Barcelona in October is always a good idea. This Mediterranean city in northeast Spain benefits from lovely weather, fewer crowds, and gorgeous fall colors in October.
Whether you’re keen to soak up the last rays of sunshine on a soft, sandy beach or tick off seeing Antoni Gaudí’s famous masterpieces, there’s plenty to see and do during this shoulder-season period in the Catalan capital.
From trekking Montserrat minus the summer humidity to savoring the region’s rich harvest of subtly sweet chestnuts and wild mushrooms, there are plenty of reasons to enjoy October in Barcelona.
October Weather
Plaça de Catalunya
Sunny weather is commonplace in Barcelona in October thanks to the city’s dry Mediterranean climate. The average high temperature is 73°C (23°C) with lows of 63°C (17°C), perfect for beach strolls, walking tours, museum hopping, and seeing the city’s top sights.
There are typically a handful of rainy days during October, too, so packing a light raincoat is worthwhile. The sea temperature is cool in October, averaging 68°C (20ºC), but not too chilly for travelers who embrace cold water swimming.
As well as a swimsuit or wetsuit if you’re planning to take a dip, linen shirts, chinos or other slacks, blouses, and a sweater for layering are all good options for what to wear in October in Barcelona.
Read: What to Wear in Spain for Every Occasion
Live Sports
Camp Nou
Sports fans will enjoy Barcelona in October, when the city’s soccer—or football in Europe—season is in full swing. The city’s official La Liga soccer club, F.C. Barcelona, or Barça, is one of the biggest and most successful in the world, having won 22 major European and worldwide trophies.
Soccer is embedded in Catalan culture, so much so that Barça’s motto is “més que un club,” translating as “more than a club”. Indeed, visitors will spot the club’s blue, yellow, and maroon emblem on jerseys and flags flying around the Spanish city.
To immerse yourself in the soccer culture that Barcelona is famous for, you could visit Barça’s beloved soccer stadium, the Camp Nou, often referred to the other way around, the Nou Camp, the club’s home ground since 1957. The stadium is currently under renovation to increase its capacity, which will see it hold 105,000 soccer fans when fully reopened in June 2026.
Visit the F.C. Barcelona Museum and witness the stadium’s transformation before joining the Barça Immersive Tour to learn about the club, its players past and present, and see trophies, jerseys, and other soccer memorabilia.
Fewer Crowds
Gothic Quarter
With children in Europe and North America back to school after the long summer break, Barcelona in October is blissfully quieter than the months before. Fewer travelers means it’s easier to get coveted restaurant reservations, beaches will be less busy, and it is a more comfortable experience visiting Antoni Gaudí fairytale-like masterpieces, Park Güell, La Sagrada Familia, and Casa Milà.
Stroll Las Ramblas, Barcelona’s lively strip of restaurants, bars, shops, and street performers, and wander into the characterful Gothic Quarter without rubbing shoulders with too many other visitors. After, enjoy a seat in Plaça Reial, a Gothic Quarter square befitting its royal name.
Basilica of Santa Maria del Pi
Breeze into the 15th-century Basilica of Santa Maria del Pi, known simply as Basilica del Pi, to view its collection of gold and silver, descend into the crypt, and discover the leafy garden, before climbing the bell tower for breathtaking views of Barcelona.
Enjoy a more tranquil pace at El Corte Ingles, a luxury department store in Plaça Catalunya. From there, head north on Passeig de Gràcia—also known as the Barcelona Shopping Line—a three-mile commercial boulevard that runs to Calle Mayor de Gràcia.
La Sagrada Familia
You could also feel the benefit of fewer crowds while shopping in Barcelona on Avenida Diagonal—home to the Sagrada Familia and F.C. Barcelona’s stadium—and in the Raval district, parallel to Las Ramblas, where you’ll find independent and vintage stores galore.
Golden Beaches
Beach in Barcelona
Barcelona’s beaches glow golden year round with October offering the perfect opportunity to wander some of the 2.5-mile city shoreline. The wider region, including Barcelona’s suburbs and beyond, offers around 37 miles of soft sand.
