Barcelona - Picking up essentials before the cruise

[Rysyonok]

With all the recent stories of air traffic congestions and lost or delayed checked-in luggage and rescheduled flights, my partner and I are going to attempt a barebones trip to our May 2023 cruise. That means packing a carry-on bag only, bringing along only those items whose cheap equivalents cannot be purchased locally in Barcelona, Spain. As in, we're going to be scouting for sunscreen, toothpaste, flipflops, etc., and maybe even some disposable clothing in Spain. And the allowed amount of alcohol, of course.

 

Now, this would have worked out fine in the US, with a Walmart or Walgreens available all over the place. A European city may be different.

 

How easy is it to find essentials without paying for them tenfold in Barcelona? Are certain supermarket chains better than others?

[Dancer Bob]

Depends partly how much time you have prior to your cruise.

"Farmacia" are everywhere. Commercial centres with big chains like Carrefour can be found near some Metro stops. Prices are comparable to US (VAT is included in the advertised price).

[VMax1700]

Apart from the big supermarket type stores within the shopping malls ('Centro Comercial' in Spain) you will find a Carrefour store half way down Las Ramblas on the West side.  They have a good selection of wine and the usual supermarket stuff - toothpaste, sunscreen, deoderant, chips 😉 etc. 

[sleepingcat]

mercadona (several in Barcelona, but find a large one), tends to be a bit cheaper than carrefour (Carrefour is a French company and good quality). Nice toiletries in Mercadona, I have specially looked for the hand cream on several visits. 

Clothing is a bit more difficult, but try an outdoor market, Ive bought things like trainers and handbags for about 5 euros a time. And Barcelona has a lot of the European chains: depending on your style, Zara is a Spanish company and very stylish.

 

ah, Ive just been using my mapping programme: Barcelona has several branches of Primark, which is the good value chain here in the UK so I would head there for clothing.

[Dancer Bob]

Also, you need to know your European size. Size ranges are stocked for the local market,

[hrhdhd]

If you have enough time to run around for sunscreen and clothes, just check a bag. It'll catch up to you on the off chance that it doesn't arrive with you.

[Maria63]

For clothes, toiletries, flipflops etc I would go to "El Corte Inglés". It may not be the cheapest but you will find everything conveniently under one roof. It is actually the biggest department store group in Europe (acc. to Wikipedia). In Barcelona there is one located at Placa de Catalunya.