- Julieta
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Editor Pick
A Park Full of Whimsy
- October 17, 2009
- Rated 5 of 5 by
airynfaerie from St. Augustine, Florida
Located on the Carmel hill in the northwestern part of the city, Park Guell is a stunning example of architecture and gardens intertwined. It's one of the must-see visits during a stay in Barcelona, and one can easily spend a day here among all the creative components of this park. Free admission is a plus - so get ready, pack a picnic, and head up to the hill overlooking the city.
Commissioned by Eusebi Guell who was deemed a "Count", this park was originally intended to be a type of housing development for the upper class. Barcelona's famed architect and designer, Antoni Gaudi was hired to put this magic touch on the vision for the plans, and he ended up working on it from 1900 - 1914. But out of the initial 60 house sites planned, only 2 were ever built. After a complete real estate failure, the city of Barcelona bought the property in 1922 to turn it into a public park instead. (Lucky for us!)
Although entrance is free, there are a few tours offered for a fee, and also a ticket is required to visit one of the houses on the property, which is where Gaudi lived for a while. When we visited, we didn't go inside the house, but instead found plenty to do around the outside paths throughout the park. The design is one that is unlike anyother park in the world. Almost invoking a sense of whimsy and fantasyland, the wavy, colorful shapes throughout the park make one feel like a child.
Colorful dragon sculptures, tiled frogs, wavy mosaic benches, and organic stone pillars resembling tree trunks all are part of the creation of Guell Park. The view over the city is unparalleled from the open terrace of the park, and although hundreds of visitors may be in the area at one time, it's so spacious that it never feels too crowded.
For those looking for a nature getaway from the city streets, those interested in interesting architecture, art-lovers, or just tourists wanting to check out the popular sites, Park Guell is one of Barcelona's must-see spots!
• Metro stop Green Line, L3: Lesseps, then 200m walk uphill
• Open daily 10am - 7pm
• Free admission
From journal Some of the Major Sites of Barcelona
Editor Pick
A Peaceful Park in the City
- September 10, 2009
- Rated 5 of 5 by
Jennifer23 from Sunderland, United Kingdom
During my recent visit to Barcelona I visited Parc Guell, another place on my 'must visit' list, and a place I did not get to visit when last in Barcelona a year ago.
We visited Parc Guell as part of a city tour by coach and spent an hour there, walking around in the hot sunshine, although I must point out that in order to see the entire park, I would advise that visitor's spend at least a morning or afternoon there!
I am a fan of Antoni Gaudi's work, and the Catalan Architect designed Parc Guell after being comissioned by Count Eusebi Guell. Guell was an estate agent entrepreneur, and asked Gaudi to design and create a park with luxury houses for Barcelona's aristocracy.
The result was Parc Guell, built in 1900 - 1914. However, as our guide on the coach tour informed us, the housing project failed due to Guell running out of money, and only three houses were built.
Gaudi himself lived in one of the houses for some time, and this has now been turned into a museum and contains furniture also designed by Gaudi.
Parc Guell is situated on the hill of el Carmel in the Gracia area of Barcelona. As I explained earlier we visited by coach, which parked in the coach park up on the hill and opposite one of the entrances to the park. Parc Guell can also be reached by using Barcelona's Metro system, where you would get off at Lessops station and follow the signs.
On entering the park from opposite the coach park, there are a few stalls selling souvenirs and hand-crafted goods just outside the entrance.
Entry to Parc Guell is free, and walking down the pathway after entering the park you soon come to the house in which Gaudi resided, on your left. Gaudi lived here from 1906 - 1926, and the house now contains furniture and paintings and memories of the architect.
Continuing on, we came to the central area of the park which is a large square terrace with an unusual, and very colourful, curved 'serpent' mosaic tiled seat running around the perimeter, as seen on the photograph here. It is said that, in order to obtain an anatomic shape in the seating, Gaudi had a worker sit on a plaster cast!
From this terrace you are provided with an excellent view over the city.
There are steps either side of the square, which lead down to another square underneath, which is known as 'the room of one hundred columns'. These columns support the terrace above, although our guide told us there are only in fact 86 columns!
The columns lean in a way to produce a feeling of movement to the portico which is holding them. It really is unusual, and on looking up to the ceiling I noticed again some beautiful mosaic work and large colourful 'sun' mosaic tiles.
Walking down from the columns there are a double flight of stone steps leading down to another entrance to the park. Here you find in the middle of the steps , sculptures of animals covered in colouful mosiac tiles, including a dragon. Some of the sculptures are fountains.
At the bottom of the steps, either side of the gates, there are two unusual houses. Both buildings are coated with spectacular pottery in the collage technique which is so habitual in Gaudi's posterior constructions, and have unusual shaped roofs and pinnacles. They reminded me a little of the house in the Hansel and Gretel fairytale!
We were told that the park was conceived as a closed space protected from the exterior, which is why a wall surrounding the whole perimeter was built, and these two houses were built as defensive towers. The guard lived in one , and the other was the reception.
