A Park Güell Guide: How to Get There, Price & More!

Park Güell is a MUST-SEE site if this is your first time going to Barcelona. But, f you’ve checked the map and have seen how far it is from the city center and wondering if it is worth the trek to visit Park Güell, it is!

It is a park like nothing you will see anywhere else. The Antoni Gaudí architrecture is colorful, rounded and whimsical and is a staple for Barcelona!

However, being a must-see site also means it is one of the most-visited and busy spots in Barcelona. With that comes a few things you should know before visiting.

Here is everything you need to know including where (and where not) to buy your tickets, best time to visit, how to get to the park, what to expect inside the park, how much time you will need to see the park, amenities, what to bring with you and more!

Park Güell is kind of unique; not many parks are open just to display architecture. But, founded in 1900 with the intensions of being a housing development, it wasn’t meant to be a park.

However, due to a lack of buyers, only two houses were built. And then, once Eusebi Güell died, the park was sold to the city.

Now, it is a park to display the unique architecture of the famous Antoni Gaudí.

The park is large at ~18 hectares (~45 acres) with 12 hectares (~30 acres) being the “Monumental Zone” and the rest being forested area that is free to enter (probably not really the reason you are going to the park.)

Park Güell is located in the Gràcia district, high on a hill, so it boasts some of the best views of the city as well!

Some of the best views are near the east entrance and the upper viaducts. If you don’t come in this entrance, it is worth the climb up!

You can’t purchase tickets AT the park; you have to purchase them on online. I didn’t know this ahead of time, and I showed up at the park without a ticket 🙃

Then I tried to buy tickets on the wrong site that were nearly triple the price of what they were supposed to be.

SO.

Buy your tickets ahead of time and buy them correctly.

They should cost ~18-21 euros and you want to either purchase them directly on the Park Güell website or with Get Your Guide if you prefer a platform where all of your tickets are together.

If someone is trying to charge you almost 50 euros you are on the wrong website (probably the first website I went to- this one if you don’t believe me lol.)

Tickets will be sold in 30 minute increments; the time you choose is the time you can ENTER the park. Then you can stay as long as you like once you are in.

I recommend getting to this park when it opens at 9:30am. A) it gets busy and your experience will be much better and B) it gets hot if you are visiting during the warmer months. I went in the middle of the day and regretted it; fighting the crowds and sweating death was unpleasant.

Guadí House Museum

Admission includes everything besides the Gaudí House Museum, the house that Gaudí lived in for nearly 20 years.

The outside of Gaudí House Museum is pretty enough, but inside you can see furniture that was designed by Gaudí and get a sneak peek into his life.

If you want to enter the museum you need to book a combined ticket (which should be $7-8 dollars more than general admission.)

The biggest downfall of Park Güell is the distance it is outside the city center. From the Gothic Quarter, for instance, it will take you 35-40 minutes via public transportation to get there.

Metro: You can take lines L3 or L4 to the closest metro station. However, this metro station is about a 19 minute walk from the park (or you can wait for a bus to take you to the entrance.)

Bus: The bus line will depend on where you are leaving from. But, different bus lines will get you to different spots.

Bus 24 will take you to the east park entrance and help you avoid walking up the hill to the entrance. It leaves from Plaça de Catalunya, which is super central and really convenient.

Bus H6 and D40, stop at Travessera de Dalt, which is about a 10 minute walk to the main entrance.

Entrances Into Park Güell

There are three entrances into Park Güell, a main entrance, an entrance near the east bus drop off and another entrance to the left of the main entrance that has an escalator leading up to it.

Carrer d’ Olot (Main Entrance)– This entrance is where you will find the famous Dragon Stairs that lead up to the Greek Theatre area. If you enter through this area you will have to walk UP to get to the viaducts and main sites.

Carretera del Carmel (Near bus drop-offs)- This entrance is on the east side of the park, uphill near the viaducts. From here, you can work your way DOWN to the main entrance.

Avinguda del Santuari de Sant Josep de la Muntanya (north end, all the way to the park)- Entrance has an escalator. If you come from the metro station, this may be your best entrance.

Logistically, it is important for you to know where to get your tickets and how to get to the park. But what else do you need to know?

Here is what to expect inside the park, how much time you’ll need, amenities in the park, what to bring with you and more!

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What to Expect Inside Park Güell

The park is big, but very manageable. And, many of the sites are near each other.

Which entrance you come in will determine which way you will see the park.

I entered on the east side at the Carretera del Carmel entrance on Bus 24. While you don’t enter at the most popular area, it does allow you to walk mostly downhill to the most popular sites

If you enter through the main entrance, you will see the most popular sites first (stairs, column room, etc) and then you will walk up to places like the viaducts.

The must-see spots inside Park Güell are:

1. The Three Viaducts
2. Gaudí House Museum (from the outside if you don’t purchase tickets)
3. Hypostyle Hall
4. The Greek Theatre (or Nature Square)
5. The Monumental Staircase (and dragon mosaic)
6. The Porter’s Lodge & The Visitor’s Waiting Room

There is also a Hill of Three Crosses; while there is a decent view, it is quite the climb and you can’t get a very good view of the crosses because you end up directly under them. So, I’ll call this one optional, as much as I like seeing crosses.

How Much Time Will you Need?

Though the park is a bit large, you can see the main highlights within a reasonable time.

I spent about an hour and 15 minutes in Park Güell. However, this was mostly because I was fighting crowds at the Greek Theatre (Nature Square) and Hypostle Hall.

As a photographer, I really wanted to capture the architecture well, but the crowds were really wearing on my nerves.

Had I got to the park when it opened and beat the crowds, I would have likely spent a little more time at the park!

For planning purposes, two hours should be plenty for you!

Amenities in The Park

Park Güell has basic amenities. You will find restrooms at all three entrances and water fountains throughout the park.

There is a small cafe, Bar La Cueva (with bad TripAdvisor reviews) inside the park that offers snack foods and sandwiches as well as drinks and coffee.

However, you should be prepared for the prices to be high in the park.

I recommend just bringing your own snacks if you think you’ll get hungry in the park.

What to Bring With You

In addition to whatever snacks you want, what else should you bring?

I don’t recommend bringing a lot, you are going to do a lot of walking and a good percentage of that is going to be up and down hills.

A few things I recommend bringing (especially if you are visiting in the warmer months):

• Water bottle– there are refillable fountains in the park
• Sunscreen– There are spots where there is VERY little shade
• Sunglasses– It can be bright, especially near the lighter mosaics
• Anti-chaf Balm– If you plan to wear shorts and don’t have a thigh gap, I recommend this stuff! (for your whole trip to Spain really)

Other than this, make sure you have your pre-booked ticket and comfy shoes!

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Though it definitely takes a bit of trekking to get to Park Güell compared to most of the other sites in Barcelona, it is worth the hassle.

Though you can see a bit of Antoni Gaudí’s architecture at the Sagrada Familia and Casa Batlló, Park Güell is where you are going to get the biggest collection of his architecture!

How to spend one day in Barcelona seeing the best sites!