1027 Best Sights in Spain

The baroque Virreina Palace, built by a viceroy to Peru in the late 18th century, is now a major center for themed exhibitions of contemporary art, film, and photography. The TiquetRambles office on the ground floor, run by the city government's Institut del Cultura (ICUB), open daily 10–8:30, is the place to go for information and last-minute tickets to concerts, theater and dance performances, gallery shows, and museums. The portal to the palace, and the pediments carved with elaborate floral designs, are a must-see.

This beautiful edifice right on the bustling Rambla is an important Barcelona art hub, resource, and outpost of the Institut de Cultura, with photography on display at the Espai Xavier Miserachs, temporary exhibits on the patio, and cultural events held regularly in the space.

The three facades of the Palau face Carrer dels Comtes de Barcelona on the cathedral side, the Baixada de Santa Clara, and Plaça del Rei. Typical of late Gothic–early Renaissance Catalan design, it was constructed by Antoni Carbonell between 1549 and 1557, and remains one of the Gothic Quarter's most graceful buildings. The heavy stone arches over the entry, the central patio, and the intricately coffered wooden roof over the stairs are all good examples of noble 16th-century architecture. The door on the stairway is a 1975 Josep Maria Subirachs work portraying scenes from the life of Sant Jordi and the history of Catalonia. The Palau del Lloctinent was inhabited by the king's official emissary or viceroy to Barcelona during the 16th and 17th centuries; it now houses the historical materials of the Archivo de la Corona de Aragón (Archive of the Crown of Aragón), and offers an excellent exhibit on the life and times of Jaume I, one of early Catalonia's most important figures. The patio also occasionally hosts early-music concerts, and during the Corpus Christi celebration is one of the main venues for the ou com balla, when an egg "dances" on the fountain amid an elaborate floral display.

The first palace to occupy this corner on La Rambla was built in 1702 and inhabited by the Marquès de Moja. The present austere palace was completed in 1784 and, with the Betlem church across the street, forms a small baroque-era pocket along La Rambla. Now housing offices of the Cultural Heritage Department of the Catalan Ministry of Culture (with a tourist information center on the ground floor), the Palau is normally open to the public only on rare occasions, such as special exhibitions, when visitors also have the chance to see the handsome mural and painted ceiling by Francesc Pla, the 18th-century painter known as El Vigatà (meaning "from Vic," a town 66 km [40 miles] north of Barcelona, where he was born). In the late 19th century the Palau Moja was bought by Antonio López y López, Marquès de Comillas, and it was here that Jacint Verdaguer, Catalonia's national poet and chaplain of the marquess's shipping company, the Compañia Transatlántica, wrote his famous patriotic epic poem "L'Atlàntida."

Opposite Palma's cathedral, this palace was originally an Arab citadel and then the residence of the ruling house during the Middle Ages. It's now a military headquarters and the king's official residence when he's in Mallorca. Audio guides cost €4. You should try to catch the changing of the Honor Guard ceremony, which takes place in front of the palace at noon on the last Saturday of the month (7:30 pm in July and August).

This is the only noble house in Ciutadella that's open to the public, albeit at limited times, and you can view five rooms of the palace and the interior garden. The coats of arms on the ceiling are those of the families Salort (sal and ort, a salt pit and a garden) and Martorell (a marten). Opening hours are irregular, so it is best to check in advance.

The block-long 19th-century Palau Torresaura was built by the Baron of Torresaura, one of the noble families from Aragón and Catalonia that moved to Menorca after it was captured from the Moors in the 13th century. The interesting facade faces the plaza, though the entrance is on the side street. It is not open to the public.

Up on the hill just behind Parque Marítimo is Europe's largest collection of palms with some 600 species. The 29½-acre site, built over the former city dump and opened in 2014, houses palm trees from all over the world set around waterfalls and lagoons, all with panoramic views of the ocean and city. Call ahead if you'd like an English-language tour of the grounds.

One of the main attractions in this part of the island, inland from Maspalomas, this part botanical garden and part zoo has 1,500 tropical birds, a butterfly sanctuary, an orchid house, 160 species of tropical fish, many crocodiles, and parrot shows.

Once the arsenal for the Ciutadella—as evidenced by the thickness of the building's walls—this is the only surviving remnant of Felipe V's fortress. For a time it housed the city's museum of modern art, before it was repurposed to house the unicameral Catalan Parliament. Under Franco, the Generalitat—the regional government—was suppressed, and the Hall of Deputies was shut fast for 37 years. Book a free 45-minute guided tour (weekdays) of the building via the website at least two days in advance; it includes the grand "Salon Rose," which is worth a visit in itself.