There are many walkways around the park, and some are raised and supported by rock pillars designed to look like tree trunks with their irregular shapes, with bird's nests built into the terrace walls. Gaudi was strongly influenced by natural shapes and they were always used in his work.
There are musicians playing Spanish guitar etc at various locations around the park and also a small outdoor cafe and toilets. Prices at the cafe were not cheap. A small bottle of coke costing 3 euros, but I suppose this is to be expected, and entry to the park itself is free after all!
Although the park was very busy with visitors walking around taking photographs, it is so big that it is easy to wander off and find a quiet area where you can sit and relax. What also amazed me was although it was busy, it also seemed very peaceful and has a very relaxing atmosphere. It was easy to forget you were in the city of Barcelona!
It is a beautiful place, and it was just a shame we didn't have time to walk around it all. I would love to go back and spend some more time there.
From journal A Break in Barcelona
Editor Pick
Classic Gaudi - or Just Plain Gaudy?
- June 1, 2009
- Rated 4 of 5 by
fizzytom from Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
The various works of celebrated Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi is one of the highlights of Barcelona but I find that it is quite difficult to enjoy and appreciate some of the buildings partly because of the area in which they are situated and partly for reasons such as the huge amount of scaffolding that permanently shrouds the exterior of the Sagrada Familia cathedral , for example.
A good way to escape the city, at least for a while, and to get a better view of some of Gaudi's work is to visit Parc Guell, to the north of the city centre. Its best described as an architectural garden in which you can see some of Gaudi's most exciting work but it's also a good place to catch some pretty amazing views of the city, right across to the port. Free admission and no queuing to get in are other benefits of visiting Parc Guell instead of other Gaudi locations.
To get to Parc Guell take the Metro on the green line to Lesseps and follow the many signs from there. This route does involve quiet a steep climb up one street when you turn off the main road. There is a bus stop close to the entrance so this might be of use to people for whom the hill is a problem and I am sure an enquiry at tourist information offices would be of help to find out the bus numbers. Some of the tourist buses also stop at Parc Guell as part of their itinerary.
As you get nearer to the park the fairytale like chimney of one of the two gatehouses comes into view to guide you and as you get nearer the still you'll hear the excited chatter of hundreds of European teenagers. If you prefer peace and quiet visit first thing before the tour groups arrive or early evening when they have all left. We visited in the early afternoon has made a last minute decision to do so and found that our enjoyment was spoiled a little bit because of the noise and the sheer number of people, blocking views, spoiling photographs and generally being quite annoying.
The centrepiece of the park is the vast terrace with its dramatic viewpoint. The shape of the terrace undulates with serpentine curves and cosy seats have been built into the curves. The boundary wall of the terrace, has, like the steps to it and other places in the garden, been decorated in the trademark ceramic mosaic so common in Gaudi's work. Apparently one of the reasons that the benches are tiled was so that they would dry quickly after rain and Gaudi incorporated bumps into the design so that people wouldn't sit in puddles. I don't know about the puddling but it did rain when we were there and the benches did dry quickly once the rain stopped and the sun came out.
Another part of the park that should be mentioned is the colonnaded arcade that actually supports the cleverly obscured road that runs above it. The colonnade is built of a local stone but looks like a series of palm trunks that appear to be growing out of the earth; I found this section absolutely remarkable, when you were under the arcade it really felt like it had been carved from the soil. If it does rain, the arcade is a good place to get some shelter, so long as you can find some space among the hordes of French schoolchildren eating packed lunches.
The terrace is supported on - for Parc Guell - rather conventional Doric columns and while these might be quite a contrast to the rest of the architectural they do at least add to the eclecticism. At the top of the central staircase is the lower court, which reminded me a lot of the mezquita in Cordoba, with its vaulted ceiling in which the larges bosses were yet more Gaudi mosaics. Here there were lots of hawkers selling novelty items of the type that kids love and that drive parents mad. Some wore costumes and had other costumes that kids could try on for photographs, posing in "swordplay" for example. The colonnaded area was also teeming with people selling all kinds of "crafty" stuff such as one's name written in illuminated text or metal twisted into the shape of ones name. "Proper" Gaudi-related souvenirs can be bought from the official shop which is situated in one of the gatehouses. The building is only small and there was a long queue to get in. If you don't fancy the queue there are lots of souvenir shops on the main road and in the streets climbing the hill towards the main entrance of the park.
The park was originally intended to be part of a housing project which was inspired by the "garden cities" of England. The site was chosen for the views and because it was well away from the smoky factories which spoiled the air in other parts of the city. It was all the idea of Count Eusebi Guell and, to add some more prestige to the project, he moved into Larrard House, a large property that already existed on the site. In the end only two houses were built here and neither of them was designed by Gaudi - a fact I like because I think that these days the place would be a frightening Gaudi theme-park. While I like what can be seen at Parc Guell (and Casa Batllo, an apartment building in the city centre) I do find some of the work at the Sagrada Familia, for example, quite self-indulgent and pompous and I think that a whole park of Gaudi houses would be too much to bear.
