The Eixample

The showcase for Gaudí and the Modernista architects, the Eixample was laid out on a strict grid traversed by wide avenues. Today the fantastic facades compete for attention with stylish designer shops and chic locals.

The origins of the Eixample (which means ‘extension’) lie in the 19th century, when civil engineer Ildefons Cerdà devised a clever way of expanding out of the Old City and subsuming the neighbourhoods such as Sants and Gràcia. Though political expediency took over in the end, his original idea was a utopian one; he planned a garden city for the working class in which only two of the four sides of each block would be built on, and the rest would provide green areas and shaded squares. In reality the blocks were built up on all sides, and bought by the wealthy upper classes, who commissioned many of the more fanciful works of Modernisme that adorn the area today. 

Passeig de Gràcia

This wide, tree-lined avenue originally linked the Old City and the village neighbourhood of Gràcia even before it was integrated into Cerdà’s plan and became the showground for some of the most spectacular Modernista buildings. Intricate details abound on the street itself, from the hexagonal pavement tiles designed by Gaudí to the beautiful wrought-iron street lamps, incorporated with mosaic benches, which were designed by Pere Falqués in 1906. 

The most famous block on Passeig de Gràcia is the Illa de la Discòrdia (the "Block of Discord"), with Domènech i Montaner's Casa Lleó Morera, Josep Puig i Cadafalch's Casa Amatller, and Gaudí's Casa Batlló.

Back on Passeig de Gràcia, further up, is Gaudí's Casa Milà, more commonly known as La Pedrera because of its rippling grey stone facade. 

Gaudí's masterpiece

The Eixample also contains the Sagrada Família, the symbol of Barcelona for many, and the reason the name Antoni Gaudí spread around the world. Here, in the centre of this bustling, ordinary neighbourhood, it is a staggering sight, its spires often likened to vast candles dripping wax in the heat.

Along Avinguda de Gaudí is the less well-known Modernista complex, the Hospital Sant Pau (1902–12), a World Heritage site. Made up of over 20 buildings, it is the work of the prolific Domènech i Montaner.

Parc Joan Miro

On the extreme left of the Eixample is one of the first urban parks created in the 1980s. Covering four Eixample blocks above Placa d'Espanya is the Parc Joan Miró, a great area for kids to run wild in. The 22-metre (70ft) -high Miro statue Dona i Ocell (Woman and Bird) is striking in its simple setting on a small island in the middle of a pool. One of Miró's last works, it was unveiled in 1983, a few months before he died.