Have read lots of stories about crime in Barcelona, and my wife and I have been to many of the major European cities, so I’m wondering if it’s actually just similar to those, or if it really is worse for theft than other cities. We’re pretty aware of people trying to rip us off and pickpocket, and never carry stuff in pockets that can be picked (I wear a jacket with an inside pocket that zips). I’m going to be walking around with my digital SLR, which I know will peg me as a tourist, but if you saw me, in Spain, you’d know I was a foreigner from 60 yards anyway. I do blend in ok here in Germany though.
Sorry for this slight hijack but I’ve often wondered how strong the strap on a good camera is. I wonder if someone who wanted to take mine would be able to snap the camera from the strap quick enough to escape a kick in the nuts.
I know one person who has been in Barcelona. He was there last Spring. At the airport, he changed a rather large number of Swiss franks for euros. He was followed, apparently, from the airport to his hotel to the subway. At the subway, just as a train was coming in, one man dropped a pile of books at his feet; another grabbed his ankles; a third took his wallet out of his back pocket. He was then shoved into the subway train, which whisked him away from the scene.
Gee…thanks for that reassuring story, Sattua. That said, I am travel savvy enough to not make it pretty apparent that I’m carrying 500 Euro or so. (not that I ever carry that much cash).
It’s up there with cities like London for crime rates - not extraordinary, but enough to make you take care. And there seems to be endless inventive distraction scams in the city. But as with anywhere else - look like a tourist, act like a tourist, become an obvious target.
Wow. Had a very similar experience on the Madrid subway.
Just as the train arrived, one guy bumped into me roughly from my right side and entangled his arm with mine, while a second guy reached for my wallet and shoved me toward the open door. Luckily, I am a pretty big guy (and they were both pretty small). I was able to overpower the first guy and get a hand on my wallet before the second guy managed to extract it. Weirdly, they both joined me on the train. Doors closed, they sat opposite me. Shoving guy started griping at wallet grabbing guy (presumably for botching the job; I couldn’t make out what he was saying). When I glared at them, they just smiled sheepishly and shrugged their shoulders.
No problems during my three days in Barcelona, though.
Barcelona has a pretty neat feature that will render robbers completely useless: a (fairly recent) law that permits anyone to walk around stark-naked! I say make them jealous of something they can never steal.
Ditto. I had no idea the city had a reputation for anything like this before I opened the thread. Great city to walk around, though common sense should always be in paly…
Every story I’ve heard about muggings in Barcelona or Madrid has happened on the train or subway. When we were in Madrid, we met an Australian man who had been totally mugged while alone on the subway. Barcelone has a lot of dark shadowy alley way places, great to see in the daytime but maybe better to avoid at night. We walked around both cities at night but were very cautious. Then it was on to Amsterdam, where our rental car was vandalized and the radio stolen. GO figure!
Spent some time in Barcelona a couple years ago. It’s a neat city with lots to see and do. La Rambla is the main drag that’s packed with tourists and street people and artists. You have to be mindful of your money and valuables as you stand and watch in a crowd. There are the usual scams, including the 3-card monte that was worked to absolute perfection (better than what I saw on the streets of NY). I was always attentive to my surroundings and kept very little of value on my person when I strolled around. There was only one incident that could’ve turned out bad. We stopped at an internet cafe where I did some emailing. Left my backpack by my feet as I pecked away on the keyboard when I noticed that the backpack was moving slowly away from me. Apparently someone was trying to snitch it right from under me. I caught him in the act and scared him away. So that’s the kind of things you need to watch out for. Never take your attention away from your valuables.
I’ve been to Barcelona a few times and found it all fine and dandy.
My brother went once and got comprehensively mugged. Leather jacket, wallet, mobile phone, Mp3 player, passport; the works. Oh, and beaten up, too.
So based on personal experience, I’d say it was a fantastic place, and completely safe. If you asked him, he’d say it was a pit and he’s never going back.
I lived in Barcelona 8 years, Mom’s from there, gramps live there.
It’s dangerous if you:
*go whoring/drugging
*insist in carrying all your money on you, in a big roll of bills that you take out of your handbag every time you need to pay. For some reason, many tourists do this. :smack:
*buy anything from a touristy shop (but this kind of robbery is legal )
*wear a fanny pack. Only tourists wear fanny packs, so they’re like a sign saying “hey, I’m from the other end of the world and this stupid colored thing is full of cash and documents”.
When you walk down the street, carry any handbags so that the strap is across your body (not just hanging from a shoulder) and the bag itself is on the buildings’ side; quite a few handbags are stolen by guys on bikes. Leave your passport and most of your cash in the hotel’s strongbox. Carry some of your money and ID’s in different places.
Most safety recommendations are the same as in any other town:
if the place looks like a dumpster, it probably is
if the street stinks of pee, get the hell out
avoid dark corners
If you want to go out at night, ask the hotel receptionist for information. After going to the theater (who needs to understand the words in a musical?), you’ll probably be better off with a taxi or bus than with the metro.
There is a tourist bus you can take in Plaza Catalunya (and many other places) that will take you directly to the biggest monuments; it’s very cheap (it’s a public bus, not a private company) and each ticket is valid for the whole day, as many trips as you want.
The naked thing somebody mentioned is country wide: being stark naked is legal except where local regulations indicate otherwise. But it’s still not socially-recommended behaviour and most stores would refuse to serve you if all you wear is your fanny pack, white socks and sandals. Yes, it is legal for a store to deem you as “an unacceptable customer” based on the fact that your butt is showing. And most churches expect visitors to wear long trousers (or skirts for women) and a shirt that doesn’t show your bellybutton or half your tits.
Oh, and looks don’t peg you as a tourist except for the fanny pack.
First time I saw a 3D black person was 21 years ago and in Ireland. Now there’s a Chinese family and a Colombian family in the same apartment building as my mother; a “den” of Lithuanians at my bro’s (we call it a “den” when there seems to be a lot more of them than what that apartment is zoned for). Everybody and his dog seems to have a Tshirt from a foreign university or from when his cousin went to London.
And there’s so many Germans who move down here, it’s not a novelty any more.
Yeah, we don’t carry fanny packs, and are pretty good about watching our surroundings. We both have money belts to be worn under our pants, and will not have anything snitchable. I will have my digital SLR with me, in the smallest bag that holds it, slung across my chest, inside my coat. They might know I have it, but it’d be pretty hard to get it from me without me knowing about it. Like I said, we’ve been all over Europe and never had a problem, and I’m a pretty big guy (6 feet, 225 lbs, mostly muscle), so people don’t tend to bother us when I am alert. I will not be carrying my SLR at night, though.
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