When to go
May, June, September, and October are perfect — 70–80°F, the sea is warm enough to swim, and the city is in its element. July and August are crowded, humid, and a lot of locals leave for the countryside, taking the best restaurants with them. November to March is cool (50s) and quiet; you’ll have the Sagrada Família mostly to yourself, but the beach is over.
Getting there
United, Delta, American, and Level (the long-haul low-cost carrier) all run JFK and EWR nonstops to Barcelona-El Prat (BCN). About 8 hours eastbound, 9.5 westbound. The Aerobús to Plaça de Catalunya is €7.25 and takes 35 minutes. Metro L9 Sud also connects the airport but takes longer (45–60 min) for €5.50.
Visa & entry
Same Schengen rules as Paris and Rome — 90 days visa-free for US/UK/Australian/Canadian passports, ETIAS rolling out late 2026. Six months’ passport validity recommended.
Money
Euro again, ~€0.92 per USD. Cards work nearly everywhere; cash mostly useful for small tapas bars and tipping (round up — 5–10% is generous in Spain). The Hola Barcelona transit pass is genuinely worth it: €18 for unlimited metro/bus over 72 hours, includes the airport.
What to see
Five days: Sagrada Família (book online, get the upper-tower add-on), Park Güell (timed tickets), Casa Batlló and La Pedrera (pick one — they overlap), the Gothic Quarter and El Born walk, a tapas crawl in El Raval, a beach afternoon at Bogatell (avoid the more touristy Barceloneta), and a day trip to Montserrat or the Costa Brava. Don’t eat dinner before 9pm — restaurants are dead and you’ll look like a tourist.