Passeig de Gracia
A beautiful avenue in the centre of Barcelona
If you looked at Barcelona from the sky, you would see a large grid-like area in the middle of the city where some of the streets are more thickly marked than others. One of the ones that goes from the upper part to a huge square at the end of the grid (which is Plaça Catalunya) is Passeig de Gracia, an elegant promenade that hides many gems of Catalan Modernisme under a beautiful canopy of trees.
Passeig de Gracia is the most expensive street of the city of Barcelona - and also the most expensive of Spain! It is nowadays famous for being one of the most important shopping avenues of the Ciutat Comptal, but it is also one of the most beautiful avenues of the city, full of history and architectural masterpieces. If you want to learn more about it, don't miss the following lines!
A little bit of history
Passeig de Gracia is the heart of L'Eixample, the largest district of Barcelona. Did you know that before the construction of L'Eixample the city was only formed by the areas closest to the sea? That's right, the charming upper neighbourhoods of the city, such as Gràcia, Horta or Sarrià, were independent towns before the end of the 18th century. When L'Eixample (which means 'expansion district' in Catalan) was designed and built, those towns were annexed to Barcelona, and that's how the city as we know it today was born. Passeig de Gracia is the avenue that communicates the old city (and nowadays the city centre) with those former towns, since it goes from Plaça Catalunya, the neuralgic centre and door to the Old Town, with Gràcia, the first of those former towns - in fact, Passeig de Gracia means 'promenade of Gracia'.
But did you know that Passeig de Gracia had a different name before L'Eixample was built? Back then, its name was Camí de Jesús (Jesus Road), and it was a rural path full of gardens. It's hard to imagine that such an avenue was a simple path not that long ago, since it is nowadays a real masterpiece under our feet - and that's not a rhetoric figure! While you walk along Passeig de Gracia, you will be stepping on the panot Gaudí, a hexagonal tile that was designed by Gaudí himself. As you can see, from the very moment it was designed, Passeig de Gracia had a strong will to become the elegant, unmissable avenue it is today, a landmark of the city of Barcelona itself.
The district of L'Eixample is worth visiting besides this important avenue. It was built at the end of the 18th century, which was also the golden age of the architectural movement known as Modernisme, the most appreciated and characteristic architectural style of the city of Barcelona. Catalan Modernisme, which is sometimes defined as a mixture between gothic style and Art Nouveau, finds inspiration in nature, light and symbolism, and it has provided us with some of the most unique buildings known to date. Besides Passeig de Gràcia and the famous houses located there, there are many other buildings in L'Eixample that are part of this style and that will catch your eye.
What to see and do in Passeig de Gracia
Walking along Passeig de Gracia can take you as much time as you want - or have!
One of the 'hot spots' of Passeig de Gracia is what is known as the 'Illa de la Discòrdia' (Block of Discord in English), the block where you will find the impressive and colourful Casa Batlló, considered by many Antoni Gaudí's most creative work. This block of houses is known as such because it hosts houses that were designed by four of the most important architects of Catalan Modernisme, located very close to each other. The story says that the four architects had some sort of competition to see who would design the most beautiful house, since all four houses were built during the early 20th century. In fact, it wasn't that much of a competition, but a professional rivalry that existed between those architects - which is understandable, as they were all recognised names of Modernisme. Most think that Antoni Gaudí won the 'competition', but the real winner was the city of Barcelona, that won one of the most photographed blocks of houses in the world!
Coming from Plaça Catalunya, the first of those four houses is the Casa Lleó Morera, designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner and located in number 35. With a pinkish colour and inspired in the Renaissance, it's a work that paid special attention to detail. In number 37, you can see the least famous of all four houses, the Casa Mulleras by Enric Sagnier, more classical and discrete but equally beautiful. In number 41, you will find the beautiful Casa Amatller, designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch and inspired in the architecture of urban palaces in Amsterdam and Brussels. Finally, in number 43, you will find the most famous of all: Casa Batlló by Antoni Gaudí, a wonderful piece of art inspired in dragons and Carnival, a splash of colour and sinuous shapes that will make everybody's jaw fall right to the floor. Its interior is equally sinuous and astounding, so we recommend getting Passeig de Gracia online tickets to visit it. Even the furniture was designed accordingly in the same style!
