Inauguration
The Poble Espanyol or Spanish Village was inaugurated in 1929 due to the International Exhibition. It was built to recreate an authentic Spanish town. They built the 117 building replications in only 13 months by only two architects. However, they always designed them in their own styles.
The main objective of the Spanish Village was to show visitors the proper Spanish lifestyle. The buildings are recreations from all over Spain (including the Balearic Islands). Originally, the site had to be destroyed once the International Exhibition ended. But, they decided not to as the village became very popular.
General Overview
Discover the architectural, cultural and traditional heritage of an entire country. Enjoy the incredible buildings, streets and squares as well as live craft work. There are around 20 artisans on site with lovely cute shops.
Moreover, Poble Espanyol has contemporary art exhibitions and new multimedia spaces. Visitors will discover Spain through traditions, festivities and emotions. There’s also bars, restaurants and the popular flamenco show in Tablao de Carmen.
Poble Espanyol is divided into 4 areas; the South, the North, the Center and the Mediterranean zone. They all represent different cultural features that distinguish them.
Take a minute to learn about Poble Espanyol’s history or activities on the interactive panels at the main entrance.
New Multimedia Spaces
FEELING SPAIN
Stroll down the streets and point out at the different areas and buildings. Get to know their own culture with the new Feeling Spain multimedia spaces. They’re located in each area. There’s an extra one for Camino de Santiago because of how popular it is. You’ll see the these spaces located on the map.
These spaces will take you to those specific locations through smells, feelings and atmosphere. The multimedia experience truly represent the essence of each place.
FIESTA
The star of the multimedia project is the FIESTA area. It recreates some of the most representatives popular festivals in Spain. These are classified into different concepts; joy, anger, fire, spirituality and color.
The multimedia zone show visitors different festivities like La Tomatina (Valencia), La Patum (Catalonia), the Human Towers (Catalonia), Holy Week (Andalusia), San Fermín (Pamplona) and Es Jaleo (Menorca).
The 10-minute large-scale video highlights the different festivals in Spain. I totally recommend watching the video as you’ll get to know Spain’s truly culture through emotions rather than a boring brochure. The multimedia space is quite loud so, it might not be suitable for little kids.
Spanish Village 2019
ARCHITECTURE & ART
The buildings recreate white Andalusian houses, Galicia’s typical architecture or the robustness of the Catalonian ecclesiastical style, among others. Each region in Spain has its own style.
Moreover, the Spanish Village also represents art. The site includes 3 different spaces dedicated to Art; the Fran Daurel Museum, the Sculpture Garden and the Guinovart Space. The first Museum offers a contemporary collection with more than 300 works by Picasso, Miró, Tàpies, Dalí, Barceló and Chillida.
The garden hosts 36 sculptures made by 27 contemporary artists. There’s also huge slides in the garden for both kids and adults. Finally, the Guinovart Space is dedicated to Josep Guinovart, a popular Catalan artist.
ARTISANS
Poble Espanyol has been named a Recognized Artisan Space, being the only place in Barcelona with such a high number of artisans. 20 to be precisely. All artisans have their own shop where you can purchase or order something for them to make. You can also watch them while they work. Some of the artisans offer different workshops to give visitors a firsthand experience.
Check out the different types of workshops that each of them organize on their website.
EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
The Spanish Village also offers a wide range of school activities. Nearly all activities are themed with Spanish traditions, art and architecture. In that way, kids learn about their own country as well as getting to know the artisan’s important role in past societies.
EVENTS
There’s also tons of events that make the town come alive. Family activities are constantly going on every week. Music, theater, magic, circus, dance or workshops are some of the topics. They organize other events like Festivals, Christmas Markets, gastronomy fairs or the Summer nights cycle.
Practical Information
HOW TO GET THERE
Poble Espanyol is at Montjuïc’s mountain, a ten-minute walk from the Magic Fountain and Plaça Espanya. It’s close to other attractions like the MNAC, CaixaForum or Mies Van der Rohe Pavilion.
The exact address is: Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, 13, 08038 Barcelona.
Subway: L1 (Plaça Espanya) or L3 (Plaça Espanya)
Bus: Nº 150 from Plaça Espanya to Spanish Village
By Foot: The best way to enjoy the views and to exercise a bit.
TIMETABLE
Poble Espanyol is open 365 days a year and has different opening hours due to the many events and activities that they carry out.
- Monday: 9AM – 8PM
- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday: 9AM – 12AM (midnight)
- Friday: 9AM – 3AM
- Saturday: 9AM – 4AM
My visit to this amazing space was special and emotive. I would totally recommend the attraction as well as the events that they organize.
PLAN YOUR VISIT NOW!
Get your tickets online and get a 10% discount now. You can use the ticket within 15 days. It’s really worth it, especially in summer!