10 ideas to take back from Barcelona

What is Barcelona famous for? Local delicacies, quality shoes and… soccer! And what can you take as a souvenir? Here is a selection of ideas of what to bring from Barcelona as a gift for relatives, friends or colleagues.

Turrón
turrón (Spanish), torró (cat.)
Everyone loves edible gifts from different countries. So we offer you a traditional sweet turrón: it’s something you can bring from food without worrying about the souvenir “not getting there.” The sweet is made from honey, protein and toasted nuts (primarily almonds). There are several varieties of turrón: hard (very hard), soft and with different kinds of nuts. All of them are well preserved.

Jamón (jamón)
Jamón is always a prime candidate for what to bring back from Barcelona. It’s a delicious salted cured meat made according to ancient recipes. Hamon is sold in any supermarkets in sealed packages, as well as in special butchers shops (in which it tastes better, but it is more expensive). Often tourists are discounted when buying multiple packages.

Cheese
In Catalonia, this product is consistent with its traditions and is especially tasty. The most famous varieties to look out for:

• Alt Urgell i la Cerdanya (creamy and soft on the palate),
• Mató de Montserrat (fresh dessert cheese),
• Tou del Tillers (a very famous cheese reminiscent of French Brie),
• Costa Negra (covered with a black crust, white and uniform inside),
• Drap (sweet on the palate),
• Tupi (dessert cheese),
• Serrat (yellow hard cheese, sometimes made from sheep’s milk),
• Garrotxa (soft goat’s milk cheese, matured for 2 weeks, covered with a layer of ash),
• Montsec (made from goat milk, aged 60 to 90 days, covered with a layer of ash).

Of course, to bring the cheese in one piece, it is better to take the hard varieties.

Shoes
The shoes in Barcelona are said to be some of the best in the world, both in the quality of the leather and the level of workmanship. Most shopping malls in Barcelona have shoe departments, where the prices and quality of the shoes are surprising. But we also recommend local brands, as we have mentioned in our article about the Kokau brand, which specializes in ballet shoes. Read more in this article.

Walking around the streets, look out for small stores and workshops where you can pick up or even order unusual shoes.

Souvenirs
Of course, few tourists leave Barcelona without the traditional magnets and trinkets. You can buy them at official souvenir shops as well as at illegal street vendors. There are plenty of them around the fountains at Montjuïc and in Park Güell. As a rule, on the street magnets cost from 1-2 euros. However, the quality leaves much to be desired. Something interesting you can always find at flea markets.

Original souvenirs
The most popular souvenirs are from Poble Espanyol. The Spanish Village on Montjuïc has a great selection of handmade souvenirs. In the workshops of Poble Espanyol you can witness the handmade glass, leather, and jewelry made by renowned craftsmen. Here you can get something truly unique.

Sangria
Of course, we should not forget about the alcoholic gifts. After sampling a lot of Spanish sangria during your vacation, grab a 1.5 liter bottle for your friends. You can buy sangria in any grocery store, in principle, it is almost everywhere equally good.

Olive oil
Catalan olive oil is of very high quality, so tourists often take it as a gift. There are even stylized bottles and jars with Gaudi painting, for example. Well, or you can not overpay for the packaging and buy oil in ordinary bottles in any grocery store.

Books about art (Gaudi)
Architect Gaudi is an icon of Barcelona. It was Gaudi who made the city so magnificent. A book about the art of Barcelona, and Gaudi in particular, will be an unforgettable souvenir of the capital of Catalonia. In addition, in such souvenir shops there are also different objects of “creation of art”: paints, pencils, albums, etc., which can be interesting for children.

Soccer paraphernalia
It seems that the jersey of the famous Barcelona striker Lionel Messi you can meet at every step in this city. Not a souvenir shop can do without soccer paraphernalia. But the real soccer paradise is of course the official FC Barcelona boutiques. They are all over the city, in all the malls. Their prices, of course, are higher, but the quality of products is also higher. And if you want to get to the match, take care of tickets in advance – you can buy them online here.