Hiking matters #350: Outdoor and hiking shops in Barcelona, Spain

1. Decathlon (www.decathlon.es) - This is a chain of outdoor and sporting mega-shops operating in many countries, including Singapore and China. There are several branches in the Barcelona area. The one I visited was close to La Rambla, Barcelona's most famous street. One entire floor is devoted to the outdoors! The main in-house brand is Quechua but there are many others. Quechua has very competitive prices and a really pair of trekking pants is on sale at EUR49.

Decathlon Barcelona

Decathlon Barcelona

2. Vertic Outdoors (verticoutdoor.com) - This one, I think, is more 'hardcore' than Decathlon and their people really know what they are talking about. They even have boots for Mt. Everest, and their selection of clothing and gear is vast (check out their online catalog). Some interesting brands that are not available in the Philippines include the Italian Salewa and the Swedish brand Haglöfs. There are three branches in Barcelona, but the first one is the most accessible from the city center:

3. Intersport Barcelona (intersport.com) - Another global 'mega-store'e this one located in the Gracia area of the city, plus some other branches:

4. Esports Mañanes (esportsmananes.com) - Unlike the above, this one seems to be a standalone store but also with a nice selection - and some good deals. The store is very near the Decathlon in Carrer de la Canuda:

5. Brand stores and Los Cortes Ingles - There is a Salewa store just beside the Decathlon store I mentioned above; there is also The North Face in the Gran Via. The big department stores of El Corte Ingles - the 'SM of Spain' - are also worth visiting.