Vacation Home Rentals

posted by Vacation Home Rentals on Apr 5

If you want to take the perfect souvenir home with you, then forget the touristy boutiques on La Ramblas, where most of the goods are likely to have been created in Taiwan or China. By buying your souvenirs from markets you’re giving something back to the local community and supporting local suppliers rather than tourist boutiques. Most markets are located within walking distance to Barcelona hotels or Algarve tourist resorts.

Art for the Home

The market is next to the Sant Josep Church and includes work from fifteen artists at any one time. Whatever type of art you like, you’ll find something suitable amongst the many different types on sale here..

Designer Goods

Located close to many Algarve hotels, the Algarve’s biggest market takes place in Vilamoura every Wednesday. The market sells everything from shoes and belts, to ceramic roosters and fake Rolex watches.

Food and Drink

Join the throngs of shoppers sampling tasty tapas and traditional paella at Spain’s most famous market. You probably smell La Boqueria before you reach it, and with the amount of traditional Spanish food on offer there’s no surprise. Lunch time is a great time to explore the market and you can even stop for lunch at one of the tapas stalls inside..

Stamps and Coins

When the clock strikes 2 and locals settle down for their siesta, don’t follow the other tourists returning to their Barcelona hotels instead visit the Fira Nautumismo, where the elderly locals set up an illegal street market to sell their belongings. Antique jewellery, crafts, and collectable items can all be found at this market.

Strange Souvenirs

Placa de la Seu is home to a very strange souvenir, defecating figures that are placed in the traditional Catalan Nativity scene. Cagnares have been met with resistance from the Catholic Church who claim the figures are extremely distasteful. More tasteful Christmas souvenirs can also be picked up at the market and these include gingerbread decorations and hand-painted baubles.

posted by Vacation Home Rentals on Jul 13

It’s only a few years since the choice of Barcelona hotels was quite small and hostels had a poor reputation, putting off many.

Thankfully, though, those days have long gone. The re-development of the city that began with the 1992 Olympic Games has continued since then and, consequently, any visitor to the city – be they there for a weekend or a summer – can be sure of finding accommodation that will perfectly suit whatever criteria he or she might have.

Lovers of the contemporary hotel, packed with state-of-the-art technology and perfectly manicured rooms will swoon over the award-winning Hotel Arts. Those who prefer their luxury to come in a more traditional setting, recalling the opulence of a by-gone era, will love the dignified glory of hotels such as the Majestic and the Palace.

Barcelona caters for many people, from those wanting to see the city’s architecture to anyone wanting the beach. Many people choose to be near Las Ramblas or the Gothic Quarter – so that they can feel the atmosphere even from their hotel lobby. And if you have children then a hotel close to the beach could be ideal, allowing your little ones to spend their energy in the water and making sandcastles. Barcelona is fortunate enough to have sufficient hotels of all types so that, with a little bit of research, you will find just the right one for your stay.

Many people might wince at the thought of staying in a hostel – putting them firmly in the backpacker bracket and not considering them for anyone else. If that’s you, then think again. Barcelona hostels can offer guests an economical and pleasant alternative to the hotel experience. Don’t think Youth Hostels – in Spanish they are albergues juveniles; nowadays, you’re as likely to find a couple together as a backpacker or a group ‘on tour’. Most Barcelona hostels now have a shared kitchen, laundry, shared lounge and often computer facilities to allow you check your email. They are clean, comfortable, secure places – and usually within walking distance of all the city’s main attractions.

By the way, the difference between hotelsm hostels and pensions is minimal and sometimes they are interchangeable. Officially – more or less – a pension is more of a British-style Guest House or Bed and Breakfast but, in reality, hotels can also call themselves Hostels or Pensions!

One attractive option for many people is to find some self-catering accommodation in Barcelona that will give them a greater degree of freedom that they can find in hotels as well as possibly being much more economical. In July and August you might be able to rent student accommodation while its vacant for the long summer holiday.

As with all accommodation, a little research before you make your reservation can enable you to find out for yourself that the options for Barcelona travel have come a long, long way in the past few years.