A UNESCO World Heritage site, this park within the Sierra de Guara contains more than 60 limestone caves with prehistoric paintings. Some date to around 22,000 BC, though most are from between 12,000 and 4000 BC. Information, guided tours, and kid-friendly activities are available through the interpretation center in Colungo; check the monthly schedule on the home page. Hours vary, so call ahead.

This park, with bridges, gazebos, and man-made hills, offers a nice respite from the hustle and bustle of the city. At Christmastime, it morphs into one enormous nativity scene that kids go nuts over.

Across from Granada's convention center and easily reached on bus No. C4, this science museum is one of the most visited museums in Andalusia. It has a planetarium and interactive demonstrations of scientific experiments. The 165-foot observation tower has views to the south and west.

Walk southeast from the Plaza de San Vicente Ferrer to get to this park, home to peacocks, cranes, swans, and pheasants. Full of waterfalls and animals, this is a great spot for children.

Spring and fall are the best times to jog, stroll, or picnic in this tranquil park with none of the tourist hustle and bustle of El Retiro. Come mid-May, Parque de San Isidro becomes party central with the arrival of the eponymous fiestas; bring family and friends and enjoy the fireworks, concerts, street food (rosquillas! chorizo hoagies!), and rides. Steer clear of this area after sunset.

In this park, visit the Museo Néstor, home to neoclassical and modernist works by brothers Miguel (architect) and Néstor (artist) Martín Fernández. There's also a play area and cultural center with temporary exhibitions. On the way there, stop at the neighboring Parque Doramas (stops are listed on big yellow signs; bus Nos. 2, 3, and 12 generally cover the entire city) to peek at the elegant Santa Catalina Hotel. Next to the Parque Doramas is the Pueblo Canario, a model village with typical Canarian architecture.

West of the auditorium, this public water park with three saltwater pools and tropical gardens is a favorite with locals. It was designed by the Lanzarote-born architect César Manrique and combines volcanic rock with palms and local flora.

South of Vigo's Old Town, this is a quiet, stately park with sandy paths, palm trees, mossy embankments, and stone benches. Atop a series of steps are the remains of an old fort and a mirador (lookout) with fetching views of Vigo's coastline and the Islas Cíes. Along its shady western side lies the Castro de Vigo, the remains of Vigo's first Celtic settlement, dating to the 3rd century BC.

Reservations required for Castro de Vigo and guided tours are available for groups of three or more, as well as for the fortress.

Birds are the main attraction at this nature reserve just south of San José; it's home to several species native to Africa, including the camachuelo trompetero (large-beaked bullfinch), which is not found anywhere else outside Africa. Check out the Punto de Información visitor center on the way to Cabo de Gata, which has an exhibit and information on the region and organizes guided walks and tours of the area.

This unfinished church is one of Barcelona's most unusual structures, with jagged stone sections projecting down the left side, and the upper part of the front entrance on Plaça Sant Agustí waiting to be covered with a facade. The church has had an unhappy history: originally part of an Augustinian monastery, it was first built between 1349 and 1700. It was later abandoned and rebuilt only to be destroyed in 1714 during the War of the Spanish Succession, rebuilt again, then burned in the antireligious riots of 1825 when the cloisters were demolished. The church was looted and torched once more in the closing days of the Civil War. Sant Agustí comes alive on May 22, feast day of Santa Rita, patron saint of "los imposibles," meaning lost causes. Unhappily married women, unrequited lovers, and all-but-hopeless sufferers of every sort form long lines through the square and down Carrer Hospital. Each carries a rose that will be blessed at the chapel of Santa Rita on the right side of the altar.

The narrow streets and alleys on each side of Calle Marqués de Larios have charms of their own. The most famous is Pasaje Chinitas, off Plaza de la Constitución and named for the notorious Chinitas cabaret here. Peep into the dark, vaulted bodegas (wineries) where old men down glasses of seco añejo or Málaga Virgen, local wines made from Málaga's muscat grapes. Silversmiths and vendors of religious books and statues ply their trades in shops that have changed little since the early 1900s. Backtrack across Larios, and, in the streets leading to Calle Nueva and Calle San Juan, you can see shoeshine boys, lottery-ticket vendors, street guitarists, and tapas bars serving wine from huge barrels.

The Arco de Santa María frames the city's loveliest promenade, the Espolón. Shaded with black poplars, it follows the riverbank.

Lining the Río Darro, this street is also known as the Paseo de los Tristes (Promenade of the Sad Ones) because funeral processions once passed this way. The cafés and bars here are good places for a coffee break. The park, dappled with wisteria-covered pergolas, fountains, and stone walkways, has a stunning view of the Alhambra's northern side.

