Gaudí and Modernisme itinerary

Few architects have tied their name to a city the way Antoni Gaudí did to Barcelona. His houses that ripple like sea waves, his chimneys shaped like warriors, his mosaics of broken tiles, his columns that branch like trees and the Sagrada Família, the basilica still under construction after more than 140 years, have become the very symbol of the city. Gaudí was the most original genius of Modernisme, the Catalan version of Art Nouveau, which between the late 19th and early 20th centuries transformed Barcelona and many Catalan towns, with architects such as Lluís Domènech i Montaner and Josep Puig i Cadafalch.

This eight-day itinerary begins in Barcelona, with the great works of Gaudí and his colleagues, continues to the Colonia Güell and Reus, the architect's home town, and then follows his rare works outside Catalonia: El Capricho in Comillas, Cantabria, the Casa Botines in León and the Episcopal Palace of Astorga, on the Camino de Santiago. It is the ideal journey for lovers of architecture, design and the decorative arts.

Gaudí and Modernisme

Antoni Gaudí was born in 1852 in Reus, or perhaps in nearby Riudoms, the son of a coppersmith. He studied architecture in Barcelona and soon found a patron, the industrialist Eusebi Güell, for whom he designed a palace, a park and the church of a workers' colony. His style, inspired by the forms of nature, by geometry and by Catholic faith, was unique: he used parabolic arches, leaning columns and trencadís, mosaic made of tile fragments, and he designed every detail, from door handles to chairs. He devoted the last forty years of his life to the Sagrada Família. On 7 June 1926 he was hit by a tram and, shabbily dressed, was not recognised: he died three days later in a hospital for the poor. Seven of his works are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. See Antoni Gaudí and Gaudí's Barcelona.

Day 1: the Sagrada Família

Start with the masterpiece. The Sagrada Família was begun in 1882 by another architect; Gaudí took charge the following year and turned it into an immense project, with eighteen towers dedicated to the apostles, the evangelists, the Virgin and Jesus. Inside, the columns branch towards the ceiling like a stone forest, and the stained glass turns the light green and blue to the east and red and orange to the west. Look at the Nativity façade, the only one completed by Gaudí, rich with carvings of plants and animals, and the stark, dramatic Passion façade. You can climb one of the towers. Gaudí's tomb is in the crypt. See the Sagrada Família.

In the afternoon visit Domènech i Montaner's Hospital de Sant Pau, ten minutes' walk along avinguda Gaudí: a village of mosaic-decorated pavilions, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Where to stay: in Barcelona, in the Eixample, for four nights. See where to stay in Barcelona.

Day 2: the Passeig de Gràcia

The Passeig de Gràcia, the Eixample's grand boulevard, is an open-air museum of Modernisme. At number 43 stands the Casa Batlló, with its façade of ceramic scales, mask-shaped balconies and dragon-back roof: inside, there is not a single right angle. Next door are Puig i Cadafalch's Casa Amatller and Domènech's Casa Lleó Morera: the block is known as the Manzana de la Discordia, the Block of Discord. Further up is the Casa Milà, known as La Pedrera, "the stone quarry", with its undulating façade and its roof of warrior-shaped chimneys. See the Eixample.

In the afternoon visit Domènech i Montaner's Palau de la Música Catalana, the concert hall with a stained-glass skylight shaped like an inverted sun; in the evening, if you can, go to a concert.

Day 3: Park Güell, Casa Vicens and Palau Güell

In the morning go up to Park Güell, conceived as a residential estate for the rich and turned into a park: the staircase with the mosaic salamander, the hall of a hundred columns, the great square with its undulating bench covered in trencadís, and the view over the whole city. Walk down into the Gràcia district to the Casa Vicens, Gaudí's first house, covered in green and white floral tiles in neo-Moorish style. See Gràcia.

In the afternoon visit the Palau Güell, just off the Rambla, the patron's town palace, with its great hall beneath the dome and its roof of colourful chimneys. See the Rambla.

Day 4: the Colonia Güell

The regional train (about twenty minutes from Plaça d'Espanya) takes you to the Colonia Güell in Santa Coloma de Cervelló, the workers' village Eusebi Güell built around his textile mill. Gaudí designed the church here but completed only the crypt: it was the laboratory where he tested the leaning columns and arches he would use in the Sagrada Família, calculated with a model of strings and bags of lead shot hung from the ceiling. The village keeps its workers' houses, school and theatre, many in Modernista style. In the afternoon return to Barcelona to go up Montjuïc or stroll through the old town. See Montjuïc.

