooms. Hotel Omm has also created a buzz around its restaurant, Moo (see Where to Eat), run by the Roca brothers from Celler de Can Roca. The menu offers 'half' portions to encourage experimentation, and the desserts are inspired by perfumes. The hotel has a pool and Wellness Centre, with massage and water treatments. Hotel Omm was featured in The Hot List 2004. ££

HOTEL PRESTIGE PASEO DE GRACIA
Paseo de Gracia 62 (00 34 93 272 4180; fax: 272 4181; www.prestigepaseodegracia.com; email: paseodegracia@prestigehotels.com). An unmarked silver door leads to the quirky, Zen-influenced interior of the Paseo de Gracia. Situated on the street with the same name, Barcelona's smartest shopping boulevard, the hotel is close to Gaudí's showcase Casa Batlló. By far the best thing about the hotel is the designer details: the intelligent lighting systems and TVs by Bang & Olufsen in all rooms. Ask Me, the hotel's computerised concierge service, can do anything. ££

HOTEL REY JUAN CARLOS I
Avenida Diagonal 661-671 (00 34 93 364 4040; fax: 364 4264; www.hrjuancarlos.com; email: hotel@hrjuancarlos.com). Opened just in time for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Hotel Rey Juan Carlos I comes with landscaped gardens and a 15-storey glass and metal atrium. The hotel has both a restaurant and award winning spa. Located somewhat out of town, but handy for travellers interested in the business district. ££

HOTEL SANT AGUSTI
Plaça de San Agustí 3 (00 34 93 318 1658; fax: 317 2928; www.hotelsa.com; email: hotelsa@hotelsa.com). Housed in the 18th-century Convent of Saint Augustine, Hotel San Agustí has been in business since 1840, the days of Queen Isabela II. The hotel has 75 sparsely decorated rooms, a restaurant for dinner only, and a perfect location next to the Liceu Opera House. £

PARK HOTEL
Avenida Marques de L'Argentera 11 (00 34 93 319 6000; fax: 319 4519; www.parkhotelbarcelona.com). Long-time fans of the Park are used to playing this card close to their chest. One can understand their jealousy: few Barcelona hotels offer this combination of comfort, architectural interest and value for money. The Park stands opposite the old Estacio de Franca railway, at the southern end of the Born district, minutes from the Ciutadella park and Barceloneta beach. The slender, seven-storey building is a genuine 1950s gem and a popular backdrop for fashion shoots. The hotel has been lovingly restored, with details such as mosaic-tiled columns, glass brick walls and gently curving wooden handrails left intact. The sound-proofed and air-conditioned rooms are decorated in a soothing shade of café latte, with leather chairs and huge plasma-screen TVs. The Park has the advantage of having one of Barcelona's finest restaurants, Abac (see Where to Eat), on its ground floor, and guests breakfast in its chic dining room. At other times the lobby bar is a great place to hang-out: half close your eyes and you could be an extra in an Elvis Presley movie. ££

THE B HOTEL
Gran Via 389-391, plaça de Espanya (00 34 93 552 9500; www.nnhotels.es). The B Hotel is in front of plaça de Espanya's Palau de Congressos, home to some of Europe's most important expos. There is a cool, industrial interior with designer touches from Catalan architect Alfredo Arribas. The hotel has many European business travellers and a smattering of Americans. The décor is light and airy with wood-and-slate floors. Coloured-glass cube bathrooms add a contemporary edge. B-Bar's top-flight range of tapas is matched by Spanish wines. There are views of the plaça de Espanya and Las Arenas from the half-moon-shaped roof terrace. £

CAFES
Coffee in Barcelona comes in two languages and three broad categories with minor variations. With a light breakfast, a croissant for example, you drink café con leche (or café amb llet in Catalan). At other times and after meals, you drink café solo (simply un café in Catalan), which is an espresso, or un cortado (un tallat), an espresso 'cut' with a dash of milk. Café doble, a double shot of café solo, is a fearsome caffeine hit, but be careful when you order it - if the waiter sees that you are foreign they might bring you a café Americano, a solo with water. Ask for a café solo corto or muy corto - a solo with less water - if you want to take caffeine to extremes. The muy corto is just one small gulp of coffee at the bottom of a cup. Also try the carajillo, a café solo with brandy. If you don't mind being difficult, ask for a carajillo quemado - a burnt carajillo with a smoother brandy flavour. A good restaurant should do this for you, but a normal bar probably won't.

BAR KASPARO
Plaça de Vicenç Martorell 4 (00 34 93 302 2072). Bar Kasparo, run by Catalanised Australians near Plaça de Catalunya, has colonised the corner of a quiet square just off the main thoroughfares and set out its tables under the arches. Serving light lunches as well as coffees and drinks, it is one of the few quiet places in the city centre in which to sit out and plan your next move.

BRACAFE
Casp 2 (00 34 93 325 5640; www.bracafe.com). Bracafé has a conservatory-styled front that invades the pavement and provides a perfect observation post for the mid-town, mid-morning bustle in the winter. In the summer, the tables are set up under an awning and the waiters expertly dodge passers-by to bring you your coffee. Bracafé has served coffee since 1929 and is still as popular as ever.

CAFE DE LES DELICIES
Rambla del Raval 47 (00 34 93 441 5714). Bohemian café with multifarious furniture, original tiled floors and a 'secret' room upstairs. Open from 6pm.

CAFE DE L'OPERA
La Rambla 74 (00 34 93 317 7585). After Café Zurich the next best place for people watching. Recline around the wooden tables in the gilded interior and try to guess the nationalities of the clients.

CAFES EL MAGNIFICO
Carrer Argenteria 64 (00 34 93 319 6081; www.cafeselmagnifico.com; email: elmagnifico@cafeselmagnifico.com). Home-blended and roasted coffee has been served at this address since 1919. The café has a great tea range for non-coffee drinkers, including a category temptingly called 'Fantasias'. The coffee comes from around the world, and includes an Australian-grown variety.

