The best way to get a good feel for the city is to catch the Bus Turístic in Plaça Catalunya. This is a convertible double deck bus that travels along two different routes around the city. Passengers can jump on and off the bus at any given Bus Turístic stop and stay for as long as they like. It's a great half-day starter.

Now for touring, here's the scoop… Barcelona can be broken into three eras:

1) The really old era
2) The turn of the 20th century era
3) The post 1990s era

Depending on how many days you have I suggest seeing something from each era.

Visiting Barcelona's ancient past is not so much a matter of running around the city and checking off monuments and sites, it's more about meandering through the old narrow streets of the Barrio Gotico and the Born area. Walk around behind the Barcelona cathedral and get lost down the narrow alleyways. It's easy to imagine how this was a walled city crammed full of people. (By the way, all tourists are told to go to the Ramblas and they all are disappointed. Personally, it's dirty and crowded and way too hyped up.)

Just walk around and take it in. I like to have a glass of wine at the little wine bar in front of the church the Santa Maria del Mar in the Born area and people watch.

If you want to walk with a purpose, visit the following:

· The Gothic Cathedral
· Santa Maria del Mar
· Plaça Sant Jaume

Personally, there is one must-see in this old area. I highly recommend visiting the Museo de Historia de la Ciudad in the Plaça del Rei. This isn't a popular tourist destination and I don't know why because it's fascinating. Visitors walk underground on catwalks hovering above excavated Roman and medieval ruins. You can see where the Romans made wine, did their laundry and you can even see a mosaic floor from an old Roman home.

Also, if you have time and you're really interested in Catalan history, head over to the former Mercat del Born (Calle Comerç near the Parc de la Ciutadella) and take a peak through the fence at the excavation. Barcelona was going to use this former neighborhood market for a library but when they began digging they found remnants of the big battle on September 11, 1714 when Catalonia was officially overrun by Spain.

Otherwise known as the Modernist movement, this was a booming time for Barcelona. Many of the ornate buildings built in the early 1900s are well preserved and functioning today. Click here to go on a virtual tour of some Modernist buildings.

The Eixampla district is the area with the largest concentrations of Modernist buildings in all of Europe. If you want, just walk around and take it in. I recommend walking the streets Rambla Catalunya, Paseo de Gràcia, Pau Claris and Roger de Llúria and just look at the decorative facades, the ornate entryways and the intricate wrought iron.

This is also the era of the famous architect Gaudí. Visiting some of his buildings are worth your time. If you are going to only see one, visit the Sagrada Familia and make sure you visit the museum in the basement to see plans on what the project will look like upon completion. The second best one would be to tour the rooftop of the Pedrera building. During summer they have concerts here are well.

Modernist era must-sees:

• see photo tour of sights

  Palau de la Música (try to see a concert)
• La Pedrera
• Casa Battló
• Temple of the Sagrada Familia
• Casa "Les Punxes"
• Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau

Barcelona was home to the 1992 Summer Olympics and much construction was done in anticipation of the games. If your time is limited I would only spend half a day touring Mont Juïc, home of the Olympic games. This is the hill to the south of the city. Visit the stadium, the swimming pool and you can also visit the Joan Miró Museum while you're there.

On your way up Mont Juïc you may have seen some fountains leading up to what looks like a palace but which is an art museum. This is Plaça España. If you like art visit this museum (the National Museum of Art in Catalunya) and the neighboring Caixa Forum museum. This is a wonderful place to visit on warm summer nights because there is a fountain show in front of the big art museum. (However, I don't recommend walking around other parts of Mont Juïc at night.)

Although not immediately near Mont Juïc, the Olympic village was also built for the 1992 Olympics. This isn't worth your time seeing if you have limited time.