Mollet Del Vallès brings together a rural landscape, city parks and a rich architectural and artistic history. The changing scale is interesting when planning a trip: Gallecs covers a large area, while parks such as Plana Lledó and Les Pruneres offer different kinds of green space within the town. Museums, a menhir and historic buildings complement the focus on nature.
Gallecs and routes into the countryside
Gallecs is a 733.52-hectare rural area, 448 hectares of which lie within the municipality of Mollet Del Vallès. In October 2009, Gallecs was included in the Pla d'Espais d'Interès Natural (PEIN), Catalonia’s network of protected natural areas. From Mollet, you can reach the area on foot via two pedestrian bridges over the motorway, or by car via exits 15 and 16 of the AP-7. Check access conditions before setting out. Parc dels Pinetons is also directly connected to Gallecs: a footbridge on the Carena dels Bandolers path crosses the AP-7 for this purpose.
City parks with different highlights
The almost seven-hectare Parc de la Plana Lledó combines Mediterranean vegetation and walking paths with an artificial lake featuring aquatic plants and a pergola surrounded by wisteria. The park has many shaded areas and quiet corners. Parc de Les Pruneres has a different design: an eleven-metre-high arched fountain marks the entrance to the 20,000-square-metre park. It offers walking areas, including play facilities for children, as well as places to rest and take in the surroundings. Parc de Can Mulà, Mollet’s first city park, has extensive children’s play areas and a traffic education area.
Art and architectural heritage
The Museu Abelló opened on 29 March 1999 in a Modernist building. Its façade has been preserved; the house was previously used as a Guardia Civil barracks. The collection comprises more than 10,000 works, including significant holdings of Catalan painting and sculpture from the 19th and 20th centuries. The Menhir de Mollet offers a different artistic highlight: it is five metres high, weighs six tonnes and bears engravings and reliefs, including a recognisable face. This design gives it the character of a menhir statue.
Santa María de Gallecs is a late Romanesque church dating from between the 12th and 14th centuries. Its floor plan is that of a single-nave Latin cross, and its vault is pointed. Masia Can Borrell is another architectural highlight: this fortified farmhouse dates from the 13th to 14th centuries and is the only preserved fortified farmhouse in the municipality.
Urban design and local produce
Parc dels Colors was inaugurated in 2001 and is a posthumous work by architect Enric Miralles. Its design draws on Mollet’s industrial, agricultural and young urban history, as well as the city’s location on the Besòs River. Brick walls, wooded areas, raised concrete and steel structures with graffiti depictions, fountains and water jets express these connections through a variety of features. In Jardí de la Farinera, a central avenue of lime trees and terracotta pots containing boxwood trimmed into spheres recall the original Neoclassical garden.
The industrial history can also be seen in one of the town’s buildings: in 1947, architect Francesc Vilagut built Edifici Can Gomà for the Gomà family, its owners, for the production of cava. Its basement housed the Xampany Gomà cava cellars, which had a two-kilometre-long tour. Agrobotiga de Gallecs offers a different insight into the region: this small shop is run by farmers and stocks organic products from Gallecs and elsewhere, as well as handcrafted and regional goods.
When choosing where to stay, it is worth first deciding what you want to focus on: the countryside, landscaped parks, or architectural and artistic history. Then compare the exact hotel location with the places you plan to visit; if you intend to access Gallecs, it is advisable to check conditions before setting out.
Discover more destinations: Barbera Del Valles, Abrera, El Pont de Vilomara, Olèrdola, Perafita, Vic, Les Masuques, Olesa De Bonesvalls
For the broader travel overview: Barcelona.