CAFE ZURICH
Plaça Catalunya 1 (00 34 93 317 9153). The old Zurich was knocked down with the rest of the block a few years ago, but the new one has replicated its proportions in an updated style. The only café with a terrace in the city's most frequented central square, Zurich faces down La Rambla directly beside the metro and suburban train exits. Millions of people must have arranged to meet here over the years - the traffic of people, past and through the café, is constant - making it the best place for people watching in Barcelona. The bright metal tables at the front are the essential element. It is best to pay the waiter when you are served, unlike in other cafés, so you can leave without bothering him again.

FIDEL
Ferlandina 24 (00 34 93 317 7104). A life-saving bar for hungry clubbers in the Raval, just a short walk from the Museum of Contemporary Art. Officially open till 1.30am, Fidel often stays open another hour or so after that. It offers 500 sandwiches, the best featuring melted Camembert and asparagus.

LAIE LIBRERIA CAFE
Pau Claris 85 (00 34 93 318 1739; fax: 412 0250; www.laie.es; email: info@laie.es). Laie Libreria Café is a café and restaurant above an excellent bookshop, with a glass-fronted gallery set back from the street on the first floor and a small garden at the back. The bookshop includes a small but sophisticated English selection, the café has newspapers and magazines for its clients, and the restaurant at the back serves an excellent, moderately priced set lunch on clean white tablecloths.

RESTAURANTS

ABAC
Carrer Rec 79-89 (00 34 93 319 6600; www.restaurantabac.com; email: abac@telefonica.net). Abac is a young, happening restaurant that has been functioning for long enough at the summit of fashion for it to take on the aura of a classic and chef Xavier Pellicer is certainly one of Spanish food's greatest creative talents. His tarte tatin of eels with apple and foie gras or roast baby goat with Kalamata olives are dishes that, once tasted, are not easily forgotten. As with the food, so with the service, the interior design, and the rest of the mise en scène. This is a supremely pleasurable dining experience. Open Tues-Sat.

ALBA GRANADOS
Carrer Enric Granados 34 (00 34 93 454 6116; www.albagranados.com). The lack of female chefs in the upper echelons of the Barcelona restaurant scene has not stopped Carlota Claver from opening her own restaurant. Claver's slightness of stature belies her force of personality. Diners at Alba Granados are used to the sight of her marshalling her staff, visible through giant windows at the back of the dining room. The place has made a name for itself as one of the city's best, as Claver places the emphasis on ingredients rather than technique. Red meats are a speciality, including a superb chuletón de buey (T-bone ox steak), as are eggs - the huevos estrellados are a favourite first course. Alba Granado has some 150 different wines from major Spanish D.O.s.

ALKIMIA
Carrer Indústria 79 (00 34 93 207 6115). The Michelin-starred Alkimia is led by Jordi Vila, a supremely gifted young cook, and his business partner Sonia Profitós. Opened after their cult venture Abrevadero closed, Alkimia offers food with a modern touch that is neither strident nor forced. Vila's rice with ñora peppers and salt cod is a signature dish, as is the sautéed banana with ice cream of yoghurt, cinnamon and lime. The haute-industrial design of the restaurant works like a dream, but the price to pay for being touched by fashion's magic want is that the place is booked solid for weeks in advance. Try to get a table for lunch on Monday or Tuesday and you may have a chance.

AROLA
Carrer de la Marina 19-21 (00 34 93 221 1000; fax: 221 1070; www.ritzcarlton.com/hotels/barcelona). Sergi Arola's two-Michelin-starred restaurant, La Broche, transformed the gastronomic life of Madrid and this is his Barcelona venture. Housed in the same building as Hotel Arts Barcelona (see Where to Stay), Arola is a much more relaxed affair than La Broche. Fashion victims salivate over the setting while their gastronomic friends admire the extraordinary menu with its thoroughly modern tapas-like dishes for grazing. Designer snacks are the order of the day - mix and match at will - but don't overlook the more substantial offerings such as arroz guisado con pichón (rice with pigeon) and salt cod confit with pil-pil of peas. DJ nights complete the picture of this immaculately stylish contemporary eating-place.

BARCELONETA
L'Escar 22 (00 34 93 221 2111; www.rte-barceloneta.com). There are plenty of restaurants offering cocina marinera (seafood cooking) in Barcelona, but few places work as brilliantly as Barceloneta. A busy seaside joint on the upper floor of a modern dockside building in Port Vell, the restaurant is packed with families enjoying a long lunch on weekends. The menu provides something for everyone, from tapas and raciones, fish, salads and classic Catalan rice dishes, to the freshest possible shellfish. Daily specials chalked up on a board offer edited highlights of Mercado Boqueria's glorious fish section.

BAR SALVADOR
Canvis Nous 8 (00 34 93 310 1041). A narrow, authentic, family-run restaurant, Bar Salvador opens at 9am and only serves breakfast and lunch. A true Catalan breakfast consists of bread smeared with tomato, sprinkled with salt and spattered with olive oil as a base, and then cheese, anchovies, cured ham, llonganisseta and fuet (like salami) or other types of cold meat or fish on top. Bacon, eggs and omelettes are on order, and if you want to adopt a new-fangled French custom they will even provide you with a croissant. Open Mon-Fri.

BIBLIOTECA
Carrer Junta de Comerç 28 (00 34 93 412 6221). This restaurant is much admired for its interior, its bookshelves of cutting-edge cookbooks and the intelligent cooking of Iñaki López. Open Tue-Sat.

