Heading to Barcelona early October. Looking for ideas in town and the surrounding countryside

Did this trip last summer with my kiddos and had a blast. It had been 20 years since I was last in Barcelona and it still has the same charm I loved back then.

• Take a walking food tasting tour - It's a neat way to see the city, learn about the history and enjoy some great food. Kids will love it too if you have them.
• Sagrada Familia - get a guided tour.
• Parc Guell - Same thing, get a guided tour.
• Sit and have a drink or two and some tapas on La Rambla. It's definitely a tourist deal, but it's cool to just sit and watch people go by.
• Casa Batllo - One of Gaudi's masterpieces and you've never seen anything like it. There's a really cool immersive cube theater at the end of it about getting into the mind of Gaudi and it's amazing.
• Sailing Trip - Beautiful way to see the coastline and just enjoy a relaxing sunset evening.
• Spend a day down at the beach having drinks and checking out the scenery. You know what I mean when I say the scenery
• Paella Cooking Class - It's one of my favorite dishes on the planet, so learning how to make it properly while enjoying sangria is about as good as it gets.
• St. Josep La Boqueria Market - Amazing open-air market where you can try all the amazing food that Barcelona has to offer at affordable prices.
• Picasso Museum - An incredible collection of Picasso's work.
• Botanical Garden - I'm a dork for these kinds of things, but it's worth the trip if you have time.

All of the things I've listed are very touristy, but you can't really go wrong with any of them. I love Barcelona so if you don't want to do too many touristy things, just find a great spot to sit down, have drinks, order tapas and just watch the world go by. It's one of my favorite cities in the world, so don't feel the need to see everything. When you've been once, you can't wait to get back. Regardless, slow down and enjoy your time there. You're going to love it!

Wow. Very helpful. Thanks

Any tip on who/where for the paella cooking class?

If you want a private tour guide, I used this one. Using one on your first day is a solid choice because they can put you on to a lot of restaurants and a good sounding board for other ideas.

https://www.lauratoursbarcelona.com/

We did this on our 2nd European trip and got a private guide in Barcelona, Florence, and Rome. Definitely a better experience.

I did a walking tapas and flamenco show tour with Fat Tire. I thought it was excellent. I'll try to write more later but I really enjoyed that tour.

You asked about stuff outside of Barcelona. Here you go:

• Take a day and go to Montserrat to hike and to visit the monastery there. Easy <1 hour trip up and back via train.
• Leave Barcelona and go to Girona. Game of Thrones was filmed here. Incredible medieval city. If you can, stay at Hotel Esperit Roca if you can't swing the stay there, find a cheaper hotel, but go and eat at Restaurant Esperit Roca in the hotel. Owned by three brothers who own former #1 in the world El Celler de Can Roca. Guarantee a sublime dining experience.

BTW, if you're a wine person, go southwest to Tarragona and the villages of Porrera and Gratallops. Phenomenal place to visit.

I highly recommend going to some of the surrounding towns. We spent a week in Tarragona and absolutely loved it. We booked a tour with a private tour guide through Viator and it was amazing. If you are interested in Roman history it is worth a visit. We also did the traditional Barcelona things like Sagadra Familia which is a must do. We also did the tour to Monserrat and a vineyard through Viator and it was the highlight of our trip.