All You Need to Know About Park Guell Barcelona

• Park Guell Barcelona is open daily from 9:30 AM to 8 PM
• Last hour of access: 7:30 PM

• Bus: Lines 24 and 92 to Carretera del Carmel-Park Güell, which is outside the main entrance.
• Metro: Green line - L3 to Lesseps or Vallcarca, which are close to Passatge de Sant Joseph de la Muntanya.

Gaudi designed Park Güell with the idea of merging it with the natural surroundings and hilly topography. To achieve this, he laid down an intricate network of paths, bridges, and viaducts throughout the property. The three viaducts that glide up the mountain in succession are called Pont de Baix, the Pont del Mig, and the Pont de Dalt. These examples of ingenious structural engineering are supported by columns and vaults made of sketchy stones that were found on site.

In addition to these major pathways, Gaudi also built a web of small pathways and shortcuts that were meant for people on foot. Walk on one of these to experience the charm of this 19th Century park.

The main entrance to Park Güell has an impressive facade and presents a stunning view of the work of art inside. The ceramic tiled stone wall and palm leaf-shaped iron gates are just a trailer of the nature-inspired architectural marvels, one would witness ahead. There are two pavilions with beautiful tile shards mosaic roofs on either side of the gate. The one on the left was used as a waiting room with a telephone booth and the other as a residence and hence the name - Porter’s Lodge.

The Three Cross Hill is the highest viewpoint in Park Guell and offers beautiful views of the city of Barcelona. Getting to the top will require some effort, as there is steep stairway to climb, but the breathtaking views at the top of the hill make the journey well worth the effort.

One of the original homes in the park, Gaudi House Museum is now a collection of the fabled architect's life and work. To enter the museum, you'll need to buy a separate ticket from the Park Guell website since the regular tour does not cover the museum.

An artistic twin flight of steps rises up from the entrance to the Hypostyle Room. Divided into three sections, the stairway has a fountain running along its edge and each landing on the way up is marked by a distinct element. The first one has goblin sculptures, further up is the emblem of Catalonia and a tile-shard mosaic-covered salamander on the third landing.

The Dragon Stairway culminates into an enormous space called the Hypostyle room. The entire space is supported by 86 striped columns, with the outermost ones sloping in an undulating form contrary to the rules of classical composition. This area was intended to be the marketplace for the estate. The ceiling of the Hypostyle room consists of small domes made up of traditional clay bricks that are covered with beautiful patterns of tile-shard mosaics.

At the heart of Park Güell lies the huge open air space originally called the Greek Theatre and now called Plaça de la Natura (Nature Square). Sitting over Hypostyle columns, projecting out of the mountain behind and lined with tile shard mosaic patterned benches, this vast platform was planned to stage large open-air shows.

When development for the residential plots stalled, the space demarcated for it was turned into a municipal plant nursery. With trees donated from Austria, this part of the park has a very distinguished look. The Austria gardens have a beautiful view and host two prominent houses, one of which was acquired by Gaudi’s family which has now been converted into Gaudí House museum.