Eixample stop
The Eixample district, the grid of octagonal blocks with 45 degree chamfers that structures the central part of the city, is one of Barcelona’s symbols of identity. From this stop you can discover its most interesting corners and experience the charm of its main streets.
Urban design is Barcelona’s hallmark
The Eixample stop on the Blue Route of Barcelona Bus Turístic, located on Carrer de Balmes, is just outside Barcelona Modernisme Museum, where you can find a magnificent collection of Modernista decorative arts and furniture.
It is a good start-off point for a stroll along Rambla de Catalunya, a charming boulevard with a tree-lined central promenade, where architectural gems like Casa Serra, Casa Fargas and the Església de Sant Ramon de Penyafort (Church of Saint Raymond of Penyafort) are interspersed with bar terraces and boutiques.
Less than five minutes’ walk from the stop you can visit some of the best Modernista buildings in the city such as Casa Batlló, by Antoni Gaudí; Casa Amatller, by Puig i Cadafalch; Casa Lleó i Morera, by Domènech i Montaner; and Fundació Antoni Tàpies, which is in another building by Domènech i Montaner. Also close by is the tree-lined Carrer d’Enric Granados, which is full of restaurants where you can stop for a bite to eat.
The Eixample district was planned by Ildefons Cerdà. A follower of the hygienist movements, he sought to protect the spaces of private life and accordingly designed buildings arranged into two rows around a large internal courtyard that provided natural light and ventilation for the houses. Even though urban planning pressures meant that certain aspects of the plan could not be implemented, some of the interiors of the blocks can still be visited as they have been recovered to be the public socialisation spaces contemplated by the original design.
If you are interested in the history of the movement that marked Barcelona’s physiognomy, at the Modernisme Museum you will find objects, paintings and all manner of Modernista manifestations undertaken in Catalonia, including an extensive collection of furniture from the period that features pieces from Casa Batlló and Casa Lleó i Morera.
What to see
Fundació Antoni TàpiesThe Fundació Antoni Tàpies museum was created by the artist himself, Antoni Tàpies, to promote contemporary art. It mainly showcases his own work, but it also holds temporary exhibitions.
Casa BatllóThis building, located in the heart of the Eixample district, is one of the city’s most famous. The architect Antoni Gaudí designed it in the early 20th century, at the height of the Modernisme movement, as a residence for the Batlló family.
Casa AmatllerCasa Amatller, designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, is an original combination of the Modernista and neo-Gothic styles. It is the first Modernista remodelling of an existing building undertaken on Passeig de Gràcia.
Barcelona Modernisme MuseumTemporary closure
Modernisme is the term that encompasses the architectural style and the literary, musical and visual arts culture that predominated in Catalonia from 1890 to 1910.
Casa Lleó i MoreraCasa Lleó i Morera, which was built by Lluís Domènech i Montaner on the privileged Passeig de Gràcia, is a neighbour of Casa Amatller, built from 1898 to 1900 by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, and Casa Batlló, built by Antoni Gaudí from 1904 to 1906.