During the summer in Barcelona, drinking a cocktail or cold glass of beer or wine in one of the cities many beach bars is one of the greatest pleasures. The change to feel the cool breeze the sea brings in the heat of the day and enjoy the chilled out Ibiza-esque ambiance.
Chiringuitos are an essential feature of Spanish culture, in essence they are simple beach shacks where the main attraction is their simplicity and informality – nothing more than shade from the sun, chairs and tables, and a fridge full of cold beer.
Since the 90’s and the popularity of Ibiza with clubbers the Chiringuito concept has been taken up market, fused with the lounge and post-club chill out concept, boosted by the global fame of the Café del Mar in Ibiza and the CD’s it spawned. So as well as the traditional beach shacks nowadays one can find designer upmarket takes on the Chiringuito.
Barcelona beaches offer a bit of the old and a bit of the new. Among the most popular beach bars are the Chiringuito Bogatell, the Chiringuito Inercia ,the Chiringuito Mochima, and the Chiringuito Marbella, the latter is particularly popular with the gay community. Shoko and Opium are more upmarket bars set back from the sand but with the laid back beach vibe.
All Chiringuitos offer full meals, snacks, soft drinks, beers, wines and cocktails. At night time Barcelona’s beach bars shake off their horizontally inclined day time feel and become the focus of a night time scene with music, dancing and drinks.
See our selection of Barcelona beach apartments to see where to stay to take full advantage of Barcelona’s beach bars.
