Barcelona's Dark History Night Tour
5
Barcelona's Dark History Night Tour
By Runner Bean Tours Barcelona
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About
See a different side of Barcelona during an evening walking tour that reveals the city’s dark history: a great way to avoid scorching daytime temperatures and see landmarks illuminated at night. In a small group limited to 15 people, discover lesser-known stories about medieval torture and public executions and explore at twilight—indisputably the most atmospheric time of day.
Ages 14-99, max of 15 per group
Duration: 2h 2m
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
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Highlights
- See a different side of Barcelona on a dark history tour
- Discover information about the city that few tourists ever hear
- Avoid the daytime heat during an evening tour
- Explore in a small group limited to 15 for heightened atmosphere
- Professional local guide
- Small-group walking tour
- Use of projector for images
- Radioguides for communication between the guide and the participants
What's not included- Food and drinks
- Gratuities
- Your tour begins at a designated meeting point in central Barcelona: the time of meeting depends on when twilight falls on the city. Here, greet your guide and embark on a walking tour that reveals the darker side of Barcelona’s history. As you admire landmarks such as the Arc de Triomf outside of Parc de la Ciutadella, listen to tales of the city during its darkest days. As you explore the Gothic Quarter, discover little-known information such as how the Spanish Inquisition affected Barcelona and get acquainted with ancient legends that few tourists ever unearth. The tour concludes at a central Barcelona location.
- Start:
- Arc de Triomf, Ciutat Vella, 08018 Barcelona, SpainThe guide will be under the monumental arch wearing a bright green vest with the company's logo.
End:- El Born Center for Culture and Memory, Plaça Comercial, 12, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 33923P1- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Most travelers can participate
- The number of participants per group is limited
- The tour is not cancelled due to weather conditions so please bring an umbrella if it rains
- Not recommended for children younger than 14
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
- If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 33923P1
Similar experiences
Itinerary
- Arc de Triomf, Ciutat Vella, 08018 Barcelona, SpainThe guide will be under the monumental arch wearing a bright green vest with the company's logo.
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- Plaça Comercial, 12, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
About the operator
Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
- RachelF5260 contributionsGothic Quarter tourGreat tour of the Gothic Quarter. Our guide Jarrod was very informative & made it fun for our two kids (14& 11). We saw lots of things we would never have found on our own. Highly recommend!Written December 3, 2024
- DavidO990 contributionsGreat walking tour in BarcelonaJulie was a great tour guide. She kept a good pace and told stories and history that was interesting and engaging. The walking tour was very interesting and we got to see many things in the area we would have otherwise just walked by or not known about. We are doing another walking tour tomorrow with Runner Bean and were happy to hear Julie is leading that one tomorrow too. Please be sure to give your tour guide a fair amount at the end according to your current circumstances.Written December 1, 2024
- William G0 contributionsWalking Tour of the Gothic QuarterWe did the walking tour of the Gothic Quarter and it truly exceeded my expectations. Jarrod was delightful, knowledgeable and helped us with links to restaurants and venues for the rest of our stay. Perfecto!Written November 22, 2024
- nikkiuk20170 contributionsAn excellent tour around the Gothic Quarter in BarcelonaAnother amazing walking tour around the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona. Lisa brought the history of Catalonia to life and has left a lasting impression on us of this beautiful city.Written November 20, 2024
- SusaninToronto0 contributionsExcellent Gothic Quarter walking tourAlbert was excellent - lots of history information and very enthusiastic. We enjoyed the tour very much - highly recommendWritten November 20, 2024
- nikkiuk20170 contributionsA great introduction to GaudiA brilliant walking tour led by Jarrod. He brought the career of Gaudi to life. We saw buildings around Barcelona ending with the superb Sagrada Familia. Jarrod also introduced his group to travel via the Metro and gave lunch recommendations.Written November 20, 2024
- ErinnBeth0 contributionsExcellent day!We spent a day (6.5 hrs) with Caterina touring Gaudi's works - Parc Guell, Sagrada Familia and La Pedrera. We also saw the facades of Casa Battlo and Hospital de Sant Pau. Caterina was such a wonderful guide. She had so much information to share and a friendly and engaging manner. She also made sure we had time built to stop for rest, bathroom breaks, water, and photos. We learned so much and had such a great day with her. Highly recommend!Written November 14, 2024
- Radulescu T0 contributionsGreat Gaudi tour around BarcelonaWarm, nice and well prepared personnel, Julie was great. Plans and images were used as reference, spent time in front of each objective with explanations and questions answered when put. Strongly recommendWritten November 13, 2024
