Thanks! Wow, 1995! Both the park and its surroundings have changed quite a bit over the past 30 years. Some changes have been for the better, while other things I preferred the way they used to be.
Thank for your video. Sadly, entrance to the park is limited and tourists are forced to pay to enter! I would have thought the park was there for all! A busy time, too many tourists so I was glad to watch your video. Thhanks
Hi Elizabeth! As happy as I am my video allowed you to "discover" the park, I'm sorry you didn't get to experience it firsthand. I agree, that it's a difficult situation... Barcelona, in general, is becoming a city for tourists. As a local, I remember being able to go to Park Güell with my friends as a kid just to hang out there. Now that's completely impossible, as you pointed out. Sometimes I fear Barcelona will end up becoming a museum city, like Venice, where it's almost impossible for any locals to live. I've actually written extensively about that in my newsletter architecturetopics.com/en/#ny-vs-venice Anyway, Barcelona is still far from reaching the levels of Venice, but the situation is definitely worse than it was just a decade ago, and it's tricky because a lot of the city's economy is now built around tourism. I'm not as naive as to think we should forbid tourism or anything like that... to be honest I'm not sure what the solution is, but it's definitely something that needs to be addressed.
I was not planning on going because from the pics it looked like a Disneyworld kind of place. However, after listening to you I am buying tickets right now while I am visiting Barcelona for the first time. Thank you!😊
Hi Lucia. That's great to hear! :) I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. Plus, November is a great time to visit, specially with the nice weather we are having this year in Barcelona! It is a popular destination, but for sure it won’t be as crowded now as it is during the summer. I'm sure knowing some of the reasons behind why Park Güell is build the way it is will help you appreciate it better. Enjoy!
enjoyed this video a lot. it's a beautiful park with lots of nice symbolisms. thanks for explaining fascinated by the spelling. Park with a k instead of a c being intentional is something I never knew!! always learn something new in these videos!
Totally! It's like an easter egg hunt. You can admire other landmarks without knowing much about them, but visiting Park Güell is a very different experience once you know a little bit about Gaudi's games and intentions. Glad you enjoyed it! :)
Gracias Laura! Cada semana publicaremos un nuevo video sobre una obra diferente. La semana que viene toca el Rolex Learning Center en Lausanne, Suiza. Te esperamos!
Yes, the legend of Sant Jordi runs deep in Catalan culture, and Gaudí sure was thinking about it when he designed this fountain, but I don’t think he meant it as a literal representation of Sant Jordi’s dragon, which is commonly characterized as a big, scary creature. Instead, his statue represents a more common lizard (gecko), which are very common in the Mediterranean seaside, and geckos just so happen to be called “dracs” (dragons) in Catalan, which in my opinion made it the perfect symbolic riddle which Gaudí was so fond of, and which his works are filled with.
You need to get a ticket to access the main square and the sala hipóstila (except on some special occasions). The rest of the park, which is most of it, is free for anyone to visit just like any other public park of the city. So, if you are a neighbor and just want to enjoy a walk in the nature there is plenty of space to do so at no cost, however if you are just visiting the park as a tourist you will probably want to get the ticket to see the most relevant, and famous spots.
I love your video. Very interesting and informative. I have been several times since 1995. Gorgeous.
Thanks! Wow, 1995! Both the park and its surroundings have changed quite a bit over the past 30 years. Some changes have been for the better, while other things I preferred the way they used to be.
Nice and very helpfull. Keep it up
Glad you liked it 🙂
Thank for your video. Sadly, entrance to the park is limited and tourists are forced to pay to enter! I would have thought the park was there for all! A busy time, too many tourists so I was glad to watch your video. Thhanks
Hi Elizabeth! As happy as I am my video allowed you to "discover" the park, I'm sorry you didn't get to experience it firsthand.
I agree, that it's a difficult situation... Barcelona, in general, is becoming a city for tourists. As a local, I remember being able to go to Park Güell with my friends as a kid just to hang out there. Now that's completely impossible, as you pointed out.
Sometimes I fear Barcelona will end up becoming a museum city, like Venice, where it's almost impossible for any locals to live. I've actually written extensively about that in my newsletter architecturetopics.com/en/#ny-vs-venice
Anyway, Barcelona is still far from reaching the levels of Venice, but the situation is definitely worse than it was just a decade ago, and it's tricky because a lot of the city's economy is now built around tourism. I'm not as naive as to think we should forbid tourism or anything like that... to be honest I'm not sure what the solution is, but it's definitely something that needs to be addressed.
I was not planning on going because from the pics it looked like a Disneyworld kind of place. However, after listening to you I am buying tickets right now while I am visiting Barcelona for the first time. Thank you!😊
Hi Lucia. That's great to hear! :)
I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. Plus, November is a great time to visit, specially with the nice weather we are having this year in Barcelona! It is a popular destination, but for sure it won’t be as crowded now as it is during the summer.
I'm sure knowing some of the reasons behind why Park Güell is build the way it is will help you appreciate it better.
Enjoy!
Great architecture lecture, can't wait to see the next one!
Thank you Stella! You can expect a new video every week, so stay tuned!
very informative and interesting, thank you!!
Our pleasure! Glad you enjoyed it :)
Excellent video!! Just visited today and it really is breathtaking (and not just bc we started from the top! 😅)!
Thanks for this good review!
Of course! My pleasure :)
enjoyed this video a lot. it's a beautiful park with lots of nice symbolisms. thanks for explaining
fascinated by the spelling. Park with a k instead of a c being intentional is something I never knew!! always learn something new in these videos!
Totally! It's like an easter egg hunt. You can admire other landmarks without knowing much about them, but visiting Park Güell is a very different experience once you know a little bit about Gaudi's games and intentions. Glad you enjoyed it! :)
Great lecture, Best one I've seen on the park
Glad you think so! There is so much to tell about this park, it was hard bringing it down to 10 minutes :)
Excelente reseña. Muy interesante!
Gracias Laura! Cada semana publicaremos un nuevo video sobre una obra diferente. La semana que viene toca el Rolex Learning Center en Lausanne, Suiza. Te esperamos!
Very informative! Thank you :)
Our pleasure!
BEUTIFUL CITY BARCELONA THE BEST CITY ON THE WORLD BARCELONA
Not a bad place indeed :)
What do i really need to see in one day visit
The dragon represents the story of Sant Jordi (Saint George. A roman soldier that killed the dragon to save the town) the Saint of Catalonia
Yes, the legend of Sant Jordi runs deep in Catalan culture, and Gaudí sure was thinking about it when he designed this fountain, but I don’t think he meant it as a literal representation of Sant Jordi’s dragon, which is commonly characterized as a big, scary creature.
Instead, his statue represents a more common lizard (gecko), which are very common in the Mediterranean seaside, and geckos just so happen to be called “dracs” (dragons) in Catalan, which in my opinion made it the perfect symbolic riddle which Gaudí was so fond of, and which his works are filled with.
What part of the park is free?
You need to get a ticket to access the main square and the sala hipóstila (except on some special occasions). The rest of the park, which is most of it, is free for anyone to visit just like any other public park of the city.
So, if you are a neighbor and just want to enjoy a walk in the nature there is plenty of space to do so at no cost, however if you are just visiting the park as a tourist you will probably want to get the ticket to see the most relevant, and famous spots.