We travelled as a family of 3 from London to Barcelona on easyjet. We stayed at Barcelona Princess which is in the diagonal Mar area of Barcelona near the beach. Loved the area and loved the hotel too. We were given rooms on the 14th floor facing the ocean. The rooms were not too big but were adequate for 2 people with electric black out blinds, flat screen TV and a funky bathroom area with separate shower and toilet. We had breakfast included which was OK however didn't like the coffee from the machine.
Barcelona is a great city with lots to do. We spent 4 nights pre-cruise at this hotel which was close to metro, beach, shopping centre next door with many restaurants, next to tram stop. So highly convenient to get to and from centre of Barcelona and the las ramblas area. Over the 4 days, we did the hop on hop off bus tour which had a stop right next to the hotel. We also visited the sagrada familia (Gaudi's famous church) which is a must visit. Top tip is to go early in the morning and queue up for tickets. Use the vouchers from hop on hop off bus tour for discounts to entrance to this attraction and many more. We also took a cable car to a mountain which had a cathedral at the top which was very pretty. Also visited Casa mila which was another super attraction. So lots to do and I think to do everything in Barcelona, I would recommend a full week prior to or post cruise.
On the day of embarkation we took a taxi from the hotel which cost us nearly 30 euros. Embarkation was a breeze but then I wanted to use my credit card to pay for my mum's spending on board. However for that I had to join a separate queue whereby there was only one member of staff and there were nearly 10 people before me. This took nearly half an hour and everyone in the queue was complaining. Not sure why they can't have 2 to 3 people serving here when they have lots of staff in normal check-in areas.