CA L'ISIDRE
Carrer Les Flors 12, (00 34 93 441 1139; www.calisidre.com). The nondescript Carrer Les Flors seems an odd location for a restaurant that is routinely spoken of as a reference point in Barcelona. Isidre Gironés and his wife Montse have had their place on the edge of the Raval since 1970. The dining room is posh but comforting, and so is the menu. Market cooking at its very best, the food reflects the changing seasons as well as the grand tradition of rural Catalan cuisine. Hardcore classics such as bacallà a la llauna or callos con garbanzos (tripe with chickpeas) alternate with refined and cosmopolitan dishes such as black-truffle risotto and tuna sirloin with sea salt and tomato coulis. The modern sensibility is partly down to the Gironés' daughter Nuria, who now runs the kitchen. In early spring, don't miss the favetes - tiny baby broad beans served with sautéed baby squid, fresh garlic and mint: sublime.

CAL PEP
Plaça de les Olles 8 (00 34 93 310 7961; www.calpep.com). What started out as little more than a Frankfurt (the local word for sausage stall) has metamorphosed into one of the city's most scintillating restaurants. 'Pep's Place' never fails to please, with top-notch raw materials simply prepared behind the bar in a frenzy of sizzling and scorching. Seafood is a strong point, notably the baby octopus and cuttlefish deep-fried Andalucian style. Pull up a stool and watch the spectacle unfold; or, for a more leisurely atmosphere, try for one of the tables in the dining room at the back. If you're not outside when Pep rolls up the shutters at 1.30pm, you'll have to queue.

CAN MAJO
Almirall Aixada 23 (00 34 93 221 5455). This restaurant is the most established seafood venue located in Barceloneta, the Ciutat Vella barrio known for its fish restaurants. Can Majó manages to combine the workmanlike, no-frills tradition of Barceloneta cuisine with faultless execution. Urban renovation has cleaned up the seafront and knocked down crumbling blocks and has given Can Majó the sea view terrace it has always lacked. Arròs negre (rice blackened with squid ink), fideus amb marisc (thin pasta straws with seafood) or arròs amb llamantol (rice with lobster) are local specialities on a par with the better-known paella.

CARMELITAS
Carrer Doctor Dou 1 (00 34 93 412 4684; www.carmelitas.biz). Buzzing new modernist canteen serving Catalan food until late in the evening. Open Mon-Sat.

CASA LEOPOLDO
Carrer Sant Rafael 24 (00 34 93 441 3014; www.casaleopoldo.com ). Famous for its seafood, this Raval institution was saved by a whisker from the demolition ball. Open Tue-Sun lunch.

CIUDAD CONDAL
Rambla de Catalunya 18 (00 34 93 318 1997). Ciudad Condal opened in 1997 and is known for its extensive choice of beer and tapas. It is almost always full and very lively, and there is an outside terrace on Rambla Catalunya for summer dining.

COLIBRI
Casanova 212 (00 34 93 443 2306; www.restaurantcolibri.com). Chef César Pastor worked at Ca L'Isidre for years and the culinary personality of that great institution is reflected in his own cooking, which makes respectful use of the finest available ingredients. A poached egg is accompanied by potato purée intensely flavoured with white truffle and the succulent baby goat is oven-roasted with green onions. The locally caught gambes (prawns), done a la plancha with a little sea salt, are delicious, but expensive.

COMERC 24
Carrer del Comerç 24 (00 34 93 319 2102; fax: 319 1074 ; www.comerc24.com).Chef Carles Abellan, a disciple of El Bulli's Ferran Adrià, is another proponent of the new wave of Catalan cuisine. The restaurant offers taster menus with tapas-sized portions, although the menu changes constantly, dishes include his famous 'Kinder Egg', an eggshell filled with truffles, potatoes and a three-minute egg, or curry-scented banana soup. The restaurant is set in the trendy Born district and is a study in industrial chic.

GARGANTUA I PANTEGRUEL
Carrer Còrsega 200 (00 34 93 453 2020; www.gargantuaipantagruel.com). The González family hails from Lleida, the Catalan city furthest from the sea, and this long-running restaurant celebrates its earthily authentic cuisine. The great lleidatà specialities are all present and correct, from snails a la llauna and a la gormanda (with ham and breadcrumbs) to coca de recapte (roast-vegetable tart), and bacallà amb mel (salt cod with honey). The chargrilled meats are superb: few restaurants in Barcelona at this level would dare to serve such a simple, but good, chicken a la brasa. If all this rusticity leads you to expect surroundings to match, think again. The spacious dining room is slickly and expensively designed. It may sound unlikely, but it works.

HOFMANN
Argenteria 74-78 (00 34 93 319 5889; 319 5882; www.hofmann-bcn.com; email: informacion@hofmann-bnc.com). Hofmann was opened by Mey Hofmann, of German and Catalan parents, after she founded the Arnadi School of Catering in the same building in 1983. Hoffmann offers a variety of small dining rooms and one comfortable salon with slightly twee floral-cushioned benches, but the cooking is serious. Open Mon-Fri.

MOO
Rosselló 265 (00 34 93 445 4000; fax: 445 4004; www.hotelomm.es; email: reservas@hotelomm.es). This stylish hotel (see Where to Stay) has an equally stylish restaurant, Moo. Led by the Roca brothers from Celler de Can Roca in Girona, dishes at Moo include suckling pig confit, timbale of apple and foie gras with vanilla oil and lamb cooked with liquorice. Don't miss the brothers' famous culinary recreation of perfumes, such as Calvin Klein's Eternity and Thierry Mugler's Angel, for your pudding. A special menu matches half-portion-sized dishes with wines recommended by the Rocas. Those who want to try the new-wave Catalan wines of Emporda-Costa Brava, Montsant and Penedès should book a table here.

EL NOTI
Roger de Llúria 35-37 (00 34 93 342 6673; www.noti-universal.com; email: noti@noti-universal.com). El Noti, a cool restaurant-bar in the former offices of El Noticiero newspaper, is popular with media types. The food is Catalan, but with an international twist, and the interior design details include red velvet sofas, linoleum, black glass, Japanese silk wallpaper, pink Formica and brass.

