Barcelona between architecture and green spaces

For a cultural stay in Barcelona, Gaudí’s architecture provides a clear thread; green spaces and a route through the Serra de Collserola offer a different perspective. Casa Batlló, at Passeig de Gràcia 43, is a useful point of reference. Park Güell illustrates the connection between a work of art and public open space: it is one of Antoni Gaudí’s most emblematic works, continues to be used as a public park and green space, and also serves tourist and cultural purposes. When planning your trip, you can therefore distinguish between architecture, public open space and landscape, rather than treating all these themes as equivalent attractions.

Gaudí’s buildings and their history

The buildings’ construction and usage histories give these architectural sites different points of emphasis. Palau Güell was built between 1886 and 1890, when Antoni Gaudí carried out the construction at the request of Eusebi Güell. In 1984, UNESCO added the Palau to the World Heritage List under the designation “Works of Antoni Gaudí.” Casa Milà has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984. Here, the same year marks two differently worded UNESCO references; in the case of Palau Güell, the designation of a group of works provides the context. Casa Batlló offers another historical reference point: in 2002, Casa Batlló began offering cultural tours. Together, the construction period, World Heritage year and start of a tour programme provide different perspectives on cultural Barcelona without conflating them into a single story.

World Heritage with different points of reference

The UNESCO references also differ in what they refer to. At the Sagrada Família, the Nativity façade and the crypt were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005. The Recinte Modernista Sant Pau received the designation in 1997; the Recinte consists of twelve pavilions surrounded by green spaces. The selection thus ranges from two specifically named parts of the Sagrada Família to a complex with several pavilions at Sant Pau. When choosing cultural sites, you can make this distinction a focus: individual architectural elements and their designation on the one hand, and the layout of a complex on the other.

Add a landscape perspective

The carretera de les Aigües is a route in the Serra de Collserola. It runs along a slope facing the city of Barcelona. This places a different kind of site alongside Gaudí’s buildings, the park and the UNESCO sites. When planning your days in Barcelona around particular themes, you can consider whether you would also like to include this landscape connection to the Serra. This lets you treat the route as a theme in its own right, rather than equating it with the architectural monuments.

Shape your stay around a theme

Use the attractions not as an interchangeable list, but as a guide to the character of your stay: architectural history takes a different place at its heart from an itinerary that also includes the park or the route through Collserola.

Discover more destinations: Caldes D'estrac, Santa Coloma De Cervelló, Baix Llobregat, La Palma De Cervelló, Moia, Bagá, Viladecaballs, Cantonigròs.

For the broader travel overview: Barcelona.