Pavellons de la Finca Güell

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Industrial textile businessman Eusebi Güell bought what is now Palau Reial in 1882 as a summer home, contracting Gaudí to remodel the entrance lodges and gardens for the estate. In 1883, they began to build what would be one of Gaudí's first projects in Barcelona for the Güell family. This was also the first project on which Gaudí used his signature trencadís (mosaic motif).

The huge gardens were accessed by three entrances, of which only two remain. The Porta del Drac (Dragon's Gate), the most impressive, used to be the private entrance for the Güell family. It was connected to the Güell home in Barcelona by a private, walled road exclusively for their use when the family travelled between the city and the country. Nowadays, the gatehouses belong to the University of Barcelona. The family of Güell's original groundsman still lives in the same small house on the site.

The Pavellons must be visited with a guide, and tours are offered in Spanish and English. Really, though, it isn't much of a tour, lasting for about 25 minutes with a look at nothing more than the gate and the stables.