English
One of the most extensive green spaces of the Catalan capital is the wonderful park of Montjuïc, a whole mountain that overlooks the whole city and that, throughout the years, has established itself as the main park in Barcelona. Located in the Sants-Montjuïc district, Montjuïc holds a wide range of activities: the castle, the numerous museums and theatres, the parks and gardents, the sports facilities developed especially for the 1992 Olympic Games or the huge fair complex Fira de Barcelona (one of the most important ones in Europe) to just mention a few.
For those who don´t know Barcelona very well, the best way to get to Montjuïc is to get the green line on the metro (L3) and get off at Espanya. Once there, you have to walk up the Reina Maria Cristina avenue until you get to the Palau Nacional, the home of the National Art Museum of Catalonia (MNAC), a majestic building that rises at the end of said avenue and after a very long staircase, past the light and colour fountains (here are the timetables for the light shows of the Fountains of Montjuïc). If you´re not in good physical shape or you´re simply lazy, best avoid all those stairs if you´re walking and best go for the staircases that will take you to the door of the MNAC without giving your legs a beating.
A visit to this emblematic building and museum is a must: inside it has the biggest and most important Romanesque art collection in Europe as well as modernism and avant-garde art, a trip through 1000 years of Catalan, Spanish and European art. The works exhibited here belong to names such as Velázquez, Gaudí, El Greco or Dalí amongst others. However, the cultural offers that the mountain offers aren´t just limited to the MNAC, since here you can also find the CaixaForum, the Mercat de les Flors or the Teatre Lliure among others.
However, Montjuïc means nature above all. This vibrant green lung of the city is filled with gardens and parks, 22 in total, and it has a huge biodoversity: it has 1711 flora species of the whole 3900 that you can find in Catalonia, according to the studies conducted by Martí Boada, professor of environmental sciences. Some of the parks and gardens that are worth visiting are the Josep Amargós gardens, the Laribal gardens or the Mossèn Cinto Verdaguer gardens, although there are still 19 that I won´t mention to avoid going on and on. The animal world has also found its habitat and refuge here: some 30 animal species live on the mountain of Montjuïc, an interesting fact that brings hope.
A little corner that I love to have a beer in outdoors and also listen to a bit of music and enjoy a privileged view of Barcelona is Caseta del Migdia, a magical place between pine trees and eucalyptus trees at Parc del Migdia. In the current programme of the Caseta, on Thursdays they have flamenco and dancers on, a show that you can fully enjoy in this place with a magical view.
Lastly, another activity that takes place in Montjuïc in the summer is its outdoor cinema. On the 29th of June it will be the 10th edition of Sala Montjuïc, a selection of the best films of all time, along with concerts, picnics and short films in this suggestive space in the Montjuïc Castle gardens.
If you still haven´t been to Montjuïc, all I can say is “what are you waiting for?”.
Rent apartments for days days in Barcelona city and immerse yourself in the magical beauty of the biggest urban garden in the city, Montjuïc. Nature, culture and entertainment within your reach.