- Ann C0 contributionsWalking tourI did the Barrio Gótico tour. Free but tip. Enjoyed a lot. Recommend. Very informed guide and tripadvisor is making me write 100 charactersWritten November 9, 2024
- Leelou2700 contributionsExcellent walking tour of Gothic QuarterKathryn was our tour guide of Green Runner Bean Walking Tour of Gothic Quarter. Administration was efficient met in the Placa Reial and started with a self introduction of all the group which relaxed everyone, good presentation skills. She was very knowledgeable, related to each of us and kept us all together. It was a sensible 2.5 hr tour and guided us at the end of the tour with help on where we wanted to visit next. I was surprised when she removed the green gilet and brilliant as would have been more identifiable in crowds but would suggest a bright green folder to hold up to continue the Green Runner Bean theme.Written November 9, 2024
- sslh12270 contributionsknowledgeable history tourToday we had the walking the Gothic quarter with Julie. She was very easy to find in the pre-determined spot. That was important to me being out of the country. The tour started on time and Julie explained where we would be going and what we would be seeing. She had a passion for her job and she was very knowledgeable. I would definitely book this type of tour again.Written November 7, 2024
- dawngecko0 contributionsGothic Quarter TourWe had a wonderful tour of the Gothic quarter with Julie. I have an injured leg and had no problem keeping up with the pace of the tour. Julie shared lots of interesting information about the area and encouraged participation from the audience.Written November 5, 2024
- 12519330 contributionsWow! What an amazing day!My husband and I took a private 6-hour tour of the Gothic Quarter, the Sagrada Familia, and Park Guell, and it was well worth the time and money! It was the best private tour we have ever taken. Our guide, Dani, was aweome! You cannot go wrong with him.Written November 2, 2024
- MarkE7220 contributionsGreat walking tourDid the Gothic area morning walking tour with Noah. Extremely informative and passionate about Barcelona. Sites were great. Tips Noah gave for other places to see and where to eat were very helpful. Noah accommodated all on the tour so need to worry you might be left behind. Answered all questions. Highly recommended.Written October 31, 2024
- Rob D0 contributionsBest tour of BarcelonaJoined the tour late as we were trying to get on the metro and Jarrod gave us a hand. He was an absolute gentleman! Best accidental meeting we could’ve had in Barcelona. Very informative and a pleasure to join his group. ♥️ Thanks, Jarrod again for the fantastic tour!Written October 28, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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90 reviews
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Sharon F
7 contributions
Our party of five took a Gaudì tour with Tati in May. The tour was well run and the meet up spot was easy to find. Tati was very knowledgeable, friendly and answered any questions we had. The tour is free after a modest booking fee and then you pay her what you think she is worth. We really enjoyed the tour.
Written June 6, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sammy609
Providence, RI23 contributions
Oct 2024 • Couples
Ann Marie was outstanding as a tour guide. This was a night tour (as the name would suggest) and she made it as informative, interactive (there was some role playing involved), fun and, as needed, spooky as I could have hoped for. This is especially impressive as her original tour guide could not be present and she stepped in at the last minute, but was an outstanding guide. What we covered was historically relevant, interesting and a part of Barcelona's history that no one ever covers in guidebooks. She was friendly and considerate - checking with us for when to take a break, sit for a spell, etc. This was a core aspect of our brief 4 day visit to Barcelona and well worth the very reasonable price. I would absolutely do this tour again and it would be suitable for older kids - the younger ones may not appreciate the historical overviews.
Written October 16, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kyle
Markham, Canada17 contributions
What an amazing way to spend my evening! The tales of Barcelona's past were great and touring the Gothic Quarter at night made the experience that much more enjoyable. Our guide, Anne-Marie, was incredibly kind and knowledgeable. She made for a great guide!
Written July 6, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
John M
8 contributions
Sep 2024 • Friends
Really interesting night tour of the macabre history of various locales in Barcelona. Noah, the tour guide, was highly knowledgeable and witty, delivering detailed historical information about the Spanish Inquisition along with several other parts of Barcelona's sometimes salacious history as we walked along various sights. Quite enjoyable, off-the-beaten path tour that is a nice complement to viewing the multitude of popular Barcelona tourist attractions. Good value, well worth the price and one of my favorite Barcelona tours. As a bonus, Noah will email you a curated list of his recommendations for the best of Barcelona. At the end of the tour, ask for his recommendation for a great place to get gelato within walking distance of the tour endpoint.
Written September 22, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Examining Misadventures
Santa Clarita, CA133 contributions
It was an interesting couple of hours. The only drawback was sore feet at the end of a long day meant the lack of seating was a bit torturous.
The stories were well done and the guide knew her stuff.