OVEN
Carrer Ramon Turró 126 (00 34 93 221 0602). This former garage is now a space in which a number of bohemian activities have their place - it is a gallery, a garden, a cinema, a cocktail bar, and a notably good restaurant. Chef Angel Muntaner dishes up ambitious fusion-influenced dishes such as mint and langoustine risotto, salad of coquilles Saint-Jacques and cuttlefish with sea-urchin vinaigrette, and lamb entrecôte in a marjoram crust with peach polenta. Food and music jostle for attention in this groovy place, situated in the Poblenou district currently chasing Raval for the title of Barcelona's coolest barrio. On the whole, the disparate elements of loft-like architecture, nightclubby ambiance, chic design and fine dining fit together surprisingly seamlessly.

ELS PESCADORS
Plaça Prim 1 (00 34 93 225 2018; fax: 224 0004; www.elspescadors.com; email: contact@elspescadors.com). This enchanting little restaurant in the Poblenou district dates back to the medieval era when it functioned as a fishermen's tavern. Despite an ill-advised refit in 1990, the place still has a great deal of charm. Fish is, naturally enough, the cornerstone of the menu and contacts with local fishermen ensure that quality and freshness are second to none. Go with the catch of the day, or try one of the menu's 10 different rice dishes, such as an arroz cremoso of prawns and goat's cheese. Desserts, which include homemade sorbets and ice creams made from local products (turrón, mandarines, and Maresme strawberries), are worth saving space for. There is also a children's menu and a small library of books to keep younger patrons occupied.

PINOTXO
Mercat de la Boqueria, puesto 66-67 (00 34 93 317 1731). Hardly a restaurant by any conventional definition of the term, this market bar with just 15 stools is a major meeting point for gastronomes in the know. Your hosts are the Bayen family, of whom Juanito is the public face and one of the Boqueria's great characters. Pinotxo is all things to all people, from market workers building up their strength on its hearty breakfasts, to the shoppers and tourists who flock here for delicious pa amb tomàquet and classic Catalan lunch. There is no menu, and ordering can be fairly chaotic. Choose your food from the ingredients displayed on the counter - which are usually done a la plancha or fried - or try one of the steaming casseroles emerging from the tiny kitchen.

EL RACO D'EN FREIXA
Carrer Sant Elíes 22 (00 34 93 209 7559; fax: 209 7918). For years, the Freixa family has run a modest eating-house in the blue-collar neighbourhood of Sant Gervasi. 'Mr Freixa's corner' has become a place of pilgrimage for lovers of avant-garde cuisine. His cooking is state-of-the-art, the flavours and textures are daringly combined, such as in a menestra of three types of rice, raw octopus and fresh almonds, or a tartare of langoustine tails, basil biscuit, cauliflower paste and fried lotus root. For those who feel this is all too much of an adventure, Freixa's selection of traditional Catalan dishes provides a comforting alternative.

REIAL CLUB MARITIM DE BARCELONA
Moll d'España (00 34 93 221 7394; fax: 221 5566; www.maritimbarcelona.org; email: club@maritimbarcelona.org). The Barcelona Royal Maritime Club is another place with a supreme view, and you don't need a membership to frequent it. Located opposite the huge Maremagnum entertainment complex in the middle of the port, the restaurant specialises in seafood, paellas of all types and reliable Catalan-style fish dishes. The dining room has large windows and an adjoining balcony from which you have a panoramic view on the city's seafront. Enter up the steps under the small awning on the side of the building to reach the restaurant instead of going through the main doors to the club itself.

ROIG ROBI
Carrer Sèneca 20 (00 34 93 218 9222; fax: 415 7842; www.roigrobi.com; email: roigrobi@inicia.es). Roig Robí serves relaxed unpretentious food that suits the rhythm of place. Merce Navarro's rice dishes, made with special Bomba rice from the Ebro delta, are famous in the city, and her spinach and pine nut coca with foie gras is superb. The setting of the restaurant is also excellent - it is one of the few of Barcelona's restaurants that have tables in the open air. The walled garden is leafy and shaded at midday, and a trickling fountain provides a soothing backdrop.

TORRE D'ALTA MAR
Passeig Joan de Borbó 88 (00 34 93 221 0007; fax: 221 0090; www.torredealtamar.com). Entrepreneur Oscar Manresa caused a sensation when he opened a restaurant in this cable-car tower beside the old port in 2002. The dining room appears to be hovering in mid-air with 75 metres to the ground - and it indeed seems to sway on a windy day. The view from here is the best in Barcelona: on one side you have a wide expanse of ocean, on the other the entire city laid out with a backdrop of mountains. Perhaps conscious that the sight was always going to be the main attraction, the kitchen keeps the food simple by focusing on top-quality seafood and luxurious fish dishes. Try the rice with lobster, sea bass on spinach and asparagus, or suquet de peix (Catalan fish stew). An aura of glamour hangs over the whole experience, from the doorman who ushers you into the lift, to the venue itself with its white sofas and black walls.

LA VENTA
Plaça del Doctor Andreu (00 34 93 212 6455). La Venta is worth considering as much for its privileged position as its slightly conservative cuisine. The restaurant, with a Moorish interior and covered patio, can be reached via the Tranvia Blau, the tram that takes you up the hill of Tibidabo from the Plaça de la Bonanova. The spectacular view of the city is best from the cocktail bars opposite the restaurant.

OUTSIDE THE CITY

EL BULLI
Cala Monjoi, Roses, Girona (00 34 97 215 0457; fax: 215 0717; www.elbulli.com; email: bulli@elbulli.com). Every foodie has to make the pilgrimage here once in a lifetime. Regularly chosen by critics and cooks as the best restaurant in the world, the three Michelin-starred El Bulli is well worth the two hour drive from Barcelona. Do not go expecting traditional Spanish food however, chef Ferran Adrià's cuisine is experimental and cutting-edge, he has been likened to both a scientist and artist, pioneering what is known as 'molecular gastronomy', with dishes such as white asparagus with lemon marshamallows, squid pillow with coconut milk and Spanish omelette served in a Martini glass. El Bulli is open from April to October, for the rest of the year Adrià perfects and invents dishes in 'El Taller', his workshop in Barcelona. You will need to book months in advance.

