Barcelona's seaside path a cyclist's dream
BARCELONA, Spain — Unfortunately for travelers who like getting around on two wheels, Barcelona's bike-sharing program, Bicing, is off-limits to tourists. But Bicing has helped fuel the city's growing love for bicycles. And while bumpy cobblestones and car traffic in some places don't always make for easy biking, the glorious bike path that runs along the beach here is a cyclist's dream and must-ride for any visitor who likes to bike. Other attractions can be easily accessed by bike as well.
The Bicing system, which allows local cyclists to use an electronic card to unlock bikes and ride them to other bike stands, has also helped lead to an abundance of new cycle lanes, with clearly defined and widely used cycle paths on many of the major avenues.
“It's getting better and better,” says Barcelona journalist and cyclist Laia Gordi Vila. “But at the same time that the city council is building more bike lanes, it's not explaining to motorists what it means to have bikes on the streets, so sometimes it seems we, cyclists, are a problem in Barcelona, instead of an answer to traffic problems and pollution.”
I soon learned what she meant after I began exploring the city by bike. I rented a light-framed Dutch-style bike for $22 (16 Euro) from Budget Bikes at a branch run by a very friendly family on Carrer de la Unio, just off La Rambla, the busy, tourist-heavy boulevard that leads from the city center to the Mediterranean.
There is no cycle path on La Rambla and cars are squeezed to the sides of this vast pedestrian promenade. I cycled through the traffic and that's where I hit my first problem. I was too busy watching the street entertainers to notice a taxi behind me. The driver beeped his horn furiously, got out of his car, and started waving his hands and screaming at me in a mixture of Catalan and Spanish. I thought he was going to jump on me. People stopped to look. I apologized and then continued a five-minute cycle to the beach, where a cycle path awaited. (I'd recommend walking with the bike down La Rambla).
From there it was a glorious, unimpeded cycle along the sea front, with a beautiful view across the Mediterranean and the busy beaches of Barceloneta. Once a slightly sad-looking, rundown area, the seafront received a major facelift for the 1992 Olympics, marking the arrival of Barcelona as one of Europe's most fashionable tourist destinations.
After a long, five-mile cycle up and down the beach promenade, it was a very short cycle to the majestic city park, Parc de la Ciutadella, well worth a visit for its meticulously maintained gardens, waterfalls and ponds.
While Antoni Gaudí's unfinished masterpiece basilica, La Sagrada Familia, has always attracted tourists by the thousands, I find Barcelona's other churches far more engaging, and I visited them by bike. It was a short cycle through narrow, winding streets from Parc de la Ciutadella to Barcelona Cathedral, a dark, brooding 13th-century Gothic classic, carrying such foreboding and awe that it looks like it was drawn straight from the pages of a Dan Brown mystery novel.
It's well worth the $5 dollar (4 Euro) admission to see the hand-carved wooden choir section, dark crypts and beautiful cloister where 13 geese lounge in front of camera-snapping tourists. (There is one goose for every year of the young life of St. Eulalia, who is buried in the crypts.)
Many visitors don't see the cathedral's most interesting attraction. In the northeast section of the building, an elevator leads up to the outside of the church and a stunning view across Barcelona. It is not to be missed.
A cycle through the Gothic quarter at the rear of the cathedral is also a must, crammed as it is with stunning squares, churches and basilicas. Its narrow streets and cobblestone lanes are not very friendly cycling territory, so be wary of distracted tourists stumbling into your path. This is the most beautiful and ancient part of Barcelona, so I just sat down at a cafe near city hall and took in the flavor of an exciting and rapidly changing city.
And I never did get any more hassle from Barcelona's taxi drivers in two more days of cycling. One even offered to take my back to La Rambla for free after I got a puncture on the hills overlooking the city.
“Everyone knows the cycle people are not the problem,” he said. “The cars in front of me cost me the money, not the bikes.”
If you go
<b>Barcelona information</b> barcelonaturisme.com/English
Budget Bikes: budgetbikes. eu. Located on Carrer de la Unio, just off La Rambla.
Getting there: Barcelona is served by major carriers. Look for Monday-to-Monday deals.
La Sagrada Familia: http://bit.ly/9H3r8Z
Barcelona Cathedral: catedralbcn.org/Guia/GuiaGeneral01.html (Scroll down for English)
Lodging: There is an abundance of reasonably priced and fashionable hotels on the best avenues in Barcelona. Though prices may vary by date, season and room size, I stayed at the spacious and well-maintained Acta Atrium Hotel on Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes for $172 a night (127 Euro) for a three-night weekend double room, hotel-atriumpalacebarcelona.com/. When funds were running low, I moved a few doors down to the fading elegance of the Hotel Gran Via on Carrer d'Entenca. Much smaller rooms but only $50 (37 euros) a night for a single room. When funds were even lower, I stayed for $10 in a dorm room at the Ideal Youth Hostel on Carrer de la Unio, steps from Barcelona's La Rambla avenue.
Festivals: Three Kings Day is on Jan. 5, when parades celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany and the three wise men sail in to Barcelona harbor to deliver presents to children. It's a big, colorful occasion enjoyed by locals. Barcelona's big, parade-filled Carnival Festival celebrates pre-Lent joyousness, scheduled in 2011 for March 3 until Ash Wednesday, March 9. St. Jordi's Day on April 23 celebrates Barcelona's patron saint, when La Rambla becomes a flower and book market for couples. Men give women roses and books, women offer men books in return.