Re-Visiting My Favourite Park

I've written about this park before, and it's my favourite of the city's many parks and gardens. My last post wasn't as detailed as this one as all the photos I used to take in the past were with my parents or family members and you could hardly see the park and its installations. 

And that's a shame cos it's a bloody cool park. I've since learned when returning to places I haven't visited before to take a few snaps with no-one in the foreground for posting here! So bear in mind these are just pics from my phone with none of your instagram filters or whatever but I think you'll get the gist!

 One of the first things you'll realise is that the actual Park is much bigger than just the Labyrinth and is housed in some luxurious leafy gardens with shady corners and plenty of romantic hideaways to slip into. We actually went on a Sunday afternoon in summer, so got in for free, and despite the heat we were sufficiently cool in the shade to stay a good while.

Considering the age of the actual residence and the whole story behind the Labyrinth and it's creation, it's still in remarkably good shape. The history of the Marquis Desvalls and his family dates as far back as 1791, and it's their palace/residence that still greets you at the entrance. In a similar way to parts of Montjuic, there's moments of absolute silence despite being in the city itself - one thing I love about the park.

There are a few water features which have been added to the park over the years and restauration works, so streams running along the lower parks and waterfalls are all a prelude to the maze itself. Greek Icons dot the park and in days gone by the Pavillion was used for open air performances.

So when you reach the actual maze itself, it's pretty impressive from the top. Despite what you might think, it is actually a proper Labyrinth and there's only one way to the centre (no clues from me) and it's loads of fun bumping into the same people on the way round with a puzzled look on their faces! My kids loved it. 

The place is immaculately kept, and they only let a maximum of 750 people in the whole park, not just the maze itself, so it never gets "busy" busy, if you know what I mean.

Can you spot my family?!

 And by the miracle of modern technology, here's a mash-up of those three photos to give you a more panoramic view. Granted, my summer photos make it look really cool, but I've been in different times of the year and they've also been just as entertaining, so don't be put off now, just because Autumn is round the corner, OK?!

Parc del Laberint is located in Horta neighbourhood, and you can take public transport, or if you happen to go in a car, there's plenty of free parking spaces alongside the park and near to the private university residences. Get yourself there and get lost!!

Coming to Barcelona this Autum ? Check out these late deals from BCN Rentals Apartment agency and for some of the other Barcelona Parks and Gardens, see the link.

The Best Park in Barcelona

OK, so you might be expecting me to churn out a post about the magnificent Park Güell? Or maybe how much I love La Cuitadella (you wouldn't be wrong)? And no, it's not about the botanical gardens up on Montjüic, either. This is a real gem inside Barcelona, and one which is not often visited. I'm talking about the Parc del Laberint, up in Horta.



The northern neighbourhood of Horta literally translates into "market garden" and indeed used to be farmers fields by all accounts. Well, despite being notoriously difficult to reach by public transport (Line 3, Mundet on the metro, guys, then a bit of a walk) it is my favourite park in the city. Maybe cos it's because I'm a sucker for Jim Henson movies or that I'm really just a big kid at heart, but give me a maze any time!

The park actually looks a bit like a forest from the outside and it's only from the inside can you see the amazing labryinth, which dates back to 1791!! Originally owned by the Desvalls Family, Italian architect Domenico Begutti was hired to design gardens around a cypress maze complete with stream and waterfall. There are even picnic tables outside for you to relax with a spot of lunch. There's a similar attempt at training cypress trees up on Montjuic in the Font del Gat Park, too, which I've pictured below.


The park charges a measly 2,17€ to get in, which is well worth the price if you ask me, but is also free on Sundays and is open all year round (different opening times). So why on earth post about parks and gardens in January, I hear you ask? Well, given the pretty baltic temeperatures that have been sweeping around Spain and the rest of Europe, it seems that Barcelona has escaped with just a bit of a chill. No snow (boo!) and just a sharp drop in temeperatures, nothing out of the ordinary. However, imagine for a moment that Barcelona was covered in a blanket of snow, and you ended up getting lost in the maze.......sorry, any excuse to get this photo in the post!!! I've been waiting for ages to do that.



So what do you reckon? Have you been to the maze? Somewhere you'd like to visit, or do you think I'm completely wrong? Leave a comment guys and let me know. Oh, and if you're coming to Barcelona soon, check out these great Barcelona apartments for rent instead of a hotel!