Bona Ventura

Walking routes · Barcelona

Modernisme mile: Passeig de Gracia to Sant Pau

Gaudi and Domenech i Montaner along the Eixample grid: Casa Batllo and La Pedrera, the Sagrada Familia, then the tiled hospital city of Sant Pau via Avinguda de Gaudi.

Best time: Morning, with timed tickets booked

The route, stop by stop

  1. 1
    Casa Batllo

    Dragon-back facade; inside 60 min if booked.

    Gaudi's 1904-06 remodel of a townhouse into a bone-and-scale fantasy; the light well tiled from deep to pale blue and the dragon-back roof are the highlights.

  2. 2
    La Pedrera (Casa Mila)

    Rooftop chimneys; 75 min if booked.

    Gaudi's last private building (1906-12): an undulating stone facade, a furnished period flat, the brick-arched attic explaining his methods and a rooftop of warrior-like chimneys.

  3. 3
    Palau Robert gardens

    Free shady garden break; 15 min.

    Garden of a 19th-century palace on Passeig de Gracia with free Catalan exhibitions inside; a shady bench break most shoppers walk past.

  4. 4
    Sagrada Familia

    Timed entry; 90 min inside.

    Gaudi's still-unfinished basilica, begun in 1882; the forest-like nave and the stained glass that washes the columns in colour are the reason to go inside rather than just…

  5. 5
    Sant Pau Recinte Modernista

    Walk up Avinguda de Gaudi; 60 min.

    Domenech i Montaner's hospital city of tiled pavilions linked by tunnels, a UNESCO site that feels like the Sagrada Familia without the crowds.

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