What's On Barcelona: 10th - 12th July

Bon dia!

I was doing a bit of reflecting, and it's unbelievable how many things there are to do in this city. Following Pope Leo's visit last month, we've just had the Grand Départ of the Tour de France, complete with a whole week of events beforehand.

It always feels like there’s something going on, & I feel lucky to live in such a great city.

Anyway, enough of my rambling, without further a do, here’s What’s On.

- Mark

⛅️ Weather

Fri ⛅ 30°/24° Sat ☀️ 28°/24° ⛅ Sun 29°/24°

1. Free Classical Concert on the Beach (Tonight)

What’s On: Barcelona's beach becomes an open air concert for a free evening of classical music. Bring a towel or chair and enjoy performances by the Gran Teatre del Liceu Orchestra and the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, with the sea as the backdrop.

It was also on last night, which is why I gave you a heads up in the July edition of the newsletter.

📅 When: Thursday 9th July (9pm)
📍 Where: Platja de Sant Sebastià

For more info see here →

2. Raval Neighbourhood Festival

What’s On: 4 days of events taking place across El Raval, including giant puppet parades, castellers (human towers), live drumming, traditional Catalan dancing, sea shanties and a correfoc (fire run) to round off the weekend.

📅 When: Thurs 9th – Sun 12th July
📍 Where: Various locations across El Raval

Weekend Highlights
Fri (7:30pm): Batucada (live drumming) on Rambla del Raval.
Sat: Public chess matches (11am–1:30pm), giant puppet parade, traditional stick dancing and castellers.
Sun (from 7:30pm): Sea shanties, followed by a drumming procession and the correfoc.

For more info see here →

Catalonia Beyond Fuet: Why a Bikini Isn't Always Swimwear [AD]

Do you have your bikini ready? It’s getting hot here... Fun fact! The word bikini has another meaning in Barcelona, it also refers to a grilled sandwich.

Back in the day, there was a club in the city called Sala Bikini and its sandwich became famous, and it adopted the club’s name. Outside Catalonia, it’s called a mixto. For a “bikini”, you need: formatge (Cheese), pernil dolç (ham) i pa de motlle (bread).

Get ready for the summer learning other words that are summer related (apart from bikini): platja (beach), tovallola (towel), xancles (flip-flops), crema solar (sunscreen), and ulleres de sol (sunglasses).

Hidrateu-vos!

For even more resources on learning Catalan see here →

Content by the Department of Language Policy

3. Montjuïc Open Air Cinema Starts This Weekend

What’s On: Probably one of my favourite summer traditions. Watch films beneath the walls of Montjuïc Castle, with every screening preceded by a live concert. Many of the screenings are already sold out (which is why I've been mentioning it in the newsletter each week), but there are still tickets available for some of the later dates.

📅 When: 10th July – 5th August
📍 Where: Montjuïc Castle

For more info see here →

4. Carmel Neighbourhood Festival

What’s On: The final weekend of the Carmel neighbourhood festival features live drumming, a correfoc (fire run), street dancing and a fireworks display to round off the celebrations.

📅 When: Fri 10th – Sun 12th July
📍 Where: Various locations across El Carmel

Weekend Highlights
Fri: Batucada (live drumming parade) followed by a correfoc (fire run).
Sat: Live music and street dancing with Orquesta Sabor Sabor.
Sun: Fireworks display at 11pm.

More info here →

5. Shakespeare in the Park

What’s On: Starting today, you can watch free open-air theatre in Parc de l'Estació del Nord. This year's production is a modern adaptation of Hamlet, with performances running Thursday to Monday throughout July and early August.

📅 When: 9th July – 3rd August (Thurs-Mon, 7pm)
📍 Where: Parc de l'Estació del Nord

Find out more here →

Also Happening This Weekend

🎉 Neighbourhood Festivals

I’ve already mentioned Raval and Carmel festivals above, here are more!

Fiesta Mayor de la Marina
Festa Major de Sant Cristòfol

🎶 Music, Parties & Nightlife
Cruïlla Festival (Parc del Fòrum) – 4 day music festival featuring Pixies, Two Door Cinema Club, Jon Batiste, The Hives, Bomba Estéreo and more (Now until Sat).

AMEBA at the Raval Festival (El Raval) – Free electronic music festival with live acts and DJs across two days as part of the Festa Major del Raval (Fri–Sat).

Les Nits de Barcelona (Pedralbes) – Open-air concert series in the gardens of the Palau de Pedralbes, with live music, food, drinks & performances (Until 21st July).

BARTS Festival (Poble Espanyol) – Summer music festival featuring international and local artists, plus food, drinks and open-air concerts at Poble Espanyol (Until 25th July).

Talents Jazz at La Pedrera (Passeig de Gràcia) – Rooftop jazz concerts at Gaudí’s La Pedrera, featuring emerging jazz artists plus cava & attic access (Fri).

Free Concerts at the University of Barcelona (Eixample) – Free open-air concerts featuring emerging artists in the gardens of UOB's historic building (Tue & Thurs 8pm).

Terrats en Cultura (Various Locations) – festival with concerts & live performances on secret rooftops, with locations revealed 48 hours before (Ends 24th July).

