Pathways through Parc Guell

After our fantastic stay in Madrid, we had high hopes for Barcelona.  And, yes, we did find a few great pet-friendly parks but, for the most part, we found Barcelona to be more difficult for the dogs than Madrid.

Partly, this was because Barcelona is a much bigger city than Madrid, meaning that driving was more difficult and parking far more expensive (about 40 Euros/day).  It was also because Barcelona doesn't have quite as much green park space as Madrid since much of it is on the beach, and dogs are not allowed on the beach.  Lastly, the Old Town area in Barcelona is paved with cobblestones rather than sidewalks with greenspace.

Nonetheless, we found a few great parks for the dogs while we were in Barcelona.

Parc Guell

Chewy and Abby at Parc Guell

Beautiful Parc Guell , one of the most unique parks in the world and one of Barcelona's best attractions, is also dog friendly.  Chewy and Abby loved checking out the famous mosaic-tiled benches and the tall pillars.

Lizard at Parc Guell

Because Parc Guell is such a huge tourist attraction and packed with people, we kept the dogs on leash at all times, though we saw a few Spanish dogs walking off-leash.  Parc Guell juts into the wooded Parc Carmel and we let the dogs run off-leash through the forest there.

Parc de la Barceloneta

Parc de la Barceloneta

Parc de la Barceloneta is directly across the street from the Barceloneta beach and is a lovely green place to walk with dogs.  There is a very large fenced-in off-leash dog area in one corner of the park and Chewy and Abby met many, many Spanish dogs while there.  (Of course, this being Spain and Europe in general, all of the dogs walked off-leash even outside the fenced area but the fenced area had nice benches and water fountains for dogs who like to play with other dogs.

Parc Collsera

Views from Parc Collsera

Parc Collsera is a green oasis just outside Barcelona. It is the largest metropolitan park in the world --- over 20 times larger than New York's Central Park --- and is mostly just undeveloped woods with hiking trails and a few picnic areas.

Abby at Parc Collsera

It's a great place to breathe in some oxygen and let your dogs wander --- though, remember to keep a close watch on dogs, because many of the paths are quite steep.

Chewy at Parque Retiro

We worried about Spain.  When I looked online for information about traveling with pets in Madrid and Barcelona, I found a lot of articles talking about abused animals, pets left at homes, and inadequate veterinary care.  Perhaps my problem was that I was searching in English rather than Spanish because Spain, and especially Madrid, turned out to be a nation of dog lovers.

Parque del Oeste

Parque del Oeste

Our favorite park in Madrid was Parque del Oeste, a park built upon the old filled-in main landfill, which has huge trees, stunning views of the Palacio Real, and its own Egyptian temple.  Dogs are not allowed inside the Temple of Debod but they are allowed everywhere else in the park and we loved walking them through this beautiful and very peaceful area.  Chewy and Abby even met another American dog, a little Chihuahua who had flown with his owner and is living in Madrid while she is teaching English.

Temple of Debod

The Egyptians donated the Temple of Debod in 1968 to Spain and it is definitely worth walking inside for a few minutes to see the beautiful ancient carvings.

Parque del Retiro

Parque del Retiro

Madrid is chock-full of parks and all of them are pet-friendly, many even with specially designated dog areas.  There are no leash laws so most well-behaved dogs run off-leash around the parks and visit with other dogs.  Parque del Retiro is the most famous park in Madrid with a large lake and statues strewn about throughout the park.  The dogs liked this one though car parking was expensive and not very close by.

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Casa del Campo

Casa del Campo is the largest park in Madrid with many restaurants lining the lake that overlooks the city skyline.  We found the park to be a little confusing because though it is large, there aren't very clear signs pointing out locations of walks and trails (though it appeared that there were tons of trails in the park).  We finally picked one off the main parking lot.

Madrid Vacation Rental in Ventas Neighborhood