Day 5: Reus

The train takes you to Reus in about an hour and a half. Here visit the Gaudí Centre, a modern, interactive museum that explains how the architect worked, with models, geometry and his notebooks. Reus is also one of the capitals of Catalan Modernisme, with a Ruta del Modernisme of over twenty buildings: Domènech i Montaner's Casa Navàs, on the Mercadal square, with its original interiors intact, is one of the finest in all Catalonia. Try a vermouth, of which Reus was once the capital. In the evening return to Barcelona, or sleep in Reus or Tarragona.

Day 6: north to Comillas

Fly from Barcelona to Santander (about an hour and a half), pick up a car and drive to Comillas (about three quarters of an hour), an elegant seaside town in Cantabria. Here the young Gaudí built, between 1883 and 1885, El Capricho, a summer villa covered in sunflower tiles, with a minaret-like tower and windows that play notes like musical instruments: one of his rare works outside Catalonia. Comillas has other Modernista buildings, such as the Sobrellano palace and the Pontifical University. See Santander Airport.

Where to stay: in Comillas or Santillana del Mar.

Day 7: León and the Casa Botines

Cross the Cantabrian Mountains to León (about three hours). In the historic centre, beside the square of San Marcelo, stands the Casa Botines, built by Gaudí in 1891-1892 for a textile firm: a neo-Gothic palace with corner turrets and a statue of St George slaying the dragon over the entrance, now a museum. In front of it, on a bench, sits a bronze statue of Gaudí. Visit León Cathedral, with almost two thousand square metres of medieval stained glass, one of the most beautiful in the world. See León.

Where to stay: in León.

Day 8: Astorga and home

In Astorga (three quarters of an hour), on the Camino de Santiago, the bishop, a Catalan and a friend of Gaudí, commissioned him to build a new Episcopal Palace: a white granite castle with towers, arches and stained glass, now home to the Museum of the Ways, on the pilgrimage to Santiago. Try mantecadas, Astorga's sponge cakes, and cocido maragato. Then return to León and take the high-speed train to Madrid (about two hours), or drive to Madrid (about three and a half hours). See Astorga and the Camino de Santiago.

How much it costs

To save money: Gaudí's works are among the most expensive monuments in Spain; choose two or three interiors and admire the other façades from outside. Many offer reduced tickets for students and over-65s, and online tickets cost less than at the door. The Barcelona Card includes public transport.

Practical information

• Bookings: the Sagrada Família, Casa Batlló, La Pedrera and Park Güell use timed tickets that sell out, especially in summer; buy online well ahead, only on the official websites.
• Best time: at the Sagrada Família the most beautiful light comes through the windows in the late afternoon.
• Transport: Barcelona is easy to get around by metro; see Barcelona transport.
• Pickpockets: on the Rambla, on the metro and in crowded places, keep an eye on bags and phones.
• Documents: EU citizens only need a valid identity card.

Variations

• Montserrat: the monastery on the strangely shaped mountain that inspired Gaudí, an hour from Barcelona.
• Terrassa and Sabadell: the industrial towns of Modernisme, with factories and the homes of rich industrialists; see Terrassa.
• The Garraf: the Güell wine cellars, by Gaudí and his collaborator Francesc Berenguer, on the coast south of Barcelona.
• Back by train: if you would rather not fly, do only the Catalan section and finish in Barcelona; see trains between Madrid and Barcelona.

What to read before you go

A good illustrated book on Gaudí's architecture; for the atmosphere of Barcelona at the time, Eduardo Mendoza's The City of Marvels; for a novel set in the city, Carlos Ruiz Zafón's The Shadow of the Wind. See also modern Spanish art and Barcelona's museums.

Final tips

• Pace: visit no more than two Gaudí interiors a day; they are packed with detail and tiring.
• Combinations: from Barcelona you can link up with the Dalí itinerary on the Costa Brava.
• A tip: on the roof of La Pedrera at sunset, walk among the warrior chimneys looking at the Sagrada Família in the distance: you will understand how Gaudí saw his city.

See also our other itineraries in Spain.

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