The stories were well done and the guide knew her stuff.
Written September 10, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Glitteratti
16 contributions
An excellent, informative and very interesting tour. Our guide, Ann-Marie, was highly engaging and shared very interesting “dark history” with us. Our teenagers (13, 17 and 19) all enjoyed the tour a lot (surprise!) and the two hours just flew by. This was more than what we expected and I highly recommend this. Not for children as the dark history (ie about torture methods and executions in the past) could be a bit much.
Written July 1, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
debbie w
Urmston, UK43 contributions
Myself and my 21 year old son did the tour with Sara on 19th October 24 with Sara as a guide.
The tour was really interesting and informative. Sara was an excellent guide, very helpful, interesting, friendly and informative. She clearly has a passion for history and Barcelona..
Would recommend.
The tour was really interesting and informative. Sara was an excellent guide, very helpful, interesting, friendly and informative. She clearly has a passion for history and Barcelona..
Would recommend.
Written October 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SamP07
Hereford, UK40 contributions
A very knowledgeable and friendly guide, in Noah. Helpful to fill in the history of the area and give us general tips about our time in Barcelona.
The history might be a bit much to take in for under 12s, but as an adult I enjoyed it all.
The history might be a bit much to take in for under 12s, but as an adult I enjoyed it all.
Written April 9, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for your review. Please note that the tour you took with us is the adult Gothic Quarter Free Walking Tour, not the Dark Past Night Walking Tour that you have selected in the review. We do also offer a Kids & Family Walking Tour around the Gothic Quarter but then again, this is an entirely different tour specialised for families with children.
All the best :-)
Gorka (Runner Bean Tours Barcelona)
Written April 15, 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Valerie M
Waregem, Belgium17 contributions
Jun 2022
Me and my mom loved this tour. We did it in the summer so there was more daylight but it didn't matter. There was a great atmosphere. MIguel was great and told the stories with passion. He made it interactive so we weren't just listening. We learned a lot about Barcelona's dark history and the group was rather small, so only positives. He gave also some recommendations for dinner or a good bar.
Written June 27, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
N Froumin
1 contribution
Sep 2018 • Couples
Before the Inquisition of 1492 the ruler of Barcelona granted a hill just outside Barcelona to the Jews of the town to be their cemetery. To this day the hill is called Montjuic. But there are no gravestones. This is because a subsequent ruler of Barcelona needed bricks and stones to build a new palace and used the gravestones to build the walls. I was on a tour of the Old City and the guide showed us some of the still existing Hebrew letters etched on the gravestones used to build the walls.
Written April 26, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
looking for night of Nov 5 don't see on calendar
Written August 21, 2019
Hi
It is gory by description, but based on fact, so be aware, most boys that age will love it!
I would pay for your son as an adult as he is on the tour, it is a low cost outlay in the first place. Pretty sure children younger would not go as not suitable.
Enjoy.
Written August 10, 2019
Bonjour, est-ce que la visite guidée est possible en français svp?
Written August 4, 2019
No se si lo dan en espanol
Written July 23, 2019
do we get to see the magic fountain?
Written August 16, 2018
The Magic Fountain is in Montjüic, very far from where this tour takes place. Please bear in mind that this is not a sightseeing tour but a history walk to learn about the darker side of the history of the city (Spanish Inquisition, methods of execution, etc).
Written August 16, 2018
The tour lasts for 2 hours approximately. We start at Arc de Triomf and end at El Born CC (Plaça Comercial).
Written June 24, 2018
marshallmonica
Singapore, Singapore
Hi, I just read that the starting time will be at 9pm? (we will arrive in Spain, BCN 6 July late evening) We thought we will do this Dark History Night walking on 7 July. Our daughter is 15 y.o going to 16 y.o. Do you think it'll be too much with 5 hours time difference body clock (we are ahead of time)?.
Thank you .
Written June 16, 2018
Sorry for the delay. Unfortunately, TripAdvisor didn't send us a notification. I will contact them immediately so they can fix this problem.
Regarding your question, jet lag affects in different ways to different people. You probably know your daughter better to gauge if she will be OK with the time difference.
Please let me know if you need anything else :-)
Written June 24, 2018
Our son is will be 13 and a half - I noticed this tour said 14 and up. Is this tour interesting for a 13 year old or too gruesome? Thanks.
Written June 3, 2018
Sorry for the delay. Unfortunately, TripAdvisor didn't send us a notification. I will contact them immediately so they can fix this problem.
Regarding your question, each child is different and sometimes younger children do join the tour and enjoy it. Please contact us directly so we can give you more information if needed.
Hope this helps :-)
Written June 24, 2018
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