Badalona
Badalona is a city in Catalonia, north from Barcelona and part of its metropolis, along the Mediterranean sea coastline. It has a population of around 220,000 inhabitants, making it one of Catalonia's most populated cities.
Understand
Badalona is both a dormitory town and a developed city in itself. Despite being shadowed by its neighbour city Barcelona, Badalona features many cultural tourist attractions as a result of its eventful history and presents large amounts of outdoors and entertainment services. From Badalona, Barcelona's city centre is 15 to 25 minutes away by subway. Several "NightBus" buses from Barcelona also stop in Badalona. Because of this, the city is also regarded as a plan B sleeping option for travellers that are unable to find cheap accommodation in Barcelona.
During the summer one can expect to find lesser-crowded beaches in Badalona and neighbouring towns to the north, as compared to the massively crowded ones in Barcelona. Surfing, wind-surfing, kayaking and similar sports are very common among the residents.
Basketball is immensely popular in Badalona. Many pavilions and open street courts can be found around the city, and it is the most common sport among primary, middle and high schoolers. Attending several matches of friends and relatives around the main pavilions of the city is a typical weekend activity for locals.
Get in
By train
Line R1 of RENFE has a stop at Badalona's train station, located in the city centre and right by the sea.
By subway
Some subway stations of the northern far-end of Barcelona's Metro are located in Badalona. They are the following stations, mentioned from south to north for each subway line:
- L2: Sant Roc, Gorg, Pep Ventura and Badalona Pompeu Fabra. The latter is located right in Badalona's city centre.
- L10: Llefià, La Salut and Gorg.
- T5/T6: Gorg.
Four stations in L1 are planned, thus extending the line northward.
By bus
By car
Major highways B-20 and C-31 run south-north through Badalona with several exits in the city. They are connected to the mountain-side and seaside highway belts of Barcelona, respectively. North from Badalona, the two highways converge into C-31/C-32, which runs all the way north till France. From C-31, one can also join the national road 2 (N-II) at the north end of Badalona. N-II crosses several seaside towns and later goes into the country on its way to Girona.
Get around
Since most landmarks, cultural attractions and renowned restaurants and bars tend to be around the center and closer to the sea side of the city, most of the typical places of interest are within walking distance. A network of local and regional buses connects all points of the city.
See
- 🌍 Pont del Petroli (Oil Bridge). Built as a dock for unloading oil products from ships. Renovated in 2009, it is now a dock for citizens' and scientific use. A wide panoramic view of Badalona's (and Barcelona's) coast can be seen from the far-end of the dock. A weather station is also located there. A popular spot for maritime walks, couples and fishermen at night. A statue of Anís del Mono (an ape with Darwin's face, holding a bottle of Anís del Mono) is located at the dock's entrance.
- 🌍 Badalona Museum (Close to L2 subway line. Buses B3, B4, B9, B17, B22, B25, B27, B29, B30, B31, B44, N9 and N2.), ☎ +34 933 841 750. You can visit the remains of the Roman city of Baetulo underneath the building, where there are baths, part of a road and a group of shops. The Museum also has a collection rich in archaeological materials from the excavations it carries out, and also conserves a great variety of objects from other eras (of art, everyday life, crafts, industry, etc.), which give testimony to the history of the city.
- 🌍 Sant Jeroni de la Murtra, Camí a Sant Jeroni de la Murtra, Badalona, e-mail: info@lamurtra.cat. Monastery built in the 15th century in a valley of the Marina mountain range. The landmark features Gothic architecture. The paths throughout the mountain range around the monastery and to and from the city are common easy hiking routes for locals.
Do
Festivities
- In May, in occasion of the celebration of Saint Anastasi, the patron saint of Badalona, activities and festivals are organized all around the city. The most important celebration takes place on May 10th. From 18:00-19:00 and till the night, people gather at the maritime promenade to participate in the popular Cremada del Dimoni (Devil-Burning), which is joined by a pyro-musical performance (the fireworks are launched from the beach, surrounding the devil). Many official (backed by the city hall) and unofficial (organized independently by the citizens) events take place throughout the month of May. The schedule with the official and some of the unofficial events is available at the city hall website. Notable events include:
- Correfocs (fire-runs, w:Correfoc), preceded by water-runs.