BARS

BAR MARSELLA
Sant Pau 65 (00 34 93 442 7263). Once famed as the best place to drink absinthe and for its weird amateur transvestite theatre, Bar Marsella in the Raval is still popular with foreign residents, locals and curious visitors. It is deeply downmarket, and a good place to taste the bohemian Raval atmosphere.

BAR PASTIS
Carrer Santa Mònica 4 (00 34 93 318 7980). An homage to French bar culture, Bar Pastis in the Raval hosts live performances most nights.

BAR RA
Placa de la Garduña (00 34 93 301 4163). Ibiza comes to Barcelona in this funky, multicoloured bar on a sunny square behind the Boqueria market in the Raval. Open Mon-Sat.

BENIDORM
Carrer Joaquín Costa 39 (00 34 93 317 8052). A tiny and smoke-filled temple to retro style and music, Benidorm is located in a building that used to function as a brothel. Closed Mondays.

BOADAS COCKTAIL BAR
Carrer Tallers 1 (00 34 93 318 9592). One of Europe's finest cocktail bars, founded by a Cuban émigré in the 1940s. Boadas is a favourite of Raval locals, and few tourists find their way here. Open Mon to Sat.

EL XAMPANYET
Montcada 22 (00 34 93 319 7003). Paradoxically, you are best off going to a bar named after its sparkling wine to get a good caña, or draught beer. The draught beer is always slightly lighter and creamier than the bottled Estrella, Voll-Damm and San Miguel usually on offer. At El Xampanyet, you can also switch to fine wine, or the locally bottled xampanyet, a poor man's Champagne (not to be confused with the superior cava) if you so prefer.

GILMET
Rec 24 (00 34 93 310 1027). Cool in the mid-1970s, Gilmet has amazingly never lost its cachet thanks to its simple, elegant design and highly professional barmen. A perfect venue for the late-night penultimo, the second-to-last drink.

KENTUCKY
Carrer Arc del Teatre 11 (00 34 93 318 2878). Once popular with sailors, truckers and junkies, Kentucky is now everyone's final port of call on a late night in the Raval. Open Mon to Sat.

LA CONCHA
Carrer Guàrdia 14 (00 34 93 302 4118). Moroccan-run music bar plastered with pictures of kitsch Spanish chanteuse Sara Montiel.

LA CONFITERIA
Carrer Sant Pau 128 (00 34 93 443 0458). A converted sweet shop in the Raval that has kept its original enamelled glass panels of cherubs bearing trays of sweetmeats. Open from 7pm.

LA VINYA DEL SENYOR
Plaça Santa Maria 5 (00 34 93 310 3379). La Vinya del Senyor is a temple to Spanish wine and cava, the local version of Champagne. Only two or three out of hundreds of cava brands have made it abroad, which makes La Vinya the perfect place to discover its qualities. The wine list is varied and constantly updated, accompanied by cheeses and slices of coca (similar to pizza) and bread with rock salt and olive oil. Apart from Penedès and Rioja, the bar also stocks examples of newly fashionable Priorat, Ribera del Duero and Cigales. Look out for the Luis de Vernier reserve and strange-bottled Xrypta among the cavas, and contemplate the ancient façade of the Gothic Santa Maria del Mar opposite from the bar's stools and chairs.

MENDIZABAL
Carrer Junta de Comerç 2. Primary-coloured retro bar serving directly onto the street. Medizábal also serves soup on tables in the small square opposite the bar during the winter.

PAS DEL BORN
Calders 8 (00 34 93 319 5073). Pas del Born is a curiosity, a tiny basic bar with trapeze artists performing two Saturdays a month to a packed audience. The bar also has a number of jazz concerts every month.

SALERO
Rec 60 (00 34 93 319 8022). Stylishly informal with a cool warehouse aesthetic and an arty crowd, Salero is one of the Born's most fashionable locales. Created by photographer Elena de la Madrid and her partners, the bar also has a limited choice of carefully prepared and imaginative food.

SCHILLING
Ferran 23 (00 34 93 317 6787; fax: 317 4820). Housed in a former gunsmith's of the same name, Shilling has quickly become a stylish and spacious early-evening meeting spot.

CLUBS

DANZATORIA
Avda del Tibidabo 61 (00 34 93 211 6261; www.danzatoria-barcelona.com). Set high on a hill in a restored manor house, this is where the beautiful people come to party. With lush gardens and sumptuously decorated rooms, it plays mainly house and R&B.

LA PALOMA
Calle Tigre 27 (00 34 93 3016 897; www.lapaloma-bcn.com; email: lapaloma@lapaloma-bcn.com). Located just inside the Raval off Ronda de San Antoni, La Paloma is the last survivor of the dancehalls for which the Barrio Chino was once famous. Complete with red velvet benches, gilded galleries and baroque painted ceilings over a generous dance floor, it's frequented by all age groups and types who dance paso doble and cha-cha to the brass orchestra. Open Thu-Sun.

LUZ DE GAS
Muntaner 246 (00 34 93 209 7711; fax: 414 1759; www.luzdegas.com). Luz de Gas is a converted dancehall, with live music most nights, including jazz, soul and rock.

MIRABLAU
Manuel Arnus 2 (00 34 93 418 5879). The Mirablau tapas and cocktail bar and nightclub all command a panorama of the city - perched on top of the Tibidabo hill as it is. There are better clubs than this in Barcelona, but few can offer the equivalent of the Mirablau's views.

MOOG
Carrer Arc del Teatre 3 (00 34 93 301 7282; email: moog@masimas.com). A house and techno laboratory, Moog is a small club that has played host to some of the best-known techno and house DJs in the world.

