Barcelona Parks And Gardens - Park Güell

This is the start of a series which will look at the parks and gardens in Barcelona, for those people looking to buy or rent near the green spaces the city has to offer. Many people moving to Barcelona will be accustomed to having the luxury of green spaces all around them, and sometimes moving to a metropolis such as Barcelona, can be a shock to the system.



Where better to start that Park Güell. This magnificent park stretches over 17,000 hectares and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Commissioned by Count Eusebi Güell and built between 1900 and 1914, its unique design and charecteristics are work of the famous Catalan architect Antonin Gaudi, who is responsible for many of the city's main attractions and buildings. The original idea of Güell was to recreate the style of English gardens he was so impressed by and for that reason the park retains the English spelling (often misrepresented as "parc" or "parque"). Güell's idea was to create an exclusive neighbourhood within Barcelona for the wealthy away from Sarria. Unfortunately the idea wasn't a roaring success with only a few plots of land sold. The park was opened as a public park in 1922, and is one of the favourite destinations for tourists and Barcelonans alike.

Built slightly on a gradient, the entrance is the most ornate with a central plaça, winding steps and two fairytale houses at its entrance. The rest of the park is a mix of stone and marble pillars, fountans and Gaudi's trademark broken tile mosaic work known as "trencadís". In 2010, the local council plans to introduce an entrance fee to the park, to help cover costs of maintenance, litter collection and graffiti. Local residents will be exepmt from this fee, and details have yet to be finalised, but the plan is definitely in advanced dsicussions.



Living around Park Güell can be a challenge. The local neighbourhoods of Gracia, Carmel and Horta surround the park, and many of the streets immediately adjacent to the park have small housing on fairly steep gradients. Many streets are pedestrian and narrow, and although some streets have outdoor escalators this is not the case for each one. The metro stations are a little walk away from the main park area, but nothing to make living near the park too difficult, with many bus routes, too.

Would you like to live near a Barcelona park or garden? What better way to search for Barcelona properties for rent or to buy than contacting a Barcelona Real Estate agency? Modus Vivendi can help find your dream home for you.