6 reasons to visit Barcelona in June

June, 08, 2022. Written by Clara De Nadal Trias

Discover with me the 6 definitive reasons to visit Barcelona in June!

Parties, traditions, quintessential celebrations, festivals, exhibitions, outdoor terraces, sun, heat and beach: these are some of the keywords for the month of June in Barcelona. Ready to start this summer in the best way?

L’ou com balla

The tradition of "L'ou com balla" (the dancing egg), which is celebrated on Corpus Christi (between June 16 and 19), consists of making an egg dance with a stream of water. Fountains in gardens, cloisters, inner courtyards, and religious places of worship are adorned with flowers and fruits, while empty eggs are balanced by spouting water from the fountains to 'dance'. In Barcelona there are several corners in which you can enjoy this very curious tradition and some of them are: the Barcelona Cathedral, Frederic Marès Museum, Marítim Museum, Ardiaca House, Ateneu Barcelonès, Parròquia de la Puríssima Concepció and the Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Pedralbes. Let’s dance!

Sónar (Barcelona)

The International Festival of Advanced Music and New Media Art Sónar, better known as Sónar, is an international electronic and experimental music festival that takes place every June in Barcelona. The festival is made up of two well-differentiated spaces. On one hand, the festival offers a variety of electronic music concerts, plus a fair hall named Sónar+D, that started in 2012 in which the most cutting-edge advances in the field of contemporary music technology are exhibited. It was founded in Barcelona in 1994 by Ricard Robles, Enric Palau and Sergi Caballero. In addition to the festival, concerts and parties are organized in Barcelona, known as Off-sonar. Both the 2020 and 2021 editions had to be canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this year Sónar finally returns on June 18, 19 and 20, 2022. Hey, ho, let’s go!

10º Festival Jardins Palau Reial de Pedralbes

From June 7th to July 16th, the Jardins Pedralbes Festival returns. This is a project by Concert Studio, which was born out of a passion for music and the city of Barcelona. Pursuing the dream of offering an open space, in the open air, in contact with nature and history and with the support of the Barcelona City Council and the Ministry of Culture of the Generalitat de Catalunya, the idea finally materialized in the Palace Gardens de Pedralbes in 2012. Today, thanks to all the attendees, the festival has grown, becoming a benchmark in Europe. Over two months (June and July), the Jardins de Pedralbes 2022 Festival will offer a wide range of music through concerts of various musical styles with stars such as James Blunt, Andrés Calamaro, Patti Smith, Agnes Obel, Jessie J, Rosario, The Beach Boys, Gilberto Gil, Raphael, Ben Harper, Diego El Cigala, Il Divo, Loquillo, Crystal Fighters, Pablo Alborán… And many more!

Concerts Simfònic

Welcome to a new opportunity to dance with the sound of the concerts by Concerts Simfònics: nothing more and nothing less than 100 free and simultaneous concerts throughout Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. Thousands of musicians and singers participate in them, there are concerts in the morning and in the afternoon and they are very varied: classical, traditional, gospel, jazz, pop, rock, swing, rap, hip hop, electronic music... And so on, until infinity and beyond. In Barcelona there will be many concerts and they will spread over various neighborhoods of the city. In previous editions, stages were installed in the Palau de la Música, in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Pí, in the Harlem Jazz Club, in the Picasso Museum or in the Barcelona Zoo... Are you ready for this year? See you on June 11 at 6:00 p.m.

Primavera Sound

After having to be postponed again in 2021, finally this 2022 the well-known music festival Primavera Sound returns, from June 2 to 12, with tickets on sale from June 1. The first weekend will take place Weekend 1, from June 2 to 4, with headliners such as The Strokes, Tyler, The Creator, Pavement, Tame Impala, Massive Attack, Gorillaz, The National, Jorja Smith, Beck, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Bauhaus, Charli XCX, Disclosure, Maria del Mar Bonet, C. Tangana… Among many others. In between, from June 5 to 8, a spectacular edition of Primavera a la Ciutat will spread more than 150 concerts through the different venues of Barcelona ??with artists such as: Beck, Interpol, Disclosure DJ set, Jamie XX, Jorja Smith, Megan Thee Stallion, etc. From June 9 to 11 is the time for Weekend 2, with guests such as Griff, Erika de Casier, Priya Ragu, Holly Humbertsone, Amaarae, Squid, Dry Cleaning, Cuban Doll, Tarta Relena, Renaldo & Clara, Rigoberta Bandini, Fred Again… And finally, Brunch-On the Beach (Sant Adriá), will take place on June 12 with Amelie Lens, Nina Kraviz, Peggy Gou, Chaos In The CBD, Héctor Oaks, Joyhauser, Monolink, Nicola Cruz (dj set), Anika Kunst and Malika. Are you going to miss it?

La verbena de Sant Joan

The quintessential “verbena” festival of Sant Joan celebrates the beginning of summer, the night of June 23 to 24, and is the longest day of the year (known as the Summer Solstice). It is considered one of the most important festivals for Catalans and is celebrated throughout the city with bonfires and fireworks. Sant Joan is often described by Catalans as "La Nit del Foc" (The Night of Fire), which is why in the days before the celebrations you will see firework stalls all over the city, with endless queues in the street. Many groups of families and friends organize dinners on their balconies and terraces from where they launch firecrackers and enjoy watching the fireworks, culminating the dinner with the "Coca de Sant Joan" (a typical dessert similar to a cake) and dancing throughout the night. If you don't have friends in Barcelona to celebrate it at their home, the most common place to celebrate it is in the beach and specifically Barceloneta beach, with groups that bring picnics, fireworks and listen to music in the beach bars or live musicians and drummers. Do not dare to miss it!

Article written and translated by Clara De Nadal Trias.

More info about Barcelona here.