Gaudí in Barcelona: Our Guide
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Antoni Gaudí may not have been Barcelonan by birth (he was actually from Reus, about an hour and a half away), but his buildings put Barcelona on the map: the otherworldly towers of La Sagrada Familia, the color-splattered mosaics of Park Güell. Today, lesser-known gems of his Catalan Modernism—what we often refer to as Art Nouveau—open up each year. While design nuts could spend a trip to Barcelona just touring Gaudí's work, you don't have to be an architecture buff to appreciate his mind-bending creations. Here’s what to see, and, most importantly, how to hack your way in ahead of the crowds.
For even more recommendations check out our complete Barcelona City Guide.
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Courtesy Torre Bellesguard d'Antoni GaudíactivityTorre Bellesguard
Torre Bellesguard ("beautiful view") is a family home that’s also a castle—designed by Gaudí, no less. The site, high up in the wealthy Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district, with telescopic views over Barcelona, remains one of the lesser-known Gaudí treats: unique in its straight lines (very un-Gaudí), and an interesting wooden attic that’s stripped bare of his usual mosaic color burst.
activityPalau Güell
Built between 1886 and 1890, Palau Güell is rumored to be the first Art Nouveau building in the world. This home of the Güell family is tucked down Calle Nou de la Rambla, and the mood inside is much darker than later Gaudís. Picture swaths of dark wood with grey marble floors and pillars and a fabulous old organ that’s often played for concerts. Don’t miss the roof terrace, where 20 chimneys and 50-foot spire are a Technicolor explosion.
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GettyactivityLa Sagrada Família
It’s practically illegal to go to Barcelona and not visit La Sagrada Família, Gaudí’s extraordinary temple dedicated to the Holy Family—also known as the world’s largest unfinished church. The illusive end date remains a mystery—local theorists speculate it will never be done in order to preserve its in-process cachet. Be sure to book a ticket ahead (dates are available three months out) so you can get inside and gawk at the vaults and rainbow stained glass. When you go, spring for the extra audio guide and a trip up to one of the two towers—the Nativity Façade is our favorite.
Jorg GreuelactivityPark Güell
Park Güell is an almost make-believe landscape: home to Barcelona’s famous mosaic lizard—the image on a thousand postcards—plus spiral towers that look like fairground slides. The city’s grandest park began life as a collaboration between entrepreneur Eusebi Güell (hence the park’s name) and Antoni Gaudí. Know that you need to book in advance online, and arrive promptly for your allotted slot—there’s zero wiggle room with timing. An interesting add-on is Casa Museu Gaudí, the pink spired building inside the park. It’s not included in your entrance fee (so factor in an extra €5.50/$5.50 per person), but Gaudí actually lived there for 19 years—which makes it the home tour of all home tours.
Nono07activityCasa Batlló
It’s easy to see why Casa Batlló has been likened to Claude Monet’s Water Lilies: Covered in shards of stained glass, it sometimes appears blue, then green, then shimmering like the glassy layer of a lake. Textile industrialist Josep Batlló commissioned Gaudí to design this home after seeing what Gaudí had done with Park Güell. Influenced by nature, Casa Batlló has no straight lines (because they don’t exist in nature, said Gaudí), stone pillars that contort like animal bones, and a tall, ocean-blue stairwell that’s very Jules Verne. The result is both grand and intimate. See our Barcelona Gaudi guide, here.
GettyactivityCasa Calvet
You'll want to arrive hungry. Since 1994, Casa Calvet has been a restaurant. After changing hands in 2019, it’s now China Crown—a Chinese restaurant that’s somewhat of a culinary curveball given the aesthetics. The former boardrooms and accounting offices on the ground floor now host Asian cuisine tasting menus, with much of the décor, from lamps to doorknockers, as Gaudí left it. Built in 1899, Casa Calvet was one of Gaudí’s earliest works and, with iron railing-lined balconies, a curved roof, and stained glass with painted leaves, one of his most pared back. Speculation points more towards the conservative demands of his boss rather than a lack of artistic flamboyance, however. It was built as a work and living space for textile manufacturer Pere Màrtir Clavet, and there are many homages to him: a ‘C’ (for Calvet) above the door, plus busts of the patron saints from Calvet’s hometown. It’s ideal for a special occasion meal with fellow Gaudí geeks.