Barceloneta Beach
Each beach is strung together, one after the other, making it possible to walk all of them in one day, from San Sebastian Beach next to the marina to the most northern city beach, Llevant. The buzziest Spanish beaches are closest to the city center, including Barceloneta Beach, between Sant Miquel and Somorrostro.
Admire L’Estel Ferit beach sculpture, consisting of four towering steel cubes stacked one on top of the other by German artist Rebecca Horn. The sculpture is a tribute to Barcelona’s fishing neighborhood and seafront “xiringuitos,” traditional beach bars and snack shacks that often serve rustic meals and tapas, such as barbecued fish fresh.
Wander between the palm-tree-lined Passeig Marítim and the different sandy stretches, with bars and restaurants lining the strip.
Nova Icària Beach
Nova Icària Beach is roughly midway, next to the boat-filled Port Olímpic, the neighboring Bogatell Beach is named after a stream that once ran down to the sea, and La Mar Bella is Barcelona’s swath of nudist beach.
If you’re keen to explore further, Sitges Beach is one of the most glorious beaches in the region, just 25 miles south and an easy bus journey from Barcelona. A similar distance north of the city is Montgat Nord, a blond stretch that’s easily reached via a 30-minute train ride. Once the train enters the suburbs, the railway track hugs the coastline, bringing sublime beachy scenes into view.
Leafy Montserrat
Montserrat
October in Barcelona is the perfect time to embark on a day trip to Montserrat Mountain Natural Park, a jagged mountain range that’s part of the Catalan Pre-Coastal Range and home to a Benedictine monastery.
Montserrat, meaning serrated mountain in Catalan, is just 30 miles from Barcelona. This magnificent saw-toothed landscape is best enjoyed during the cooling temperatures of fall in Spain, especially if you plan to trek among the mountains.
Montserrat
Marvel at the unique rock formations and breathe in the fresh scent of pine as you hike to the religious sanctuaries that cling to the rock face. The diverse plant species also include yew, oak, borage, and sunflowers, the deciduous trees assuming their fall colors in October. Keep an eye on wildlife, too. Crested eagles, blue blackbirds, goshawks, common woodpeckers, red partridges, mountain goats, wild boars, and salamanders inhabit the mountains.
A highlight is riding the Sant Joan Funicular Railway to the upper station, 3,280 feet above the sea, to reach the Chapel of Sant Joan and the Santa Cova. Views stretch as far as the Pyrenees—the mountain range straddling Spain and France—on a clear day.
Santa Maria de Montserrat Abbey
Dedicate plenty of time to exploring the Sanctuary of the Virgin Mary of Montserrat and the Benedictine monastery, home of the Black Madonna, a 12th-century Romanesque sculpture depicting Our Lady of Montserrat.
Stop by the information office for a map, an information booklet, and an audio guide to learn about Montserrat’s history. The Museum of Montserrat has an extraordinary collection, including hundreds of works by Caravaggio, El Greco, Picasso, Dali, and Monet.
Time your visit to hear the legato vocals of the Montserrat Boys’ Choir—one of the oldest choirs in Europe—who perform Monday to Friday at 1 p.m. as part of the basilica’s religious ceremonies and communal prayers.
Sumptuous Fall Produce
Boqueria Market
Barcelona in October is a time to celebrate the region’s rich bounty of produce, including a variety of mushrooms. Wild mushroom season typically begins in September and runs into winter, with ceps, milk caps, waxcaps, chanterelles, red pine mushrooms, and morels among the varieties plucked from the forested areas outside the city.
Mushroom hunting day trips are available to places such as Berguedà, a 90-minute drive north of the city, though if you visit any of the city’s bustling markets in October, you’ll be met with a colorful variety.
Figs
Browse the eye-catching produce at Boqueria Market on Las Ramblas or the wavy-roofed Santa Caterina Market in Ciutat Vella. Find stalls high with squash, sweet potato, and plump and squishy persimmons, quince, and figs. If you’re in Barcelona with kids, be sure to look for fruity jams and jellies, too.
