Barcelona: Accommodations

I started my search for affordable accommodations as soon as I decided I wanted to go to Barcelona... Actually, no, I first considered Paris, and started looking for accommodations there. Prices in Paris are pretty steep (for me, anyways), even for February, so after having searched in vain for affordable accommodations in central Paris, I was pleasantly surprised how much of it is available in Barcelona (and I'm talking walking-distance-touristy part of Barcelona).

The options are plenty - hotels, hostels, inns, condos and so on. Of course, something like a condo might cost $400-500 per night; however, it often accommodates 6+ people, so you're looking at playing max $100 per night, if you travel in a group.

I read reviews, consulted various websites for deals, and eventually ended booking though Expedia.ca, which gave me an option to pay at the hotel (and the ability to cancel 24 hours prior). I ended up choosing Hotel Jazz, a slick and modern hotel just steps away from La Rambla, a busy tourist street, and almost everything else that you'd want to see here. Although this hotel is ranked as 3 stars, I personally feel that is a 3.5 :))) (they could probably make it a 4-star hotel, if they spent a bit of money and gave it a facelift). But we found our room to be comfortable and larger than expected! Even the beds were listed as "single" were wider that one would expect. And the hotel's location is just PRIMO!

Barcelona Aquarium (L’Aquàrium de Barcelona)

So... I'm back! I won't bore you with the details of where I've been for the past 3+ months; as usual, I have too many grand plans, but little time.

Last week something happened that is actually worth sharing: I traveled to the beautiful Barcelona, Spain!!!
I spent 7 nights there and that definitely was NOT enough...

Let me share some highlights with you - up first, L’Aquàrium de Barcelona (Barcelona Aquarium). This place is great (this is my third aquarium) - cost: only €20. I say "only" because it's totally worth it given what it offers. First, its Oceanarium is unique in Europe and is its largest aquarium.

Here are its parameters:

Can you imagine - it holds 4,500,000 litres of water!

My sister and I were able to take our time and set our camera for a nice shot