OTTO ZUTZ
Lincoln 15 (00 34 93 238 0722; fax: 238 0677; www.ottozutz.com; email: otto@tresnet.com). A New York-style club on three floors with eight bars and a VIP area, Otto Zutz is a long established survivor of Barcelona's dance scene. It still attracts clubbers from all over the city to village-like Barrio Gràcia. The club gets going after midnight and winds down from 5am. Open Tue-Sat.

BUILDINGS AND MONUMENTS

CASA MILA
Provença 261-265 (00 34 93 484 5900). The distinct style of Barcelona and its master architect Antoni Gaudí are difficult to miss when walking around the city. Casa Milà, also known as La Pedrera (The Quarry) and located on the corner of Provença and Passeig de Gràcia, is an apartment block built by Gaudí in 1906. Just as bizarre - but not as gaudy - as much of his other work, this is a good introduction to critics who believe that Gaudí exemplified bad taste. The small Espai Gaudí museum is located inside the house, and has featured interesting Goya and Giacometti exhibitions in the past. There is also a superb view from the roof of the house, clad with Darth Vader-like chimneys.

PALAU GUELL
Carrer Nou de la Rambla 3-5 (00 34 93 317 3974). Antoni Gaudí's masterpiece is an urban fantasy of Gothic gloom. It is closed to visitors (as of June 2007) but can still be admired from outside.

SANTA MARIA DEL MAR
Plaça Santa Maria del Mar 1. Santa Maria del Mar is probably the finest example of Catalan Gothic architecture. Begun in 1329, it has an elegant, airy interior with slender columns. Austerely decorated, thanks in part to the burning of its baroque additions in the Civil War, Santa Maria del Mar has a reputation as a common people's cathedral, and, being close to the port, has special historical links to fishermen and sailors.

TEMPLE EXPIATORI DE LA SAGRADA FAMILIA
Mallorca 401 (00 34 93 207 3031; fax: 476 1010; www.sagradafamilia.org; email: info@sagradafamilia.org). Expected to be completed on the 100th anniversary of Gaudí's death in 2026, Barcelona's unique and enigmatic Expiatory Temple of the Sacred Family is Spain's most popular tourist attraction. Gaudí died in 1926 when he was run over by a tram - mistaken for a beggar he was left to die - and is now buried in Sagrada's crypt. All the plans for his unfinished masterpiece were lost in a fire in the Spanish Civil War, and since 1940 the work has been in the hands of architects Francesc Quintana, Puig Boada and Lluís Gari. The basilica is privately owned, and all building funds are donated by the public. The basilica's story so far of can be found in the church's museum, which helps you muse on the mysteries of the work in progress.

CITY VIEWS

Take the Furnicular from Plaça Dr Andreu up to the Tibidabo Amusement Park (00 34 93 211 7942; www.tibidabo.es) at the summit of the Tibidabo hill and enjoy the stunning views over Barcelona and the bay. There are some good cafés on the hill, and the amusement park will entertain anyone who has kept their inner child alive.

MUSEUMS

FUNDACIO ANTONI TAPIES
Aragó 255 (00 34 93 487 0315; 487 0009; www.fundaciotapies.org; email: museu@ftapies.com). The Tàpies foundation has a fine library and exhibits contemporary artists alongside a permanent selection by its founder. Open Tue-Sun.

FUNDACIO JOAN MIRO
Parc de Montjuïc (00 34 93 443 9470; fax: 329 8609; www.bcn.fjmiro.es; email: fjmiro@bnc.fjmiro.es). Joan Miró's work appears all over the city - there is a mural at the airport and a mosaic on La Rambla to mention only two - so this is probably Barcelona's most emblematic gallery. The museum expresses Catalan characteristics in design that the other excellent monothematic galleries, the Museu Picasso and the Fundació Antoni Tàpies, do in more limited ways. Don't miss van der Rohe's reconstructed Barcelona Pavilion while visiting the museum. Open Tue-Sat.

MUSEU D'ART CONTEMPORANI DE BARCELONA (MACBA)
Placa dels Angels 1 (00 34 93 412 0810; www.macba.es). Opened in 1959, MACBA has been showcasing contemporary art ever since. The collection consists of many international, Spanish and Catalan artists, and provides a good overview of the development of art from the 20th-century till today. Open Wed-Mon.

MUSEU D'HISTORIA DE LA CIUTAT
Plaça del Rei (00 34 93 256 2122; fax: 268 0454; www.museuhistoria.bcn.es; email: museuhistoria@mail.bcn.es). Tucked away in a quiet square behind the cathedral, the Museu d'Historia de la Ciutat takes you right down to the Roman foundations of the city dating from the first century BC. The exhibition route takes you to various parts of the Royal Palace, the residence of the Kings of Aragon in the Middle Ages when the Catalan-Aragonese maritime empire stretched to Sicily, past 13th-century wall paintings and a 15th-century model of the city. Open Tue-Sun.

MUSEU PICASSO
Montcada 15-23 (00 34 93 256 3000; fax: 315 0102; www.museupicasso.bcn.es; email: museupicasso@mail.bcn.es). Barcelona's Picasso Museum is especially good on the artist's early work - Picasso spent his formative teenage years in Barcelona and donated the paintings found in the museum to the city. The museum has a collection of 3,500 works in their permanent collection, but also features interesting temporary exhibitions - highlighting Picasso's genius. Open Tue-Sun.

OTHER

SARDANA
Plaça Santa Maria del Mar 1. At around 11am on Sundays, a small crowd gathers to dance the quintessentially Catalan sardana in the square in front of the cathedral. It looks like a slow and sedate warm-up for a Highland fling, the dance is a symbol of Catalan identity.

LA ROCA VILLAGE
La Roca Village, 08430 La Roca Del Vallès, Barcelona (00 34 93 842 3900; fax: 842 3059; www.larocavillage.com; email: laroca@valueretail.com). Located about 30km from Barcelona along Autopista A7, this outlet village has about 60 shops selling brands like Antonio Miró, Camper, Loewe and Versace. The discounts are up to 60 per cent, and the village has a playground to keep the kids happy. Open Mon-Sat.

