Last Updated on September 27, 2026 by Christian Heide
Six thousand guests. When we started The Barcelona Feeling in 2018, we could never have imagined that one day we would be looking back at a number like this. Six thousand people have walked through Barcelona with us – either in person or virtually. Six thousand people have listened to our stories, asked questions, shared their own experiences and trusted us to show them a little of the city we love. But behind that number are thousands of encounters, conversations, laughs and memories.
And it all started with our very first guest.
It all started in 2018
When we created The Barcelona Feeling in 2018, our idea was simple. We didn’t want to offer tours where visitors simply moved from one famous sight to another, listening to a list of facts along the way. We wanted to show people the Barcelona we know and love — the Barcelona of hidden streets, fascinating stories, beautiful architecture, local traditions and unexpected details. Above all, we wanted our guests to feel that they were exploring the city with friends who happened to know Barcelona really well.
Our first experiences focused on the historic heart of the city, particularly the Gothic Quarter and El Born. With every tour, we discovered just how much we enjoyed sharing Barcelona with people from all over the world. But sometimes, you do not realise that one special moment is going to become part of your story until many years later. For us, that moment was meeting Susan from Indianapolis.
Susan was our very first guest. She was travelling solo and booked not one, but two tours with us. We connected almost immediately, and what began as two tours around Barcelona turned into a friendship that has lasted far beyond her visit. Susan would become part of another important chapter in our story. When the pandemic brought tourism to a standstill and we started developing our Zoom Around Panoramic Barcelona virtual tour, Susan became our guinea pig. She patiently tested the experience with us, gave us feedback and helped us turn an idea into something we could actually share with guests around the world.
Looking back now, there is something rather special about knowing that the journey that would eventually lead to 6,000 guests began with one solo traveller from Indianapolis – who would later help us shape an entirely new chapter of the business.
Our first guest became 10, then 50, then 100.
And before we knew it, the small project we had started with so much enthusiasm was becoming something much bigger.
500 guests – our first big milestone
In September 2019, we welcomed our 500th guest. We were incredibly proud.
At that point, every booking still felt like a little victory. Every review made us smile. And every time someone recommended us to friends or family, we realised that The Barcelona Feeling was becoming something that people genuinely valued. Our guests were already coming from all over the world. Some were visiting Barcelona for the first time, while others knew the city well but wanted to discover a different side of it.
That remains one of the things we love most about being tour guides: no two guests are the same, and every tour becomes a little different because of the people we meet.
2,500 guests – a very different milestone
Then came 2020.
Like travel businesses everywhere, we suddenly found ourselves in a world where international visitors had disappeared and our tours came to a standstill. It was a difficult and uncertain time. But we didn’t want to simply wait for tourism to return. Instead, we looked for a way to keep sharing Barcelona with people, even when they could not physically be here. That led us to create our online experience, Zoom Around Panoramic Barcelona. For a while, our living rooms became our meeting places and our guests joined us virtually from around the world.
In August 2021, we reached 2,500 guests. Under normal circumstances, that would have been an exciting milestone. After everything that had happened, it felt even more special. It showed us that people were still interested in Barcelona, even when they couldn’t actually be here.
And eventually, we could once again share Barcelona in person.
Growing again
As tourism returned, The Barcelona Feeling continued to grow. In March 2023, we reached 4,000 guests.
By then, our experiences had evolved considerably. Alongside our Barcelona walking tours, we had created experiences around Gaudí and Barcelona’s legends, food and tapas, Cava and chocolate, Montjuïc and the landscapes beyond the city.
But our basic philosophy had not changed. We still preferred small groups and personal experiences. We wanted time to answer questions, have conversations and adapt a tour to the people standing in front of us.
Another important change came in 2024, when we gradually made the decision to focus exclusively on private tours. Over the years, we had learned that this was what we enjoyed most — having more flexibility, adapting each experience to our guests and simply having more time for conversations.
In 2025, we reached another milestone: 5,000 guests. Looking back, it was amazing to realise how far we had come since those first tours in 2018. But we were already looking ahead.
And Now There Are 6,000
In September 2026, we reached 6,000 guests.
At this point, the number itself is less important than the people behind it. Over the years, we have shown Barcelona to couples, families, groups of friends and plenty of solo travellers. Some were visiting for the first time, while others came back years later and booked another tour with us. There have been guests who knew very little about Barcelona when they arrived and left with a favourite neighbourhood, building or story. And there have been many conversations, recommendations and friendships along the way. That is what we value most about doing this.
Our Journey So Far
2018 — The Barcelona Feeling begins
2019 — 500 guests
2021 — 2,500 guests
2023 — 4,000 guests
2025 — 5,000 guests
2026 — 6,000 guests
Six thousand guests later, we are still doing what we set out to do in 2018: showing people the Barcelona we know and love. And there are still plenty of stories left to tell.
Thank You
To everyone who has joined us over the years: thank you.
Thank you for choosing us, for your curiosity and for the many wonderful reviews and recommendations. And thank you to those who have returned to Barcelona and decided to explore with us again.
We started with one guest. Today, there are 6,000. We look forward to meeting the next one.
See you on the streets of Barcelona!
Christian & Michael