Casa Batlló isn't the only masterpiece by Antoni Gaudí that is located in Passeig de Gràcia. The other one is the Casa Milà, popularly known as La Pedrera, located a few blocks up ahead in Passeig de Gracia. La Pedrera, with its ondulating smooth façade and its characteristic chimneys, is a very impressive view, so get your camera ready! At the opposite side of the street, you will find a building the façade of which was designed by Japanese architect Toyo Ito, that shares sinuous shapes with La Pedrera. In fact, the architect wanted to do an homage to Gaudí and La Pedrera with it. Finally, besides seeing all these landmarks, don't forget that Passeig de Gracia itself is full of Modernist houses, such as the Cases Rocamora, with its colourful roofs, the Hotel Majestic or the Casa Bonaventura Ferrer.
But besides admiring beautiful houses of the period of Modernisme, there is something else that you can do in Passeig de Gràcia: shopping! As the most expensive avenue of Spain, in Passeig de Gracia you will find haute-couture, designer's shops and also the major and more affordable clothing brands: from H&M and Zara to Guess, Cartier, Hermès or Gucci - so if you like to do some shopping in the cities you visit, Passeig de Gracia is the street to do so in Barcelona.
Passeig de Gracia online tickets
Since it is an avenue in open air, you don't need any Passeig de Gracia online tickets to visit it. However, you do need them to visit some of the most important attractions there, such as the Gaudí houses. Here are the most important attractions where you will need Passeig de Gracia online tickets in advance:
- Passeig de Gracia online tickets for the Casa Batlló: If you want to visit one of Antoni Gaudí's masterpieces, you can buy your online tickets with GowithOh! Casa Batllo opens from 9 in the morning to 10 in the evening, and, as usual, they offer different ticket combinations. One of them will allow you to skip the line, and, besides, there's another one that includes a theatrical visit that your children will enjoy to the fullest. A perfect opportunity to learn about Gaudí and the Casa Batlló and to have fun at the same time!
- Passeig de Gracia online tickets for La Pedrera: With online tickets for La Pedrera, you will be able to step on its majestic roof. You can also discover its night experience and even enjoy shows and concerts there, so don't forget to check the agenda and the schedules.
- Passeig de Gracia online tickets for Palau Robert: The Palau Robert offers wonderful photography and art exhibits, most of them related to Barcelona, its history and its art. But do you know what the best part is? The exhibits are usually free! Besides, they make a perfect excuse to visit the beautiful gardens of the building. The Palau Robert opens from 10 in the morning to 8 in the evening; and to 2.30 pm on Sundays and holidays.
Other useful information
In Passeig de Gràcia, you will find easy access to all the metro lines of Barcelona, which means that you can travel to any place of the city you want. Of course, there are many buses that stop there as well, and you will be very close to Plaça Catalunya, where you will find all the lines of night buses available in the city. If you're not keen on public transport, there's no need to worry, because in Passeig de Gracia you will find plenty of available taxis both during the night and during the day.
But let's focus on the metro, since it will be the main means of transportation you will use during your vacation in this beautiful Mediterranean city. The metro station that shares a name with our avenue, Passeig de Gracia, gives access to three different metro lines: L2 (purple), L3 (green) and L4 (yellow), but they have different accesses along the avenue. Of course, the three lines are communicated underground, but we have a tip so you can avoid the underground passage that communicates the green line with the yellow and the purple lines. Did you know that this underground passage is one of the most hated spots in the city by the locals? It sure is convenient to transfer from one metro line to the other, but this corridor is so long (and usually hot!) that it's better to avoid it. This is why we recommend the entrance close to the Casa Batlló if you want to access the green line and the entrance closest to Plaça Catalunya (located by Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, another of the largest avenues of Barcelona) if you want to access the yellow or the purple line.
At the high end of Passeig de Gracia, at the crossing with Avinguda Diagonal, you will find metro station Diagonal, where you can get L3 as well as L5, the blue line, which will take you to Sants Station or the Sagrada Familia. Finally, you can get L1 (red) in Plaça Catalunya, at the other end of Passeig de Gracia.
In GowithOh, you can find holiday apartments in different parts of the city of Barcelona (as well as in many other fantastic European cities), and, of course, you will find a wide offer of them in Passeig de Gracia and its surroundings. It is a great location, since you will be at walking distance from many other important landmarks of Barcelona. Besides, you'll be close to many excellent restaurants and party areas, and you can easily travel to all the corners of the city with the metro system - as we explained before, all metro lines stop in Passeig de Gracia or very close.
So what are you waiting for? If you're planning on visiting Barcelona soon, count with GowithOh to find the best appartment deals and online ticket offers for you!
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