Experience real Barcelona in new clandestine bars

With singers such as Manu Chao paying some a visit, the bars have to be among the best.

El Mariachi, a bar which from the outside looks like a shop, is Keeley's suggestion as one of the best bars in Barcelona.

Mix-and-match furniture, as well as beers and spirits is the order of the day, so for those looking for something off the beaten track, heading here is a sure-fire winner.

One of the regulars tells the travel journalist: "This is the most popular place with musicians in the city. Sometimes they jam here.

"The cocktails are great but what goes in them no one is really sure."

The majority of the new clandestine bars, in the Barrio Gotico, El Raval and Gracia areas of the city, have been set up by squatters, and are places where tales can be traded, music played, and alcohol drunk.

Often the bars are behind metal doorways, and Keeley suggests the unnamed spot opposite 5 Carrer d'en Carabassa or the dimly lit doorway on the Carrer de la Neu de Sant Cugat as being some of the best places to go.

They may not be for everyone, but for those looking to get a taste of authentic Spanish bar life, a great time can be had.