- Live music performances around the city. The most popular concert typically takes place at Turó d'en Carig (a hill next to the Màgic mall). This concert is funded by the city hall and features renowned local, national and international artists.
- Sardanes dancing sessions at the maritime promenade.
- Meeting and performance of Giants and Big-Heads from several local and neighbouring towns' entities.
- Trobada dels Puntaires, where more than a thousand people from Badalona and other regions of Catalonia get together at the maritime promenade and practice bobbin lacing in public.
- Festa Baix a Mar, which typically concludes the month of festivities, is a popular sardine-eating event that takes place on the beach.
- The annual town's festivity is held on August 15th, and features musical events around that date. Similar events to that of the May festivities (fire-runs, sardanes, giants and big-heads...) take place, along with an official speech by a public figure and fireworks on the 15th.
Arts
- Filmets Festival is an international short film festival that takes place every year in Teatre Principal and Teatre Zorilla (both in the center) during the month of November. The first edition was held in 1969.
- 🌍 Teatre Zorilla (17 Canonge Baranera, 08911 Badalona), ☎ +34 933 84 40 22.
- 🌍 Teatre Principal, 41 Francesc Layret, 08911.
- Stand-up comedy (monòlegs) has seen a rising popularity in Badalona for the past few years. Many performances take place at many beach bars during summer, and in pubs and night-clubs such as Sarau or theater venues such as Teatre Zorilla all year round.
Sports
- 🌍 Basketball games at Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona (Palau Municipal d'Esports de Badalona), 143-161 Ponent, 08912 Badalona (Gorg subway stop is located in front of the pavilion.). A basketball match of Joventut de Badalona, the city's main professional basketball team, takes place every weekend. Joventut de Badalona is among the top 10 teams of the Spanish professional basketball league (Liga ACB) and has played in Euroleague twice in the past ten years. During weekdays, the pavilion is used as training grounds for Joventut de Badalona's younger teams, as well as the wheelchair basketball team. This pavilion was used in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, along with two other basketball venues in Badalona.
- 🌍 Beaches of Badalona (Platges de Badalona). Only interrupted by the port, the continuous beach of Badalona is crowded with locals every day during summer. Surfing, kayaking, boat-sailing and wind-surfing are practiced all year round.
- Badalona Dracs. The Badalona Dracs play American Football in Spain's highest division. In the 2017 season they are also one of six participants int the Big Six of the best European club teams.
Music
- Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona (Palau Municipal d'Esports de Badalona), Av. Alfons XIII (Gorg subway stop is located in front of the pavilion.). Live music venue for international bands, due to its large capacity and proximity to Barcelona.
Buy
Typical products from Badalona include:
- Anís del Mono is a popular anise brand originally from Badalona. The factory is located in front of the Pont del Petroli (by the sea street), and bottles can be bought in any supermarket.
- Corominas chips, the most renowned chips business of the city, with more than 75 years of history and typically present in every event.
Shopping:
- 🌍 Màgic Badalona, 1 Concòrdia, 08917 Badalona (2 minutes walk from Gorg subway station.). A giant orange basketball ball-shaped roof structure makes this mall easy to spot from far away. The mall includes a multiplex cinema, restaurants, arcade center and shops of all sorts. It also includes a supermarket and a gym with swimming pool and a few outdoor courts. Basketball courts can be found at the top floors of the mall; these are regularly used by local teams for practice and also host open tournaments.
Eat
Drink
Sleep
- 🌍 Be Dream Hostel, 28 Av. d'Alfons XIII, 08912 Badalona (Right next to the L2 Pep Ventura subway station.).
- 🌍 Hostal Badalona, 143 Calle de Coll i Pujol, 08917 Badalona (7-min walk westward from L2 Badalona Pompeu Fabra subway station.), ☎ +34 933 87 00 06.
Connect
Go next
Day trips from Badalona include:
- Barcelona - Capital and largest city of Catalonia.
- Costa Brava - The coast North of Barcelona has rocky cliffs and a mix of pebble beaches and sandy beaches.
- Figueres - Home of the most impressive Salvador Dalí museum.
- Montserrat - Visit the monastery nestled high in the mountains to see the Black Madonna or hike to the peak to earn a fantastic view of the surroundings.
- Montseny - UNESCO Biosphere Reserve 40 km northeast of Barcelona. Go there by car or bus/train