Review: Parc de la Ciutadella

Let’s start big picture. What are we looking at, exactly?
“And here’s the Arc de Triomf”—a phrase you might not expect to hear in Barcelona. It gets even more confusing when you discover that the monumental stone gateway at the entrance of Parc de la Ciutadella (which indeed shares a name with the French landmark), was actually supposed to be the Eiffel Tower. True story: The Barcelona council rejected Gustave Eiffel’s design, leading him to pitch it to Paris. Inside the Ciutadella? The core is a lime-tree-lined boulevard with couples promenading, kids running, street artists blowing giant bubbles, locals training their dogs, students sunbathing on the grassy banks, and older folk watching on.

Fun! Any standout features or must-sees?
The site is vast: few parks could house a city’s zoo and its regional parliament, let alone put them next door to each other, which is the case here. Cascada Monumental, built with input from some young architecture upstart called Gaudí (know him?), is a stunning golden waterfall that both wows and relaxes you. Ditto the serene boating lake beside it. Enter through the Arc de Triomf and the elaborate Modernist building to your right is Castell dels Tres Dragons, built by Lluís Domènech i Montaner. Currently closed to the public for renovation, it’s a scientific research site for the city’s natural history museum, specializing in geology and zoology. Other beautiful structures that are open for strolling include the cast iron Umbracle, where arched roofs shade verdant kentia palms, fig trees and giant elephant’s ears. In July 2023, following years of sporadic opening hours, the Hivernacle (winter garden) will finally reopen for good after a 12-month restoration of its striking glass-walled structure. It’ll be worth the detour. 

Got it. Was it easy to get around?
Easy by foot or bike: paths are wide and dotted with benches and lawns for lounging.

That sounds cool. All said and done, what—and who—is this best for?
Go for an authentic slice of city-park life. Hey, it almost counts as one of your daily portions of greens.