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Pol ViladomsactivityCasa Vicens
Built in the 1880s as a summerhouse for stockbroker Manel Vicens, Casa Vicens was the very first house Gaudí designed. Forget the Gaudí of La Sagrada Família fame, this is his Orientalist Period. Imagine a Moorish palace merged with a Rubik’s cube. It’s crazy. Anyone who’s a fan of tiles or maximalist design will geek out on the oriental palms, pink walls, flower-adorned tiles and flying birds. Add in a terracotta roof terrace, a couple of elaborate domes, and some Gaudí ironwork and you’re left wondering how it all harmonizes together. Because, weirdly, it does.
AlamyactivityColònia Güell
Like Park Güell, Colònia Güell was one of industrialist Eusebi Güell’s elaborate projects—this time, to build a village. Güell headed for Santa Coloma de Cervelló, 20km southwest of Barcelona, and hired a team of architects to create housing, a school, shops, and a church (Gaudí’s commission). Gaudí got as far as completing the lower nave when the Güells severed funding. What remains—the Crypt, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site—is considered to be the most perfect example of Gaudí’s engineering wizardry channeled into one spot. You can see his trademark pillars, stained glass windows, and influences from nature.
AlamyrestaurantEls 4 Gats
$$Els 4 Gats occupies part of Casa Martí, a structure designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, one of Gaudí’s Modernisme rivals. Conceived as a Spanish equivalent to Paris’s Le Chat Noir cabaret, the goal was cheap food and piano music. It didn’t take long for Barcelona’s bohemian set to see the charm, too. A 17-year-old Picasso held his first exhibition here, and Antoni Gaudí was a regular. The interior looks like a time capsule: There are black and white portraits of the artsy regulars, sketches by Picasso, and vintage collections line the walls. The intellectual set has been replaced by tourists and the cheap food isn't so cheap anymore, but it's still very much worth a stop.
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Courtesy Catalunya La Pedrera FoundationactivityCasa Milà
The sand-colored façade of Casa Milà—built as apartments and now housing some offices—is subdued for Gaudí, but the twisted pillars on the roof are eye-catching, and partly why this building represents a structural breakthrough for the architect. The visitable space includes a majestic internal courtyard, roof, and Espai Gaudí, an attic showcasing models and plans of Gaudí’s buildings. Casa Milà also attracts a discerning, culture-seeking visitor: In summer, the roof hosts cava and concert nights with classical performers
GettyactivityPanots (Street Tiles)
In Barcelona, walk a block or two and you’ll notice that the city’s street tiles (called panots) are both ridiculously cool and varied. Property owners used to pave the street in front of their house until 1907 when the Barcelona council contracted out the job. Escofet, which won the contract, secured big-name contributions from architects Domènech i Montaner, Puig i Cadafalch, and Gaudí—there are 18 in all. To find Gaudí’s panot, head to Passeig de Gràcia. It’s a six-sided tile that, from afar, resembles the stony shell on a turtle’s back.
AlamyactivityJardins de Rubió i Lluch
Walk four minutes behind the shouty street-sellers of La Boquería market and you’ll find this peaceful garden—an unlikely site on the urban streets of El Raval. A former hospital courtyard, this leafy spot was where Gaudí spent his final days following a fatal collision with a tram in 1926. Today the garden is used by local students, city workers, and as a reading spot and coffee stop (there’s a café) for anyone passing through. Early evening is particularly special, when fairy lights are switched on and a warm, soft light enlivens the place. It's a pretty pause if you’re temporarily Rambla-d out.
Gaudí ExperiènciaactivityGaudí Experiència
With the words "Gaudí 4D" emblazoned across the door, this modern space—part museum, part cinema—brings Gaudí to life for those who switch off at a curator's description. The main draw is the movie. Strap into a simulator seat, don a pair of 3D glasses, and prepare for a 15-minute rollercoaster ride into Gaudí’s universe. You see a forest turn into stone columns (a reference to La Sagrada Familia) and a roof morph into a dragon’s skin (Casa Batlló)—know these reference points before you see Gaudí’s works so that, when you do visit, you’ll grasp more what he was thinking.
AlamyactivityCascada Monumental
Tucked inside the Parc de la Ciutadella is a waterfall designed by Gaudí. When he was a student, he designed the water tank and hydraulics for a grand new city fountain called Cascada Monumental, under the auspices of craftsman Josep Fontserè, who collaborated with more than 10 Catalan artists to create an energetic display of waterspouts and stone-carved clams and dragons. The true camera-grabber is a blingy gold sculpture of Aurora (who represents dawn in Roman mythology) riding four horses. Parc de la Ciutadella is one of the city’s most relaxing and picturesque spots to relax. Plus, it’s free. And if the kids need more activity there's a zoo nearby as well.
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