Apple Store in Barcelona- Passeig de Gracia

Apple is going to open is 2nd Apple Store in Barcelona on the number 1 of Passeig de Gracia!

Steve Jobs signed the paper work in California, USA with the family who own the building at Plaza Catalunya and the company who will do all the structural work. If everything goes to plan it will be open in less than 6 months time – approx. May 2011!

This whole building was occupied by Anarchists during the strikes in September! But hopefully they won’t break into the New Apple Store once it opens next year. Apple will have 3 floors with over 2500m2 of sales space and an additional 700m2 of storage space. The main floor already has a 4 m high ceiling but there are even rumors that they will be doing some demolition works to create a 12m high ceiling between the floors – perhaps this will allow enough space for the now iconic Apple glass staircase and entrance see at many other Apple stores like London and New York?


2nd Biggest Apple Store in Europe
This store will be the second biggest Apple Store in Europe behind London’s Covent Garden Apple Store.

The opening is sure to be a huge spectacle! We will most definitely be in attendance…! Holiday apartments for rent right next to the apple store!!! Come to Barcelona to visit it for its opening!!!

Barcelona Shopping Night

White Night of fashion comes to Passeig de Gràcia



December 2nd 2010 from 20h until late in the night



Passeig de Gràcia's retail establishments are holding their first fashion White Night on Thursday 2 December, with over 50 shops taking part. There will also be design and fashion-related activities going on in the emblematic hotels and buildings on this, one of Barcelona's major high streets.

You probably never thought you would be able to savour an escudella broth made by Carme Ruscalleda outside the Hotel Mandarin Oriental or see an exhibition of customised chairs in the centre of Passeig de Gràcia.

But all that, and much more, will be possible this Thursday, 2 December, when over fifty retail establishments, the Bulevard Rosa and several hotels will be open from 8 pm to 12 am for Shopping Night, an event already held in the main capitals of Europe.

Ultimately the aim is not to make the White Night a big sales night but to position Barcelona and the Passeig de Gràcia as an international shopping destination and link that with the Christmas festivities.

Barcelona Shopping Night is therefore taking place on the same night that Barcelona switches on its Christmas lights, which will be on for 36 days at over 300 city locations and lighting up 60 km of streets.

A passport of flowers and a party


Anyone wishing to buy something at any of these shops will have to take out a Shopping Passport, a small booklet supplying the addresses of the shops that will also come in useful for the "Gimcana de les Flors" and will be available at specialist information points.

For every euro spent at one of the shops taking part in Shopping Night, buyers will receive a flower-shaped stamp and, as they accumulate these, they will be able to enter lotteries for cruises, ski-resort holidays and nights in luxury hotels.

And, besides the shops and their products, which you can enjoy at a very unusual time, at midnight this unique city location will become the setting for a big fiesta.

"David Missoni", a sculpture over six metres high and dressed in moving fabrics by dEmo, will be installed on the avenue, as a collection of unique, customised industrial items and a large design tent with fashion and design celebrities from Barcelona will be at other points.

In addition, the Mariscal and Custo exhibitions will also be opening at La Pedrera and Casa Batlló respectively, with Carme Ruscalleda serving escudella broth and Jean-Luc Figueras serving up hot chocolate and churros.


Book a last minute flight or take your car and come to Barcelona to don't miss this incredible Fashion Event! If you're looking for a place to stay, we are here for you. We can propose you a large choice of apartments really close to the Passeig de Gracia!

Sant Antoni Market

Here’s another food market, similar to La Boqueria except larger and without all the tourists. Also don´t do what I did and go in August as you will find most of the stalls closed. However all the stalls that were still open were doing very good trade, and even the small tapas bar in the middle of the market was full of locals having a bite. The stall owners are very friendly and helpful, and there is a lovely deli counter just on the left as you go in the main entrance if you want to buy something nice to take home with you.

On Sunday from 08:00-15:00 just outside the market there is a book and coin market for all the collectors out there. You will find a tremendous assortment of old books, magazines, comics and postcards.

