Things to do in Barcelona in April

Actually, there is nothing to do in Barcelona during the month of April… April Fools! It’s a joke! There are plenty of things to do in Barcelona in April! If you are travelling to Barcelona in April, you really should attend these events I’m about to share with you, so you can feel the Barcelonian spirit, and its flavour, its state of mind, its traditions, its history!

We are officially in spring and hearts are already getting warmer. For you to live the full Barcelonian experience, here is our selection of things to do in Barcelona in April!

Declare your love with a book at the: Sant Jordi’s Day

As you walk through Las Ramblas hand in hand with your lover, you spot in the distance your favorite writer giving autographs, surrounded by roses. Can you picture it? Well, you can live it!

Love is definitely in the air on the 23rd of April in Barcelona. The city becomes a gigantic outdoor “bookflowerstore” to pay tribute to Sant Jordi, the patron saint of Catalonia, known as the hero who saved the princess from the dragon, symbolizing the victory of good over evil.

Originally, the Sant Jordi Chapel used to organize a Roses Fair, also known as the Lovers Fair, but, since 1995, the 23rd of April is also the World Book Day. The tradition now wants couples to give each other gifts: the man gives his woman a rose, and the woman gives her man a book. Human values are celebrated such as love, culture, patriotism.

If you love romance, literature, culture, history, if you want to know and understand the origins and traditions of this celebration, be at Las Ramblas on the 23rd of April, we will be waiting for you!

Be a Barcelonian for ten days at the: Feria de Abril

Our list of things to do in Barcelona in April continues with The April Fair. It is originally from Sevilla but Barcelona has made a version of its own. If you get the chance to be in Barcelona from the 26th of April to the 4th of May, don’t miss the opportunity to go to The April Fair. The atmosphere is amazing. It is a festival of colours, food, dancing, drinking and singing.

There are fun fair attractions overlooking the Barcelona coastline, plenty of stands for you to taste traditional drinks and foods from all Spanish regions. From morning till night, you will see people dressed in their traditional costumes dancing traditional dances, famous singers and bands will be performing every day. From the youngest to the eldest, everyone is gathered there!

It is absolutely worth a visit, so if you are in Barcelona from the 26th of April to the 4th of May, join the party and go The April Fair!

Admire religious parades during the: Semana Santa

The Semana Santa (in English, “The Holy Week“) starts the 14th of April and it ends the 20th of April, and is the most religious week of the year in Barcelona. During the Holy Week, people celebrate Jesus Christ’s love, death and resurrection, religious parades take place around the city, and mostly traditional fish-based meals are served (such as “el bacalao con sanfaina” and “el bacalao esqueixat”), since practicing Catholics won’t eat meat because it would refer to “Jesus Christ’s shedding of blood for our sins”.

It is a very important week in Barcelona, deeply rooted in the Spanish History. The streets are beautifully decorated, many parades take place, and traditional dishes are amazingly good!

Be ahead of your time: D’A – Festival Internacional de Cine de Autor de Barcelona

After we visit Las Ramblas, Barcelona’s most famous boulevard and Barri Gòtic, the medieval maze with its narrow alleys, concealed churches, shaded plazas and centuries-old legends, we suggest you attend the sixth edition of the D’A – Barcelona International Auteur Film Festival that goes from the 25th of April to the 5th of May.

This “cultural hotspot” will allow you to witness a great variety of successful films internationally known, new talents and film makers latest releases, the best independent movies being produced at the moment, critics and directors being awarded, plenty of talks, workshops, debates, colloquiums, live performances, concerts sessions, and much more, during those eleven days at the following locations, according to the Festival program.

• Aribau Club 1, Gran Via 565-567
• Aribau Club 2, Gran Via 565-567
• Teatre CCCB, Montalegre, 5
• Auditori CCCB, Montalegre, 5
• Filmoteca de Catalunya
• SGAE, Passeig de Colom, 6

Go to a place of reference: CaixaForum

Last but not least is a visit to CaixaForum. It was a textile factory, then a warehouse for the Spanish Civil Guard, and a prison while Franco was in power. The establishment was then abandoned, so La Caixa (a financial institution) bought it, restored it and turned it into a cultural and event center.

Located at Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàardia 6-8, exhibitions and events are now organized all the time. During the whole month, every weekend (from Friday to Sunday), apart from the current exhibitions, there will be concerts for kids. It is a place of reference, the reconstruction was perfectly made and the exhibitions are unique. Go visit CaixaForum, you won’t regret it!

We hope you enjoyed our selection of things to do in Barcelona in April, and hope to see you very soon! Those cultural, religious, traditional, romantic events will surely make your trip even more special and fun! Contact us for further information, and we will make sure you will have the best time of your life in Barcelona, so you come back home with the most unique stories to tell!