SITGES
Sitges, a seaside town less than half an hour away from Barcelona with the mainline RENFE train from Sants Estació, is an ideal destination for a day trip. The seafront is divided into two beaches, of which the smaller Playa de San Sebastià is ideal for a leisurely lunch. Several restaurants serve local dishes like xató, a salted cod salad with romesco sauce, and fideu, thin strands of pasta cooked in fish stock and passed under a grill to make the strands stand up like crew-cut hair. Eaten with plenty of alioli, the fideu is an excellent local alternative to paella. After lunch and depending on the weather, you can either head for the beach or go strolling through the backstreets packed with boutiques that serve the summer dance culture. Visit www.sitgestour.com for more information.

BEAUTY

SEPHORA
Del Triangle, Calle Pelayo 13-37 (00 34 93 306 3900; fax: 306 3904; www.sephora.es). The huge 22,000sp-ft beauty haven, located in the 'Triangle' shopping block, receives an average of 24,000 visitors per day tempted by the vast range of perfumes, make-up and skincare products. Open Mon to Sat.

BOOKS

LIBRERIA LA CENTRAL
Mallorca 237 (00 34 93 487 5018; fax: 00 93 487 5021; www.lacentral.com; email: informacio@lacentral.com). La Central was founded in the belief that a bookshop proprietor should have a steady and influential relationship with his customers. The venue for numerous literary launches, La Central has a small selection of books in English. The staff is extremely helpful. Open Mon-Sat.

CHILDREN

EL INGENIO
Rauric 6 (00 34 93 317 7138; fax: 301 0095; www.el-ingenio.com; email: info@el-ingenio.com). A beautiful turn-of-the-century shop filled with fancy-dress outfits, puppets, jokes, tricks and papier-mâché carnival masks - it's like walking into a theatrical wardrobe. Open Mon-Sat.

DEPARTMENT STORES

EL CORTE INGLES
Plaça de Catalunya 14 (00 34 93 306 3800; fax: 317 6231; www.elcorteingles.com; email: clientes@elcorteingles.com). Spain's only national department store is famed for stocking almost everything. There are a few other El Corte Ingles houses in Barcelona, but the one on Plaça de Catalunya is the largest and offers everything from gourmet food and household goods to bridal wear. Open daily.

EL TRIANGLE
Pelai 39 (00 34 93 318 0108; fax: 301 3756). Opposite El Corte Inglés in Plaça de Catalunya, El Triangle is a smaller complex of fashion and design boutiques.

L'ILLA DIAGONAL
Avinguda Diagonal 555-559 (00 34 93 444 0000; fax: 444 0008; www.lilla.com; email: info@lilla.com). This stylish complex is filled mostly with small shops but also houses one of the city's two FNAC stores, a ZARA and Spanish designer Purificacíon García. Open Mon-Sat.

FASHION

ANTONIO MIRO
Consell de Cent 349 (00 34 93 487 0670; fax: 467 7111; www.antoniomiro.es). This is the place to splash out on elegant, tailor-made suits. It's primarily for men but also sells luxurious womenswear. To keep spending down, stick to the ready-to-wear collection of jackets and trousers, silk shirts and well crafted leather goods.

GROC
Rambla Catalunya 100 (00 34 93 215 7778; fax: 487 1619). Antonio Miró, Barcelona's best known tailor, sells his irresistibly stylish and elegant suits in this shop, as well as a range of women's fashion - including clothes by Dolce & Gabbana. Miró's clothes can be bought off the peg or custom-made. Open Mon-Sat.

JANINA
Rambla Catalunya 94 (00 34 93 215 0484). Janina's lingerie is classic, stylish and up to the minute in terms of fashion trends. The shop also carries a selection of pieces by La Perla, Eres, Dolce & Gabbana, as well as Spanish brands such as Andreas Sarda. Open Mon-Sat.

LA MANUAL ALPARGATERA
Carrer d'Avinyo 7 (00 34 93 301 0172; fax: 301 1829; www.lamanualalpargatera.com). This famous espadrille shop started out as a workshop and now serves star clients like Catherine Zeta Jones. The handmade shoes come in countless colours and styles and are great for walking over cobblestones. They also pack very neatly, one shoe hugging the other.

LUPO
Mallorca 257 (00 34 93 487 8050; www.lupo.es). Lupo's bags and belts come in seriously funky shapes. The soft leather is folded into wonderfully contorted positions and dyed in bright, vivid colours such as tangerine and lime.

NO TE NOM
Pau Claris 159 (00 34 93 487 6084; email: notenom1@terra.es). The No Té Nom (Catalan for 'it has no name') collection has a modern look and is produced in hi-tech fabrics. The shop also stocks a good mix of desirable designers, Helmut Lang and Valentino to mention two, and a number of design objects such as funky lamps, accessories and fun ceramics. Open Mon-Sat.

ON LAND
Carrer Valencia 273 (00 34 93 215 5625; www.on-land.com; email: info@on-land.com). Streetwise, urban unisex clothing by the best of fresh young talent. Open Tue-Sun.

FOOD

CAELUM
Carrer Palla 8 (00 34 93 302 6993). This shop specialises in food and drink made in convents and monasteries. Caelum has a medieval twist, and a good selection of cava.

CASA GISPERT
Carrer Sombrerers 23 (00 34 93 319 7535; fax: 319 7171; www.casagispert.com; email: info@casagispert.com). The shop opened in 1851, and has survived unscathed during Spain's dramatic history. Few things have changed inside since the 19th-century, and you can still find dry fruit and other goods to snack on or bring back home. Open Mon-Sat.