Boqueria Market

It's the biggest market of Europe and, probably of the whole Occidental world. La Boqueria's market, located in the emblematic Ramblas of the city, is an obliged visit for the tourists and has been converted in one of the symbols of Barcelona today.

The market was constructed with the current metal framework in the year 1914, but the first documents of the market's existence date form back to the 13th century. It's the most famous of the 41 markets that exist in Barcelona. It has a whole of 6.000 m2 where there are located more than 300 booth (of vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, specializations ...) that are the real grace of the market. It's importance takes root in offering a great assortment of fresh products and a great explosion of colours, people and movement that makes it unique in the world. There is a popular expression that says: if you don't find something in La Boqueria, it can't be found in any other place.

The popular name is La Boqueria but it's official name is Sant Josep's Market because the Sant Josep's convent that was burnt in 1835 was placed there. This fact was very important for the reconstruction and consolidation of the market. It's architecture is harmonious, but remains hidden under its iron construction; it is necessary to emphasize that the window and the medallion of the entry are of modernist style.

The market has suffered some architectural changes. In april of this year the works of reconstructions have been finished, which have liberated the squared porch and have supposed the recovery of the perimetrical column. The most important is that the market has wan in lighting and it has been opened to the street.

The services that La Boqueria offers have been extended with small places where we can eat and drink. There are 10 establishments of two different classes; the newsstand - bars to take a coffee, a refreshment or an appetizer, and small bar - restaurants to sit down in stools and to savour the economic menus or the most typical plates, without leaving the market. Between all these mini bars we find the Universal newsstand to take a recommendable menu of the day, the Pinotxo bar with the amiability of Juanito, the owner's bar and key personage in La Boquería throughout the years, which tells us the market has gained with it's reconstruction. We prune to take some tapa's (snack) in Quim's bar or eating a good chocolate with fritters in the Sant Josep's bar. At the end of the market, in the Garduña's place, we find a restaurant that takes the same name, reformed with the last works in the market. This restaurant offers Mediterranean and Catalan food to different prices, and the day's menu costs 8,25 euros.

We recommend to eat in the places that we have named above, but if in case of preferring to eat with carte, the Boqueria's market is surrounded by well-known restaurants where to choose plates of Mediterranean food. It's the case of the Turia restaurant, http://www.barcelona-on-line.es/elturia, in Petxina's street that offers renewed and varied plates, such as fish, seafood and an economic menu of 9,60 euros that is very good. We also outstand The Convent, in the Jerusalem street, specialist in Catalan gastronomy, and La Palmera restaurant that offers market food, located behind La Boqueria.

La Boqueria's market is located in the Ramblas number 101 and opens at 8:00 a.m. and closes at 8:30 p.m.

Shopping

About Shopping in Barcelona

If you considered Madrid and Barcelona to be Spain’s sister fashion capitals, Barcelona would be the funkier, more stylish twin. In addition to the mega-fashion stores you’ll find in both cities (H&M, Zara, Mango, Adolfo Dominguez, etc.), the Barcelona shopping experience entails lots of quirky boutiques and unique designs.

Store Hours
Shops generally open at about 9am, close for lunch from 2-4pm and reopen until 8 or 9pm, Mon-Fri. Saturday schedules are generally the same, though many stores opt to only close at lunch time. Some shops open on Sundays and Holidays, but it is not the norm.

It’s also good to keep in mind that the low season for Barcelona shopping is August. Smaller stores make close for a week or more while the weather is scorching.

Sales

Sales usually run from the second week in January to the end of February, and during July and August. Don’t get in the way of the natives at the Cortes Inglés on the first day of "rebajas" ("sales" in Spanish). There are first "rebajas", then a bigger mark down for second "rebajas", and finally remate – final clearance sales in Barcelona.

Tombbus
This bus (T1) follows a circular route for shoppers from Plaça de Catalunya up the Passeig de Gràcia to Avinguda Diagonal and back again. The tombbus hits all the major Barcelona shopping spots, as these wide avenues are packed with a variety of international and local stores.

Do you plan to come to Barcelona to enjoy its amazing sales? Rent an apartment next to the main shopping streets of the city.