Sitting pretty on the outskirts of Barcelona is a magical labyrinth hidden in a peaceful public garden. When you want to get away from the crowds, a trip to the Parc del Laberint d’Horta is the ideal place to head to.
*This site uses affiliate links, where I may earn a small commission at no cost to the reader.
I love Barcelona, but that summer I was done with the tightly packed hordes of people and the queues for each and every one of Gaudí’s houses. The city is a stunner, but I’m a firm believer that winter is the best season to visit in; the sticky Mediterranean heat of July and August can be almost too much to bear. I started to actively seek out the quieter parts of the city, attempting to discover Barcelona’s hidden gems with each of my precious free hours from work. I headed up to the gardens on Montjüic, wound my way around the quieter streets of Barceloneta, and mooched around a stunning hospital. And then, I discovered el Parc del Laberint d’Horta.
A storybook setting
From the late 1700s onwards, the estate was owned by the wealthy Desvalls family, who brought in all the fanciest landscape gardeners to design a series of beautiful gardens, including the labyrinth of cypress trees. By the 1960s, the family wasn’t quite as wealthy as the days of yore, and maintaining a massive garden like this one is quite the expense. So they began to negotiate the sale of the park to Barcelona’s City Council.
The garden has been open to the public since 1971, and it’s truly one of Barcelona’s prettiest hidden gems. As well as the lovely labyrinth, there are several different gardens to wander through, from the Romantic Garden which is landscaped like a traditional park, to the Neoclassical Pavilion and its little lake, and the footpaths through a wooded area on the very edge of the garden.
It’s all very Tom’s Midnight Garden around these parts.
How to get to El Parc del Laberint d’Horta
Getting from the centre of Barcelona to El Parc del Laberint d’Horta is actually super easy, thanks to the city’s brilliant Metro system. The closest stop to me was Drassanes- just a block back from the Colombus Monument- and from there I jumped on the L3 train heading in the direction of Trinitat Nova. The journey from Drassanes to Mundet lasts just under half an hour, and we then walked for about ten minutes to reach the entrance to the park.
The walk takes you past the old Velòdrom d’Horta which was built for the 1992 Olympics, then over a bridge and into the park. There’s a little café outside the entrance, and a teeny tiny ticket office where you can buy your tickets.
Here’s the exact route on Google Maps.
If you’re visiting Barcelona for a few days, it’s definitely worth getting an Hola Barcelona Travel Card. This will give you unlimited travel on public transport across the city for anywhere between two to five days, not including (alas) the Montjüic cable cars.
If not, you can buy your Metro tickets from the red machines within the stations. Most take cash and cards, although it’s wise to have both payment options on you just in case one is out of service. As I was in Barcelona so regularly, I normally used a T-casual Metro card. This gives you ten journeys with no time limit, and it’s also possible to download the ticket to your phone. It couldn’t be more convenient, pals!
Opening hours and tickets
The Parc del Laberint d’Horta is open from 10am-8pm between 1st April and 31st October, and 10am-6pm between 1st November and 31st March.
Entry is ticketed, and costs a confusing but very affordable €2.23 per person. Free on Wednesdays and Sundays.
There’s also a daily cap on visitors; once 750 people have entered, that’s it. No entry, pals.
Double check opening times and ticket prices here.
