Barcelona is a relatively safe city, but as in any other big city you must follow some safety rules to avoid bad experiences…
Be alert. Pickpockets are likely to be around in most tourist sites: La Rambla, the squares and streets around the Cathedral and the Picasso Museum, the surroundings of the Sagrada Família church (and even in the spiral stairs of its towers!), the beach, the most popular parks.
- Do not consider the back pocket of your jeans a safe place for your wallet. It’s not!
- Wear your backpack in front of you. If you are a lady, carry your bag so its the opening faces forward.
- If you drop your bags (while taking a picture or when having a drink in a bar), keep them between your feet, so nobody can grab them and run away.
Some typologies of people you shouldn’t trust:
- Young ladies begging: they are gypsies from Romania that often pickpocket. They usually carry babies with them, wear long skirts and their hair bunched. Lately I’ve seen some of them pretending they are doing a sort of inquiry to help handicapped people.
- Ladies selling carnations: They are local gypsies and go usually in couples. They are pickpockets.
- Street gamblers. They work in groups in La Rambla, pretending a passer-by is making money guessing under which recipient is the little ball, trying to attract their victims. They cheat, it is impossible to win. Don’t even bother to stop watching.
There is only one area in the Old Town where I recommend NOT to go. It is the neighborhood to the left of the lower part of La Rambla (Barrio Chino or Low Raval). It is the area framed by La Rambla and the streets Sant Pau, Rambla del Raval and Arc del Teatre (although it is true the rule that the closest you stay to La Rambla, the safer it feels: an example is the Güell Palace in Nou de la Rambla St.)
This tip is provided by supplier M15393
