This park, formerly a military base, is more interesting for its social life than its botanic and architectural value. There’s a romantic lake where you can hire boats, a cute winter garden and abundant vegetation.

There’s an eclectic bunch of visitors to the park – couples searching for a spot to share some intimacy, old folks feeding the birds and the unmissable improvised percussion jams on Sundays.

Ciutadella Park, Passeig Pujades; nearest metro: Ciutadella-Vila Olimpica

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This is a real find - a spectacularly good restaurant off the beaten track. We were lucky enough to be taken here by friends from Barcelona or we would never have ventured far enough into the Barri Gotic.

Tucked down one of the many winding, cobbled roads that makes up the old part of Barcelona, this is not the cheapest restaurant in Barcelona (not expensive by London standards though) but it's the best one we found. It's got a real character with a lovely mezzanine level, friendly staff and romantic decor. The food is so good my step dad was moved to ask to shake the chef's hand - whereupon he and my mum were treated to an impromptu cookery class! Now that's a good night out...

Carrer del Cometa

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Barcelona's most romantic square is, somewhat ironically, suffused with a rather sad history. Underneath it lies the city's old cemetery. Barcelona's most famous architect, Antoni Gaudí, was on his way to visit the church there when he was run over by a tram in 1928. The square's ghosts are peaceful ones, however, and in the early evening light of a summer's day there can be no more beautiful spot in the city.

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