Why go
Use district names to make sensible combinations, rather than treating the whole city as one compact centre. Ciutat Vella suits a walk among medieval streets, Eixample links modernista buildings along broad avenues, and Sants-Montjuïc needs more time for its hill and cultural sites.
The full story
The district map is most useful when it explains distance and character. Ciutat Vella contains the Barri Gòtic and the oldest street pattern. Eixample, laid out beyond the old city, makes a very different walk: regular blocks, broad intersections and many modernista façades. Sant Martí includes the Glòries area and Poblenou, where later industrial and contemporary urban layers sit beside new public space. Sants-Montjuïc stretches from transport and residential areas up to the hill above the harbour. Farther inland, Horta-Guinardó reaches into steeper terrain. A single district can still be large, so choose a named street, square or venue before setting out. Plaça de Sant Jaume also shows a different boundary: the city council and the Catalan government face each other across the square, a reminder that city and regional government are distinct.