To see why sailors once nicknamed A Coruña \"la ciudad de cristal\" (the glass city), stroll the Paseo Marítimo, said to be the longest seaside promenade in Europe. Although the congregation of boats is charming, the real sight is across the street: a long, gracefully curved row of houses. Built by fishermen in the 18th century, they face away from the sea—it's said that at the end of a long day, these seafarers were tired of looking at the water. Nets were hung from the porches to dry, and fish was sold on the street below. When Galicia's first glass factory opened nearby, someone thought to enclose these porches in glass, like the latticed stern galleries of oceangoing galleons, to keep wind and rain at bay. The resulting emblematic glass galleries spread across the harbor and eventually throughout Galicia. The 12 km (7½ miles) of flat surface with ocean views make it a wonderful jogging spot.

Cutting through the middle of the block bordered by Pau Claris, Roger de Llúria, Consell de Cent, and Diputació, this charming, leafy mid-Eixample sanctuary is one of 46 passatges (alleys or passageways) that cut through the blocks of this gridlike area. Once an aristocratic enclave and hideaway for pianist Carles Vidiella and poet, musician, and illustrator Apel·les Mestre, Passatge Permanyer is, along with the nearby Passatge Méndez Vigo, the best of these through-the-looking-glass downtown Barcelona alleyways.

A 1½-km (1-mile) circular path skirting the surviving section of the 3rd-century-BC Ibero-Roman ramparts, this walkway was built on even earlier walls of giant rocks. On the other side of the path is a glacis, a fortification added by English military engineers in 1707 during the War of the Spanish Succession. Look for the rusted-bronze wolf sculpture featuring Romulus and Remus.

The landscaped gardens of this stepped archaeological walk are below the Barri Vell's restored Carolingian walls (which you can walk, in parts) and enjoy superlative views of the city from belvederes and watchtowers. From there, climb through the Jardins de la Francesa to the highest ramparts for a view of the cathedral's 11th-century Torre de Carlemany.

Once the site of medieval jousts and the Inquisition's autos-da-fé, the passeig, at the end of Carrer Montcada behind the church of Santa Maria del Mar, was early Barcelona's most important square. Nowadays, late-night cocktail bars and small restaurants with tiny spiral stairways line the narrow, elongated plaza.

The numbered cannonballs under the public benches are 20th-century works by the late poet, playwright, and designer, Joan Brossa—the so-called poet of space, whose visual-arts pieces incorporated numbers and/or letters and words. These sculptures are intended to evoke the 1714 siege of Barcelona, which concluded the 14-year War of the Spanish Succession, when Felipe V's conquering Castilian and French troops attacked the city ramparts at their lowest, flattest flank.

After their victory, the Bourbon forces obliged residents of the Barri de la Ribera (Waterfront District) to tear down nearly a thousand of their own houses, some 20% of Barcelona at that time, to create fields of fire so that the occupying army of Felipe V could better train its batteries of cannon on the conquered populace and discourage any nationalist uprisings. Thus began Barcelona's "internal exile" as an official enemy of the Spanish state.

Walk down to the Born itself—a great iron hangar that was once a produce market designed by Josep Fontseré and is in the Plaça Comercial, across from the end of the promenade. The initial stages of the construction of a public library here uncovered the remains of the lost city of 1714, complete with blackened fireplaces, taverns, wells, and the canal that brought water into the city.

The streets of 14th- to 18th-century Born-Ribera now lie open in the sunken central square of the old market. Around it, at ground level, are a number of new, multifunctional, exhibition and performance spaces that make this area one of the city's newest and liveliest cultural hubs. Among the attractions is the Museu d'Història de la Ciutat's El Born Centre de Cultura i Memòria (closed Monday, free to upper galleries, €4 to the archaeological site with guided tours in English from Tuesday to Sunday at 4 pm). 

While it's known as one of the best streets in Palma to hit the shops, this tree-lined promenade is also a favored place to pasear (stroll), lined with palatial-style stone residences (most of which have now been converted into hotels and shops) and busy café-terraces. Bar Bosch, straddling Passeig des Born and Plaça Rei Joan Carles I, has been a key gathering point for locals since 1936.

Work on the Finca began in 1883 as an extension of Count Eusebi Güell's family estate. Gaudí, the count's architect of choice, was commissioned to do the gardens and the two entrance pavilions (1884–87); the rest of the project was never finished. The Pavellons (pavilions) now belong to the University of Barcelona, which has handed them over to the Municipal Institute for Urban Landscape (IMPUiQV) for 10 years (2015–2024). During this period, IMPUiQV will carry out a comprehensive restoration of Gaudí’s work. Depending on the state of the renovation work, the complex may be open for group visits, heritage visits, and cultural and educational activities but will largely remain closed. The fierce wrought-iron dragon gate is Gaudí's reference to the Garden of the Hesperides, as described by national poet Jacint Verdaguer's epic poem L'Atlàntida (1877)—the Iliad of Catalonia's historic-mythic origins. Admission is by appointment only.