Barcelona is a fairly green city, with about 10% of the city being occupied by urban parks, as well as other parks on the city’s outskirts. Being in the south of Europe and a seaside city, Barcelona also enjoys pleasant warm weather for much of the year, and one of the best ways to make good use of good weather is to head outdoors for a walk or a picnic, and what better place to do that than in one of the city’s beautiful parks.
Parc Güell
Located in La Salut in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, Parc Güell is a World Heritage Site, being one of the works of the renowned architect Antoni Gaudí. Commissioned by Eusebi Güell, and is an exploration of Gaudí's distinct personal style. The park was constructed in a natural park, and the structures Gaudí added are all curvy, with virtually no straight lines to be found - a reflection of the influence nature had on its design. Today, visitors to Parc Güell are treated to the fruits of Gaudí imagination and artistry, with occasional help from his contemporaries - from areas like the Sala Hipóstila, a “forest” of 86 stone columns, some bent like actual trees, initially intended to be a marketplace for the estate’s residents, the Nature Square, previously known as the Greek theatre, with the intricately tiled, wavy bench that also serves as a balustrade for the stairs of the little hill, and the Dragon Stairway, guarded by the iconic El Drac, “the dragon”, a mosaic salamander. Though most of the park is free of charge, since 2013 part of the park became ticketed, in order to restrict access to some of the more monumental areas to keep them in the best possible state of conservation. Tours are also available around the park, all year-round. In the end, only Gaudí, Güell and their families ever lived on the grounds - you can even visit Gaudí’s house, now known as Casa-Museu Gaudí, parts of which are kept in a state similar to when Gaudí lived in the building, and others which serve as an exhibition for the housing estates he built during his lifetime, including some of the furniture designed for those houses.
Parc de la Ciutadella
Originally a citadel built by the Spanish King Philip V to oppress the native Catalans, the Parc de la Ciutadella is one of the largest green spaces in Barcelona. The contemporary park was designed by Josep Fontsére, and is home to several features, such as a lake, a fountain and gardens, as well as the Catalan Parliament, the Barcelona Zoo and the Museum of Natural Sciences of Barcelona. Idyllic and lushly green, the environment of the park practically invites people to relax and rejuvenate. If you don’t fancy just finding a grass patch to spread out a blanket and soak in the sun, you can take a stroll through the park, visiting structures like L’Hivernacle, a winter garden pavilion constructed of cast iron and glass, the Umbracle, a wood-brick pavilion housing tropical plants, and the Castle of the Three Dragons, all built for the Exposición Universal de Barcelona in 1888. Alternatively, you could also enjoy the park’s small lake, either by walking by its edge, or renting a small boat which you can row on the lake. Be sure to visit the other great body of water in the park before you leave as well, the basin of the fountain known as La Cascada. Designed mostly by Josep Fontsére himself, as well as the then-unknown architecture student Antoni Gaudí, the Cascada bears a loose resemblance to Rome’s Trevi Fountain, and is divided into two levels, with incredible decor that had not been part of the fountain’s original design, but which today serves as beautiful augmentation of the fountain.
Parc del Laberint d’Horta
Parc del Laberint d’Horta is a historical park in Barcelona, and one of the oldest of its kind in the city. Originally a part of the estate of the Desvalls family, the park has two gardens, an 18th Century neoclassical-style garden, and a 19th Century romantic-style garden, as well as a hedge maze in the lower terrace, after which the park is named, and numerous sculptures scattered throughout the park. Known as a garden-museum, only 750 visitors are allowed to be in the garden at any time, due to the delicate nature of the garden’s environment and structures. The romantic garden comprises a series of small flower beds and squares of grass, perpetually shaded under towering trees, with a waterfall on the northernmost border of that side of the park. With its visually dark appearance and a former replica of a small graveyard (no longer in the garden), this garden is believed to allude to the theme of death. In stark contrast, the neoclassical garden is modelled after the theme of love, and comprises three terraces, each with its own distinct features. Though it might be a little difficult to enter the park due to the restrictions of access, it’s worth it to be able to take a peaceful stroll around the gardens, and to play in the maze, in a blissfully uncrowded space.
Jardí Botànic de Barcelona
A botanical garden set in the Montjuïc hill of Barcelona, amidst stadiums used for the 1992 Summer Olympics held in the city, the Jardí Botànic de Barcelona is one of four institutes that make up the Museum of Natural Sciences in Barcelona, and is one of two botanical gardens in the area, the other being the Jardí Botànic Històric. This garden specialises in the flora of areas of the world with Mediterranean climates, like Barcelona itself, divided into spaces that represent the main areas of: Australia, Chile, California, South Africa, the western and eastern Mediterranean areas, and a special section for the flora of the Canary Islands. There is also a bee house in the central part of the garden, and visitors will often see the busy bees hard at work collecting nectar to make honey. With the warm climate and kaleidoscope of colours, the Jardí Botànic de Barcelona is a pleasant place to walk through after a busy day, or as a good way to start your day.
