Barcelona is a city blessed with an awe-inspiring selection of churches. No first-time trip to the city would be complete without taking in a few of them. These are some of Europe’s most monumental architectural achievements, from the 10th-century Romanesque Sant Pau del Camp to Gaudi’s masterpiece, La Sagrada Familia.

Catedral De Barcelona
This cathedral, the seat of the Archbishop of Barcelona, was built throughout the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries. Located in the Barri Gòtic (Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter), this is perhaps the epicenter of the city’s absorbing and atmospheric medieval centre. Please note that there is a fee for entry.
Plaça de la Seu s/n, Barri Gotic, Barcelona

Santa Maria del Mar
This medieval church, dating back to the 14th century, may well be the most beautiful of its kind. The sunlight filtered through the looming arcs, pillars, and exhilarating stained-glass windows has an incredible, hypnotic quality. Certainly a place to sit down for an hour or so and take in the inimitable atmosphere.
C/ de Montcada, Barri Gotic, Barcelona

Sagrada Família
This is perhaps the one sight that everyone who has visited Barcelona is familiar with. The flagship tourist experience – but don’t let yourself be numbed to this colossal achievement. Get up close and absorb the detail, if you can! The building, upon which work began in 1882, is still incomplete to this day.
Calle Mallorca 401, Barcelona

Sant Pau del Camp

Sant Pau del Camp has a vintage, old-country feeling that the tourist-mobbed monuments can’t offer

Yes, perhaps a little more low key than the other entries on this list, but Sant Pau del Camp (literally translated, Saint Paul of the field) really does represent something altogether different, a vintage, old-country feeling that the tourist-mobbed monuments can’t offer. The 10th century building is, in fact, Barcelona’s oldest standing church, located in the El Raval barrio. Now close to the city centre, this area was in former times a rural location outside Barcelona, hence the church’s name.
Sant Pau 99, El Raval, Barcelona