COLMADO QUILEZ
Rambla Catalunya 63 (00 34 93 215 8785). Fabulous food emporium, highly recommended for its huge selection of Spanish and European preserves, tinned foods, 30 sorts of olive oil and an exceptional stock of alcoholic drinks, including more than 90 varieties of cava and 300 different beers. Open Mon-Sat.

EL RINCON DEL GOURMET
Plaça de Catalunya 14 (00 34 93 306 3800; fax: 317 6231; www.elcorteingles.com; email: clientes@elcorteingles.com). El Rincón del Gourmet is an enormous delicatessen section within a supermarket located on the basement floor of El Corte Inglés department store on Plaça Catalunya.

ESCRIBA
Rambla 83 (00 34 93 301 6027). Pastry and confectionary shop Escriba on La Rambla is housed in one of the most beautiful Art Deco buildings in town. Try 'La Rambla', the house speciality, a truffle and chocolate biscuit that serves four to five people - while sitting outside the shop on the sunny terrace. Open Mon to Sun.

FLECA FORTINO
Travessera de Gràcia 145 (00 34 93 237 3873). This bakery sells gorgeous wholemeal and traditional breads in all shapes and forms.

FORMATGERIA LA SEU
Carrer Dagueria 16 (00 34 93 412 6548; www.formatgerialaseu.com). Spanish artisan cheeses are sold in this queseria that also houses a small restaurant.

LA CASA DEL BACALAO
Comtal 8 (00 34 93 301 6539). Just like the name states, this is the house of salt fish - one of Barcelona's many delicacies.

ORIGENS 99.9%
Carrer Vidrieria 6-8 (00 34 93 310 7531; fax: 310 7531; email: 99origens@terra.es). In reality a restaurant that also houses a small delicatessen, selling Catalan cooking ingredients.

TOT FORMATGE
Passeig del Born 13 (00 34 93 319 5375). This shop, located near the Santa Maria cathedral, both produces its own cheese and sells other local and international ones.

TUTUSAUS
Carrer Francesc Pérez-Cabrero 5 (00 34 93 209 8373; fax: 202 1662; www.tutusaus.com). This charcutería sells meat, cheese and expensive deli food.

HOME

ASPECTOS
Rec 28 (00 34 93 319 5285; hcamilla@readysoft.es). Aspectos has a highly select and totally eclectic range of furniture bought by German-born owner Camilla Hamm through her personal network of designers and artists.

BD EDICIONES DE DISENO
Carrer de Mallorca 291 (00 34 93 458 6909; fax: 207 3697; www.bdbarcelona.com; email: comercial@bdbarcelona.com). This shop sells modernist reproduction furniture by everyone from Gaudí and Dalí to Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

CERERIA SUBIRA
Baixada de Libreteria 7 (00 34 93 315 2606). Founded in 1761, this shop occupies the oldest retail premises in Barcelona. The wooden interior has remained untouched for more than 200 years and makes a fine backdrop for the impressive array of candles offered by the shop. Open Mon-Sat.

VINCON BARCELONA
Passeig de Gràcia 96 (00 34 93 215 6050; fax: 215 5037; www.vincon.com; email: bcn@vincon.com). Considered the Spanish equivalent of The Conran Shop, Vinçon stocks all sorts of home furnishings from beautiful furniture to computer accessories. The shop is also used as an exhibition space for contemporary art. Remember to keep your shopping bag - designed biannually by well-known artists - they are fast becoming collectors' items. Open Mon to Sat.

MARKETS

LA BOQUERIA
(00 34 93 318 2584; www.boqueria.info). One of the best food markets in the world can be found halfway down on La Rambla. La Boqueria, which at 6,000 sq metres is the largest market in Spain, is one of Barcelona's unmissable sights and not only because the stalls are piled high with every edible goodie under the sun - the market occupies a prime piece of real estate a few hundred metres from Plaça Catalunya. There are no less than 72 fruit and vegetable stalls in the market, providing a break from an age of hypermarkets and cook-chill nastiness. Go in the morning when the market is at its most animated and the market workers tuck into esmorzars de forquilla (literally 'fork breakfast' featuring pig's feet, tripe and bacon). Look out for Montse's exotic fruit stall at number 502, Peixos Marta's fish at 721, Mariscos Genaro's shellfish at 744, and Especialitats Salaons' salt cod, cured tuna roe, salted herring etc at 737. Head to Cansaladeria Mateo López at 395-397 for Iberian ham and pork products, to Salvador Capdevilia's game specialities at 707 and Lorenç Petrà's Fruits del Bosc at 867 for a lesson on mushrooms.

SPECIALIST SHOPS

L'ARCA DE L'AVIA
Banys Nous 20 (00 34 93 302 1598; www.larcadelavia.com). A fabulous Aladdin's cave of one-off antique linens and cotton and silk items including patchwork quilts and vintage dresses. Only open Mon.

AIRPORT
El Prat Aeroport de Barcelona, (00 34 93 298 3838; www.barcelona-airport.com) is located approximately 10km south of the city.

AIRLINES FROM THE UK
British Airways (0870 850 9850; www.ba.com)
easyJet (0871 244 2366; www.easyjet.com)
Iberia (0870 609 0500; www.iberiaairlines.co.uk)

Visit Barcelona during the mild spring and autumn, but avoid the city during the high summer in July and August when the atmospheric pollution is high.

La Rambla and the Born are plagued by pickpockets and bag-snatchers. The trick is simply to be aware of the problem and then, like the residents, you are less likely to be robbed.

CENTRE D'INFORMACIO TURISME DE BARCELONA
Plaça Catalunya 17 (00 34 93 285 3834; www.bcn.es). One of many tourist information offices spread around Barcelona. The Barcelona Card, available here, entitles the holder to discounts on public transport as well as in some shops and restaurants. Open daily.

THE AYUNTAMIENTO MOBILE SERVICE
The city government - the ayuntamiento - runs an excellent information service that you access by dialling 010 for any phone in the city. English-speaking staff will provide you with the telephone numbers and events information that you need.