The long Las Ramblas promenade where a van ploughed into pedestrians on Thursday is a tree-lined walkway that starts in a huge plaza and ends near Barcelona’s harbour. It’s filled with cafes, restaurants, stalls selling everything from souvenirs to flowers, the city’s famed opera house and a baroque palace.
It stretches 1.2km, with a pedestrian-only walkway in the centre of the avenue and vehicles allowed on both sides.
Las Ramblas is one of Barcelona’s top tourist draws, a place to stroll and soak in the city’s historic charm while doing some serious people-watching.
“Las Ramblas is Barcelona’s Champs Elysees or Times Square,” said Pauline Frommer, editorial director of Frommer’s guidebooks. “It’s mostly where tourists go to see and be seen and be entertained. There’s a feeling of excitement and being at the centre of it all.”
The avenue can have a honky-tonk atmosphere because there are so many street performers and draws for tourists to spend their money, but it’s also close walking distance from many other Barcelona tourist attractions.
