A visit to Park Güell

Park Güell is one of the most emblematic places of Barcelona. This architectural work was design by the famous Antonio Gaudi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. ShBarcelona will explain why it is essential that you visit the park, gem of the Catalan capital.

Table of Contents

The Park history

Photo credit: slimmer_jimmer via Visual hunt / CC BY-NC-ND

The park was supposed to be an urban development project launched by Eusebi Güell for wealthy families. They would be able to enjoy a beautiful view of Barcelona from a quiet area in the city. The plan was to build a garden on Carmel hill. This was an ideal place to build no less than sixty houses. However, only two houses and the park could be built for economic reasons. One of the houses was the architect‘s home. The city of Barcelona became Park Güell’s owner in 1923 and the park became a World Heritage site.

A cultural walk

Park Güell is a 20 hectares garden showcasing the famous Catalan architect’s imagination. Take a moment to enjoy the beautiful panorama of the city once you reach the top, and listen to the cicadas song along the way. When you walk through the park, you will realize how Gaudí’s work reveals an architectural precision and sensitivity for nature. You can admire the different views but also see Gaudí‘s achievements by taking different paths, such as “The 100 columns room”. Those columns are supporting the garden and are engraved with mythological and religious inscriptions. There is also “The undulating bench”, very original and made of colourful mosaics. It bypasses the Park terrace with its many curves. From this place, you can also admire the magnificent view of Barcelona and see the Sagrada Familia or Torre Agbar.

Related article: Casa Museu Gaudí in Barcelona

Plan your visit

You can visit certain parts of the park for free but if you want to have a closer look at Gaudí’s achievements you wil have to pay an entrance fee. ShBarcelona suggests getting your tickets online, to save yourself the time you would spend queuing. This way you will be sure to see the different spots, as the number of visitors per hour is limited. To help you understand more about the park’s history, download the official guide for Android.

Photo credit: Lauren Close via VisualHunt / CC BY-NC-ND

Address: Carrer d’Olot, 5

Metro: Vallcarca or Lesseps (L3 Green)

Bus: 24 or 92

Price: from 8 €

Opening hours: Autumn-Winter (from the 27th of October until the 23rd of March): from 08:30 to 18:00 | Spring-Summer (from the 24th of March until the 26th of October): 08h00 to 21:30.