Barcelona: Sant Pau Art Nouveau Walking Tour

Visit this jewel of the Catalan Modernism declared World Cultural Heritage in 1997. You’ll be able to appreciate the foremost work of Lluís Domènech i Montaner, one of the most important architects of Modernism, the Catalan Art Nouveau, and the product of one of the most outstanding rehabilitation processes of recent years. The exhibition space in the Sant Salvador Pavilion takes you on a journey through the history of medicine in Barcelona and one of Europe’s oldest healthcare institutions: from the first unified hospital in the district known as Raval in 1401, La Santa Creu, to the 21st century. Filled with display cabinets full of medical materials and architectural elements as well as information panels, models and screens, present part of the institution’s heritage collection. The upper floor of the building focuses particularly on the person and work of Lluís Domènech i Montaner, exploring the three main aspects of this genius of Modernisme: the scholar, the architect and the ideologue. There is also a space for consultation where you can find out more about the institution thanks to an interactive table, books, publications and digitalized historic documents from the Archive of the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau. Sant Salvador Pavilion marks the start of a recommended route around the outdoor spaces of the Art Nouveau Site that copy the garden city model designed in the early 20th century. As you stroll, admire the building’s lovely exteriors. The domes, roofs, façades, sculptures and stained-glass windows are the most outstanding elements. You can also enter the Sant Rafael Pavilion and see its interior exactly as it was designed at the start of the 20th century. Moreover, you can take the underground tunnels communicating the various buildings and visit the most representative heritage spaces of the Administration Pavilion.