One of those two houses was meant to be a show house to tempt buyers to come to Parc Guell but nobody was interested and Gaudi moved into this house himself in 1906. The house can be visited, though we did not, and this is the only part of the park for which there is a charge. A combined ticket can be bought, if desired, for joint entrance to this museum and to the Sagrada Familia. This salmon pink house, known as the "Torre Rosa", can be seen from the colonnaded area to the left of the steps as you climb them and from the terrace. Inside there is a display on Gaudi's work and a collection of furniture he designed.
The park is quite large and you do need at least a couple of hours to really do it justice. Once you move away from the terrace and the colonnaded areas there are fewer people and it becomes more peaceful. The planting is wonderful but there are more trees and cacti than flowerbeds and this is quite an "untamed" park. Here and there you'll find hidden touches of Gaudi and, if you are lucky, you might spot some vivid green parakeets some of which were deliberately brought to the park to add even more colour. However, over the years these have been joined by escaped pets come to join their free brethren and the numbers are now quite high.
Park Guell opens daily at 10:00 am and closing time varies depending on the time of year but is normally around 19:00. You can buy ices and cold drinks at the entrance to the park and there are plenty of places nearby if you want to sit down for a drink or to get something to eat. You could also buy provisions for a picnic on the main street if you intend to stretch out your visit. There are toilets though these are at the main entrance to the park so it might be a good idea to encourage children to go before you start exploring.
Parc Guell is a great way to see more of Gaudi's work and certainly excellent if you are on a budget and don't perhaps want to pay to see the interior of the Sagrada Familia. The absence of queues also has to be a compelling reason for heading to Parc Guell. But aside from the practical points, this is a really stunning place to see and it does put Gaudi's designs into a whole new context. What is great about it is the immediacy and accessibility to great works of art. Apparently Gaudi used lots of historical Catalan references in the designs of some of the elements of the park but it is really not necessary to know anything of this as the features are so wonderful that they can be viewed in their own right and needn't be within a particular context. It is vibrant, colourful and at times quite unreal and a place that will stick in the memory for a long time to follow.
From journal Twenty Four Hours in Barcelona
Editor Pick
Parc Guell
Parc Guell was planned by Antoni Gaudi, the same eccentric Catalan architect who designed La Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera and many other famous landmarks in Barcelona. It’s a fanciful, medium-sized park, laid out over a hill in Barcelona’s less prepossessing northern suburbs. My friend who lives in Barcelona told me it was one of her favourite places, so when I disappointingly abandoned my visit to the Picasso Museum because of long queues, I decided to take her advice.
Parc Guell is in the Northern parts of Barcelona’s outlying Eixample district and reachable by metro (Lesseps on the Green Line – L3). From the metro there are signs pointing the way to the park, but BE WARNED: Parc Guell is a good 20 minute walk, with the last 200 metres along a steep uphill. It’s not a particularly pretty walk either, most of it being along a busy, modern road.
The park itself is nothing like any other park I’ve ever been to. It was created by Gaudi for one Count Eusebi Guell, a sort of well-to-do industrialist, but the park was left unfinished. Even unfinished it has a magical charm. It unfolds over a range of tiers and terraces spaced over a relatively hilly landscape. Wide, winding pathways and narrow stone steps lead you around the various spaces. As you walk around the park you catch glimpses of Gaudi’s unmistakable style: frothing stone pillars, crumbling earth balconies, cavernous spaces and whimsical touches, like the brightly coloured, mosaic lizard at the entrance.
At the very, very top of the park is a wonderful observation terrace where you can see all of Barcelona spread out below you. Well worth the climb. Further down, almost directly above the entrance, is a brightly coloured, mosaic-covered terrace where most people stop for food, either from the café there or brought as picnics. On this terrace is also a little kiosk selling ice creams, snacks and drinks. If you were stopping for lunch I would have to recommend you take it to the top terrace with the beautiful views – much more secluded. You could even get your supplies from one of the many supermarkets on the street from the metro to Parc Guell.
There’s a small house in the park which Gaudi lived in at one time, which I learned about only after my visit. It’s been converted into a museum and I’ve been told it contains some interesting furniture designed by Gaudi. I would have loved to have seen it.
The reason I have only given Parc Guell a recommend and not a highly recommended is because I went there by myself on a cloudy day in October. I could imagine it being a great place to take children or to go to as a couple on a nice sunny day. Maybe even taking a picnic. It’s quite far out and is relatively large so I would suggest planning at least a full afternoon there.
From journal Discovering Barcelona
Park Güell
- July 19, 2007
- Rated 5 of 5 by
Celia Coene from Alameda, California
Park Güell – Again by Gaudì (well, he is pretty much the most famous architect there). This time it’s a whole park. Really beautiful with crazy mosaics and funky structures everywhere, and a great view over the city. My favorite is the two houses down by the entrance that look like gingerbread houses. There is an entrance fee for that too, but the rate is reduced if you combine it with the visit of La Sagrada Familia. You can buy both tickets at either place.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_G%C3%BCell
From journal Barcelona: You 'Gaudi' See This!