Discover Barcelona’s Historic Parc de la Ciutadella

When you first wander into the Parc de la Ciutadella, you enter what looks like a magical oasis in the center of downtown Barcelona. A gigantic mammoth with curving tusks rests in the shade of a small grove of trees, not far from a lake overlooked by gilded statues of rampant horses. A castle topped by a blue and black glass and metal turret is surrounded by pines and palm trees. 

The 18-hectare park is filled with paths and green spaces that tourists and residents of all ages can use to escape from the heat and the noise of the city and is one of the most relaxing places to spend a weekend afternoon in the center of town.

The History of the Park

The site of the park was originally land where King Felipe V constructed a massive military citadel in 1715, after the city of Barcelona surrendered on September 11, 1714 at the end of the War of Spanish Succession. The northeastern-most part of the original city walls as well as over 1,200 houses in the neighborhood of La Ribera were destroyed to make way for the construction. The citadel was intended to keep the fallen city under tight control and would later be used as a prison.

It wasn’t until 1869 that the citadel was turned over to the city by Catalan politician and military leader General Joan Prim, in an effort to curry favor with the local bourgeoisie industrial class. His one condition was that the citadel be torn down and the space be converted into a park. The former arsenal, now the location of the Catalan Parliament; the chapel, now the Military Parish Church of Barcelona; the Governor's Palace, now Verdaguer Secondary School, are all that remain of the original citadel’s construction. 

The original layout of the park was created by young architect Josep Fontserè in 1872, though it would be modified for the Universal Exhibition of 1888, and again in 1892 to include the Barcelona Zoo, when banker Lluís Martí-Codolar gifted his collection of exotic animals to the local government.

Several of the most iconic attractions in the park are left over from the Universal Exhibition’s constructions, including the Castle of the Three Dragons, which was designed for the Exhibition by famed Catalan architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner; the waterfall and lake; and the modernist Umbracle (the greenhouse) and Hivernacle (a steel and glass structure by Josep Amargós made that was intended to showcase exotic plants during the Exhibition). 

A statue of General Prim on his horse was erected in the park in 1887 in recognition of his gesture, though the statue would later be destroyed by anarchist groups in 1936 in retaliation for the month-long bombardment that the General himself had ordered on Barcelona back in 1843. The metal was melted down and used to create arms and ammunition for Republican militias during the Spanish Civil War. The statue was eventually replaced by a replica after the war was over.

Things to Do and See

The Castle of the Three Dragons, first designed as a restaurant for the 1888 Exhibition, was converted into the Zoology Museum of Barcelona in the year 1920. While it is currently closed for renovations, its medieval-looking façade and blue turret are a sight worth seeing. 

Close by, on the western edge of the park, are the Hivernacle and the Umbracle. The Umbracle is still a greenhouse and is open to the public, but the Hivernacle—which has been used as a conference space and a jazz concert venue, among other things over the years—has fallen into a state of severe disrepair over the past two decades. The city has announced plans to have it repaired, but the earliest possible date of completion is projected for some time in 2023. 

Near the Hivernacle is the Museum of Natural Sciences of Barcelona, housed in a modernist building by the architect Antoni Rovira y Trias. It is also closed for renovations.

The lake and the waterfall in the northern section of the park is one of the most popular tourist attractions, and provides an elevated view of the surrounding area. The fountain is known as the Font de la Cascada and is decorated with sculptural elements by a variety of 19th-century Catalan artists, most notably the sculpture of four gilded, rampant horses—the Quadriga de l'Aurora by Rossend Nobas—that tops the pavilion.

The fountain and statue were created by Josep Fontsére with the help of his assistant at the time, a young architecture student named Antoni Gaudí. Fontsére was reportedly inspired by the nautically themed Trevi Fountain of Rome for the project’s design. The lake itself was created in 1881, though its famous adornments weren’t completed until 1888, just in time for the Universal Exhibition.

The two curving staircases leading up to the podium on the second level of the monument offer views of the various carved creatures, including birds and dragons. A statue of Venus standing on an open clam shell by artist Venanci Vallmitjana provides a centerpiece. You can rent a rowboat to enjoy a ride on the lake for just a few euros per person, weather permitting.

Just a few steps away is the aforementioned woolly mammoth, a huge painted stone sculpture installed not far from the lake. It was the first and ultimately the only life-sized reproduction of an extinct species that the local Board of Natural Sciences had planned to create and place in the park at the beginning of the 1900s. He is a popular photo op for kids and adults alike. 

A more modern and much more tragic monument just south of the lake is the park's bandstand, now known as la Glorieta de la Transsexual Sònia. It is named in honor of a transsexual woman, Sonia Rescalvo Zafra, who was murdered at that site in 1991.

In the center of the park is the Plaça de Joan Fiveller, with the Catalan Parliament located on its eastern edge. There you can find a replica of Josep Llimona’s sculpture El Desconsol (“Distress”), installed in a pool of water in the Plaza de Armes, which was designed in 1916 by French landscape engineer J.C.N. Forestier. It is one of the most notable of the many pieces of public art in the park.

The southernmost portion of the park is occupied by the Barcelona Zoo with its plethora of native and exotic species is a popular attraction. (You can get a 20% discount on Zoo admission with the Barcelona Card.) Apart from the Zoo, the park itself boasts over 100 types of wildlife and some of the city’s oldest trees.

Barcelona’s most centrally-located and most famous green space also boasts a designated children’s play area, over two kilometers of paths to walk or jog, ping pong tables, a dog park, and various free organized activities, such as open-air Tai Chi and Chi Kung sessions. 

The Parc de la Ciutadella is located at Passeig de Picasso, 21, in the neighborhood of Sant Pere, Santa Caterina and the Ribera in the Ciutat Vella district of the city. It is open to the public every day from 10:00 until 22:30.