The history of Barcelona began 2000 years ago with the Iberian settlement of Barkeno. Situated in an easily defended position on a coastal plain between the Collserola mountains and the Mediterranean, it was an important city on the route from Central Europe to the Iberian Peninsula.

The different cultures which have settled here, Romans, Visigoths, Moors and Christians, left an impressive heritage which, together with the Art Nouveau buildings of Gaudí and the modern day architecture, all add to the special charm of this city.

From Plaça Catalunya, which forms the center of the city, the Roman ruins, the medieval town, the modern example of city planning with square blocks with chamfered corners (Cat. Xamfrans; Cast. Chaflanes) and the many Modernist buildings for which the city is known, can all be reached on foot.

In the Barri Gòtic, the Gothic Quarter and historic town center, there still exist many beautiful architectural examples of the medieval kingdom and old commercial city. Examples are La Catedral, the Cathedral of the Holy Eulàlia, The Kings Square (Plaça del Rei), the Frederic Marés Museum and the Town Hall  (Ajuntament). The most famous pedestrian street, La Rambla, a wide avenue, leads from the center of town to the port. There are numerous flower and bird vendors, newsstands, street musicians, acrobats, cafes and restaurants and the famous market Mercat de la Boqueria and the Plaça Reial, with its arcades and palm trees as well as typical bars and the world-famous opera house, the Gran Teatre del Liceu. At the end of La Rambla furthest from the port is the Font de Canaletes drinking fountain where, it is said, anyone who drinks from it loses their heart to Barcelona, and if they go they will always return.

At the other end of the promenade, at the old port (Cat. "Port Vell"), stands the statue of Christopher Columbus. There are also the Drassanes medieval shipyards (Drassanes Reials = royal yards), which today accomodates the Maritime Museum. It tells the history of the Catalan seafaring in the Mediterranean region and houses, amongst other things, the 1:1 replica of the galley Real, the flagship of Don Juan of Austria at the Battle of Lepanto (1571).

The old port is home to the modern leisure center and the Maremagnum shopping center, as well as numerous nightclubs, boutiques, cinemas (including an IMAX cinema) and the largest Oceanarium dedicated to the Mediterranean Sea.