Top 3 in Top 10 tourist attractions in Spain.
Antoni Gaudi took the architectural style known as Art Nouveau one step further, even, some argue, into absurdity. The fanciful and eerie buildings he created in Barcelona have become landmarks, the signature attraction of this Catalan city.
First of all is the Sagrada Família church, officially the Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família or the Church of the Holy Family of the Atonement. One of Europe's most unique churches, it's also unfinished, so as you look down from its tower you can see work in progress below.
You may in vain search for absolutely straight lines in Gaudi's Casa Milà, his last and most famous secular work; it's more of a sculpture than a functional building. Be sure to climb to its roof - the chimneys are said to have inspired Darth Vader images from Star Wars.
New in 2020, the wonderful Casa Batlló, with its masked balcony and undulating facade, now features a vivid "10D Experience", using augmented reality, projection, binaural audio, motion sensors animations and more than 1,000 screens to take visitors on a journey into the mind and genius of Antoni Gaudi.
Parc Güell overlooks the city from a hillside, and the setting and gardens are surrounded by wondrous creatures – iguanas, fish, octopuses – and designed with brightly colored ceramic mosaics. A fanciful high-rise near the entrance is covered mostly with colored ceramics. Unlike most buildings, Gaudi attracts even children and adults who are not interested in architecture, for one simple reason - they are simply enjoyable to look at.