Free tour of Barcelona: the Modernist Barcelona

Barcelona never ceases to amaze: No matter how often you visit, you will always discover something new. Perhaps that is why it is the city that has become our introduction of Spain to the rest of the world. If you join us on this free tour of Barcelona you can get to know it a little better.

Barcelona has much to teach as far as modernism is concerned. This artistic movement emerged in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It is characterized by the use of curved and asymmetric lines in architecture and decoration. In other words, the buildings of Antonio Gaudí are the living images of modernism and, therefore, Barcelona is the perfect city for observation.

The meeting point of the free tour in Barcelona is the Plaza de la Catedral, in the gothic quarter, where the spectacular Barcelona Cathedral is in Catalan Gothic style. The tour lasts approximately two hours and the first stop is the Palau de la Música Catalana. It was built as the headquarters of the Catalan Orfeón between 1905 and 1908 by the architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner.  It is one of the most special concert halls in the world and one of the most representative monuments of Catalan modernism, so much that it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997. From there you walk to Els Quatre Gats, a famous modernist venue inspired by Le Chat Noir in Paris.

The next stop of the free tour of Barcelona is the Paseo de Gracia, where you will find the most representative houses of modernism. You can get close to the two Gaudi jewels: the Casa Batlló and the Pedrera. The first one stands out because of its gigantic dragon with iridescent scales on the roof. The second is the most photographed and visited Gaudí civil building in Barcelona.  From the rooftop we will see the chimneys turned into galactic warriors. You will also see the Casa Lleó Morera, by the same architect as the Palau, with its elaborate windows and majestic columns, and the Casa Amatller, by Josep Puig i Cadafalch.

The free tour of Barcelona will allow you to go further and learn about the history of all those modernist facades. Just seeing them is incredible, so imagine knowing all the details. We assure you that Barcelona has reasons to boast about being a modernist city.

Do you want to join the free tour of Barcelona?

It starts on Friday, April 27th and it is planned for the whole weekend (27th, 28th and 29th). It is organized at 17:00 and will have an approximate duration of two hours. As we said, it is completely free, although the guides will be happy to receive a tip.