A well kept secret in Barcelona is the fact that the locals are partial to chocolate. If you have a sweet tooth too, then forget the Picasso Museum, Barcelona Cathedral or Parc de Montjuïc and take a visit to The Chocolate Museum. Your mouth will soon be watering as you smell the delicious creations and set eyes upon the mountains of chocolate and sweet sculptures.

Easter is a feast in Barcelona and at this time of year you'll find amazing chocolate sculptures displayed in the city's patisseries. The Museo de La Xocolata is associated with Barcelona Confectionary Guild and the Pastry School and teaches you everything you ever wanted to know about chocolate. With workshops aimed at children and adults you can find out the history behind the varied uses of chocolate, from its medicinal purposes, its effects as an aphrodisiac, and its nutritional value.

Find out how it was invented, salivate over the sweet sculptures, and then relax at the café for some hot chocolate. The creations here are out of this world with master sculptors designing unbelievable 'monas' of cartoon characters, as well as exact miniature models of famous buildings in Barcelona.

The city also has its fair share of skilled chocolate artisans who easily give the Belgian and Swiss a run for their money. Well-known for experimenting with different flavours and textures, the chocolate here is quite distinct from other chocolate-making countries.

Centuries of travelling and trading with South America has left its mark throughout Barcelona, it can be spotted in the wonderful architecture, the city's bustling port, and most noticeably in its xocolata. The locals like to drink their thick dark hot chocolate at anytime of the day, in the morning for breakfast, as a mid day snack and at night, often eaten with sweet bready churros.

Take a short tour around the city and you'll soon stumble across one of most successful brands, Xocoa, founded by the Escursell brothers, the chocolates come in all shapes and forms, chocolate CD's and candles and chocolate beer. A chic and cool place to hang out it attracts the trendy young Catalan locals. The Escursell brothers are also responsible for Demasié located at Carrer Princesa. This delightful shop specializes in cookies with the emphasis on homemade products.

Another chocolate haven is Cacao Sampaka, As you walk through the door the odour of chocolate seeps into every pore of your body and your eyes are treated to a feast of multi-coloured dragees, and chocolates topped with rose petals, nuts, lavender or dusted with exotic sugars and powders. A taste of their deliciously thick, bittersweet hot chocolate will have you reaching for more; choose from classic or dark, they are both lip-smackingly rich with a velvet texture. Or stock up on chocolate bars and tabletas and boxes of Sampaka's collections - Madagascar, Venezuela, Papua New Guinea, chocolate bombones, bombones with nuts and bombones with spices, such as curry, saffron, and ginger, or flavours like rose, strawberry and the odd yet interesting curry or anchovy.

Cacao Sampaka are chocolate manufacturers who do everything from selecting the cocoa beans through to packaging the product. They use only authentic cocoa with no artificial preservatives. In the back of the shop is the café where you can get a rich hot chocolate. Behind the counter sit 2 huge glass vats, electric paddles stirring the gooey baths of silky dark bitter chocolate and lighter, sweeter chocolate.

A few other places to watch out for if you haven't satisfied your chocolate craving is Gelateria Xocolateria where you can get great hot chocolate and homemade churros for dipping. This is a good place for an early breakfast. Or Dulcinea is a famous old shop in Barcelona where you can have your hot chocolate with special pastries known as melindros - fried soft biscuits, made especially for dipping in the thick chocolate.

Fargas hasn't changed since 1937 when it first opened and has a real historical atmosphere about it which adds to the experience. Possibly the most famous of the old Barcelona chocolate shops it's an exotic rainbow of sweet delights.

For your vacations in Barcelona choose to stay in an apartment in the historical centre. There is something to suit every kind of budget, search online for fully equipped and furnished apartments at competitive prices. Why stay in a hotel when you can have all the space and the comfort of a Barcelona apartment?