Clotilde Fest (Palau Robert) – Free summer concert series aimed at young people, showcasing emerging Catalan pop artists in the gardens of Palau Robert (Thu)

BACHcelona Festival (Various Locations) – Classical music festival celebrating Bach through concerts, jazz, dance across Barcelona (Until 19th July).

🛍️ Food, Drinks, Markets & Shopping
Craft Beer Festival (Poblenou) – Craft beer festival featuring 25 breweries, food trucks and live music throughout the weekend (Fri–Sun).

Wine Festival at Port Olímpic – Free wine festival featuring independent winemakers, DJs and street food by the sea (Sat–Sun).

Soul Market (Port Olímpic) – Browse local designers, artisan stalls and food trucks while enjoying live music and DJs by the sea (Sat–Sun).

Everything €2 Rave Market (Sant Andreu) – Browse 8,000+ second-hand clothes, with live DJs, upcycling workshops. From 2:30pm, everything drops to €1 (Sun).

Viva Vintage (Poblenou) – Summer vintage market with 35+ stalls selling vintage clothing, second-hand fashion, accessories, vinyl and antiques (Sun).

Fashion Pop-Up (Poble sec) – Browse local fashion brands, vintage clothing, jewellery and art while enjoying vinyl DJs, coffee and drinks (Sun, 1–8pm).

🎨 Culture & Experiences
Grec Festival (Various Locations) – BCN's biggest performing arts festival, with theatre, music, dance, circus & performances across the city (Until 31st July).

Opera Festival (Gràcia) – Puccini's Tosca performed in an intimate setting as part of the Opera amb Gràcia festival (Sat, 7pm).

Mercateatre Circus Festival (Sant Martí) – Free contemporary circus festival with acrobatics, juggling and street performances (Until 11th July).

Open-Air Cinema at Canòdrom (Sant Andreu) – Free outdoor screening of Olivia & the Invisible Earthquake, animation about Olívia aged 12, set in BCN (Fri, 8:30pm)

Open-Air Cinema at L'Illa Diagonal (Les Corts) – Summer outdoor cinema with weekly screenings in the gardens of Sant Joan de Déu (Thu, doors 9pm, film 10pm).

Pantalla Barcelona (Citywide) – Free outdoor cinema series with screenings across Barcelona's parks, squares and civic centres (Until 23rd July).

Vermut Trans (Sant Antoni) – Free Pride Barcelona event celebrating the trans and non-binary community, with live music, performances, food and drinks (Sat).

Emerging Art Festival (Various Locations) – 50+ exhibitions & events showcasing up-and-coming artists in galleries and art spaces across Barcelona (Until 3rd Sept).

Jardí Geològic (Les Corts) – New open-air museum exploring geology and Earth science, with rock displays and interactive exhibits (Free, open daily).

La Model Prison (Esquerra de l’Eixample) – Former prison turned public space, open for free visits where you can explore its cells and learn about its history.

The Last Days of Pompeii (IDEAL Montjuïc) – Immersive exhibition recreating Pompeii with 360° projections, VR and sound, including a dramatic Vesuvius eruption finale.

World’s Largest Balloon Exhibition (Poblenou) – Immersive exhibition made from 600,000 balloons, with sculptures & interactive rooms to explore.

DroneArt Show: Harry Potter (Parc del Fòrum) – Open air drone show featuring 1,200 illuminated drones recreating iconic Harry Potter scenes (17th Jul tickets now on sale).

🌞 Outdoors & Active
Open Table Football Championship (Gothic Quarter) – Open foosball tournament with prizes for the top two teams. Entry costs €3 per pair (Thu, 6:30pm).

Puig Classic Sailing Regatta (Port Vell) – 40+ classic yachts race off Barcelona's coastline in one of the Mediterranean's most prestigious sailing events (Thu–Sat).

Barcelona Coastal Night Walk (Barceloneta) – Free 12.8km guided night walk along Barcelona's beaches & seafront, starting & finishing at Moll de Barcelona (Sat, 9:30pm).

International Wheelchair Basketball (Sants) – Watch Catalonia, France, Ireland and Bulgaria compete in this free international wheelchair basketball tournament (Sat–Sun).

Outdoor Board Game Space at Glòries – Free open-air board game area with 100+ games you can borrow and play in the park (Sat, 10am–2pm & Sun, 4pm–8pm).

Barcelona Night Skate Routes – Free guided skate routes through Barcelona every Friday night, starting from Vila Olímpica & led by volunteer skaters (Fri, 10pm).

👨‍👩‍👧 Family & Kids
Family Cinema at the CCCB (El Raval) – Free screenings of animated & experimental short films exploring cities, every Wednesday & Saturday (Until 5th Sept).

The Little Circus (Eixample) – Circus-inspired theatre show for children up to 3 years old, featuring shadow theatre, music, songs and a clown (Fri–Sun).

The Stories of Tilikum (Gràcia) – Puppet show packed with original stories, songs and music for children aged 1–10 (Sun, 11:30am).

💼 Jobs of the Week

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That’s all for this week, have a great weekend!

— Mark

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