Sniff out the scent of chestnuts being roasted by street vendors on Las Ramblas or near the waterfront. These delicious fall snacks are popular around October 31 and on November 1, when Catalonia celebrates La Castanyada, or simply, The Chestnut. This fall festival is marked by feasting on chestnuts, sweet potato, and panellets de pinyons—a marzipan-like almond paste coated in pine nuts—sold in bakeries around Barcelona.
Grape Harvest
Grapes
Spain’s answer to Champagne is Cava, a delicious effervescent wine and the drink of choice in Catalonia, where the annual grape harvest is between late August and early October.
If you’re a fan of Spain’s sparkling wine or keen to learn more about it, visit a winery in the region to experience a vineyard tour and tasting during the late grape harvest.
Just 12 miles north of the city and boasting views of the Mediterranean Sea, Alta Alella is the closest winery to Barcelona. Join a tour and tasting and see fruit pickers collecting the grapes by hand. Oenophiles will adore the winery’s Gran Reserva cava—including a delicate rosé and elegant white—bottle-aged for at least 30 months for added depth of flavor.
You could attend Cavatast, a lively annual festival in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia—a quaint town around 33 miles west of Barcelona—in early October. Cavatast celebrates the end of the grape harvest season with wine tastings, Spanish food pairings, guided vineyard tours, and talks on this sumptuous Spanish wine.
Read: The Ultimate Barcelona Food Guide
Fall Colors in City Parks
Ciutadella Park
Barcelona is replete with beautiful green spaces. The city is one of the best places to visit in October, as many of the parks turn into a riot of fall colors ranging from mustard yellow to crimson red.
Built on the site of a former military fort in time for the 1888 Universal Exhibition, the idyllic Ciutadella Park is known as the lung of Barcelona. This 44-acre park features a central lake with an elaborate fountain, a leafy glasshouse, Barcelona Zoo, and palm-filled boulevards.
There’s a rich array of foliage to admire in Ciutadella Park, too. Look out for evergreen Australian pines, bald cypress trees that turn yellow and orange-brown, lime trees glimmering bronze, and Indian horse chestnuts a radiant gold.
Parc del Guinardó
For a more rustic Barcelona park, head to Parc del Guinardó, which has a wilder feel with hiking trails, lush woodland, and panoramic city views—though in October your eye will be drawn to the golden-yellow leaves of elm and mulberry trees.
Montseny Massif is one of the best places to go leaf peeping—the term coined to describe admiring beautiful shades of fall—near Barcelona, with a thick chestnut forest that turns vibrant gold in October, just one hour by car from the city.
A Melting Pot of Museums
Barcelona History Museum
Though October in Barcelona tends to remain lovely and mild, the cooling climate presents the perfect opportunity to comb Barcelona’s many museums.
A clutch of diverse museums are located in the elevated Montjuïc neighborhood of Barcelona, including the National Art Museum of Catalonia, the Olympic Museum, the Joan Miró Foundation, and the Catalan Museum of Archaeology.
The Picasso Museum showcases thousands of works by the 20th-century Spanish artist, taking visitors on a journey from his early career to cubist paintings, within a medieval mansion house.
Barcelona Maritime Museum
Barcelona’s Centre of Contemporary Culture in the Raval district features three halls of changing contemporary art exhibits and a program of guest speakers. Near the waterfront, trace the region’s rich history at the Museum of the History of Catalonia and explore seafaring lore at Barcelona Maritime Museum.
A boon for travelers with limited time: With reduced lines and fewer crowds, you’ll get around more museums in a shorter space of time when visiting Barcelona in October.
Read: 3 Days in Barcelona
La Sagrada Familia
Whether you visit Barcelona during the shoulder season or in the height of summer, with mouthwatering gastronomy, sizzling beaches, and jaw-dropping architecture, you’re guaranteed an unforgettable experience. Browse our Barcelona cruises and book your next Mediterranean getaway today.
