Last updated on September 9, 2020
I love Barcelona in winter. In many ways I think it’s my favourite time to be here.
![Barcelona cathedral and torre agbar tower](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3676.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
Temperatures hover around 16°C (61°F), which means you aren’t likely to spend too much time at the beach or go swimming in the sea.
But with the powder blue skies and gentle rays soaking into your bones, there’s still plenty to lift your spirits.
![Panoramic views across Barcelona from the MNAC (Palau Nacional Museum of Catalan Art) in Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3478.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![Tourists in Barcelona at Christmas time](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3490.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![Winter in Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3546.jpg?resize=1223%2C817)
![Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3562.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![Horse riding in Montjuic Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3561.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
The best thing of all is the fact that the maddening crowds of summer are nowhere to be found.
And those who do visit at this time of year, the ones who I see quietly contemplating the warmth and ethereal light, remind me just how pleasant this part of the world is to be at this time of year.
![Torre Telefónica, Montjuic, Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3588.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![La Caseta del Migdia, Montjuic, Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3616.jpg?resize=1200%2C802)
![Ben Holbrook Travel Photographer - Barcelona, Spain](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3575.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
Locals lay out on the grass, puckering their faces up to the sun as it seeps through their eyelids.
They walk hand-in-hand and stop for frosty kisses and hot cups of coffee, waiting for the sunset.
And it doesn’t disappoint – there’s a coolness about it. Shifts of pink and violet fall over the city, before dissolving to hues of bleached blue and star dust.
![Barcelona Skyline Photography -by Ben Holbrook](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3512.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![Torre Glories, (aka Torrer Agbar) Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3796.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![Barcelona at Christmas](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3751.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
![Views of La Sagrada Familia at sunset in Barcelona](https://i0.wp.com/www.driftwoodjournals.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DSC_3944.jpg?resize=1200%2C801)
A merry Christmas indeed.
More from Winter/Christmas in Barcelona
BON NADAL! VISITING BARCELONA OVER CHRISTMAS & NEW YEAR’S EVE
CHRISTMAS FOOD IN BARCELONA – WHAT & WHERE TO EAT DURING THE FESTIVE SEASON