Instead of running around the entire city of Sabadell visiting different parks, we’d recommend you go to Parc de Catalunya if you’ve decided to spend a few days in Sabadell. A natural park with activities for young and old, and where you’ll never get bored.
Where is Parc de Catalunya in Sabadell?
It is located on Avenida Eix Macià avenue. This park opened in 1992, and since then it has become an icon of the city, with a total size of 43 hectares spread over several neighborhoods.
Because of this, you can access it via several entrances, although the easiest way is from Avenida Francesc Macià avenue, which is on the same street as the El Corte Inglés department store and the Paddock Bouelvar shopping mall. Right in front of El Corte Inglés is a clearing where you can park with no trouble, although it can get a little complicated on Saturday afternoons.
What activities can you do in Parc de Catalunya?
As we said before, Parc de Catalunya is a place with many outdoor activities to do, making it the perfect spot to spend the whole day without getting bored. Want to know what they are?
The miniature train
To get to the famous miniature train quickly, it’s best to enter at the corner of Avenida d’Andreu Nin avenue and Avenida Lluis Companys avenue, in the Can Rull neighborhood. Here, you can easily find parking that is not blue zone.
The famous mini train has a 3 km route that passes over bridges and various tunnels, each one a different color. The ride lasts about 20 minutes and costs 2 euros. On Sundays and public holidays, you can only ride in the morning, from 11am to 2pm.
This train has its own station where you can see a mock-up of the train, with benches for the kids to climb up and look around. This will help make things a bit more bearable as you wait for the train. The good news is that during Sabadell’s Festa Major festivities, the schedule is expanded to include nighttime routes that end with a nice little rom cremat alcoholic drink.
The amphitheater and Sabadell astronomical observatory
Once your little adventure on the train is over, you can go up Avenida Andreu Nin avenue. If you follow this path, you’ll find the amphitheater, with a capacity of 40,000 people. It’s used for concerts during Festa Major, as well as to celebrate Holi, the Indian Festival of Colors.
In the distance, you can catch a glimpse of the Sabadell astronomical observatory. If you’re lucky, you will have planned your visit to the park so that you arrive while they are offering activities for the little ones. It could be a great plan, keeping the kids occupied while the adults enjoy some time in nature.
Exercise area for young and old
Scattered throughout several parts of the park, you’ll find exercise equipment designed for adults. Since you’ve already taken a stroll and enjoyed the fresh air, why not get in a little exercise and loosen up your muscles after a long journey? If you don’t have anything like it in your city, you might appreciate it.
But we can’t forget the kids, who also have their own little corner of the park. A small area, which is actually huge, with slides, swings, mats, ziplines, and more… All adult and child size, so that you can enjoy as much as possible. Not very far from there, there is a fenced in park for very young children, with a pirate ship, mini swings, games to play in the sand… It’s impossible to get bored!
Skate park and BikeTrial
Are you someone who just can’t wait to ride a bike every day? Or to do crazy tricks on your skateboard? Parc de Catalunya has the largest BikeTrial circuit in Europe, with an area of some 1500 square meters. For many people, this is a sport that was born in Sabadell, and this is where the Abant sisters (16-time world champions in this sport) often come to practice.
Thanks to the design of this course, it can also be used by skateboarders, but lately, many kids have turned this space into a place to practice parkour, a French discipline that involves jumping over obstacles with incredible agility. If you’re lucky and arrive at just the right moment, you can see the pros in action, which makes for a spectacular show.
The lake
While it’s true that the lake in Parc de Catalunya is artificial, it also takes up 1 hectare and is 60 cm deep. It’s known for its 4-meter-high water jet and waterfall.
What’s more, if you feel like doing something romantic with your partner, you can rent a boat or scooters during the spring and summer months from the l’Embarcador bar. If you’ve brought your kids and they have a remote-controlled boat, they will have a blast sailing it on the lake. In fact, during one Festa Major, there was an exhibit of some amazing remote-controlled ships.
Although the lake is artificial, it has become home to ducks, swans, carp fish and turtles. Don’t worry, you can feed them without getting in trouble. In fact, at the l’Embarcador bar, you can buy food to give them. The ducks love bread, but the swans prefer grass. That being said, they are very bold, and they may follow you a good ways along the paths if they see that you have something they like.
Right across from the lake is the large esplanade lawn, a green space that’s perfect for lying down in the grass, spreading out a blanket for a picnic and letting the kids play near the boat sculpture by Joan Brossa.
The most prevalent tree in this park is pine, whose trunks make a perfect spot to get away from the heat in the summertime. In fact, the locals often come to this park in the summer to have a small picnic under the trees, with blankets or makeshift tables, even for birthday parties.
Are you traveling with your pet and want to take them to the park? We’ve got good news! Parc de Catalunya has an area specially designed for dogs. So, you can let them tire themselves out with other dogs before you all sit down for lunch.
If you feel like taking a stroll, near the kids’ play area you’ll find a dirt path that is split into several paths, from which you can take in some incredible views of Montseny, Montserrat, Collserola, Puig de la Creu de Castellar del Vallés, and La Mola.
Services
What kind of services are you going to find inside the park? Well, you’ll see that there are various bars and restaurants, with terraces to enjoy the summer breeze without worrying about the sun.
Plus, there are many areas with wooden tables near these restaurants, so that you can take your food to enjoy outdoors. One thing that you might miss, however, is that they do not have an area for barbecues the way some other places do. But, as you can try the local tapas in the bars and restaurants, it isn’t something that will feel like a big deal to you.
Relevant information for Parc de Catalunya in Sabadell
What do you think of all the activities you could do in Sabadell’s Parc de Catalunya? Impossible to see everything in one day, right? Well, apart from that, here is some additional information about the place.
Address: It is located at Calle Prat de la Riba 104, Sabadell.
Parking: There are several car parks around the entire park, some paid and others for free because they are in open fields.
Hours: Always open, and going at night is a real treat because there are hardly any people.
Services:
- The restrooms are located next to Pizzeria Viena and below Dual Mirallac bar, on Calle Prat de la Riba street. In this regard, the park is somewhat less than ideal as there are not many toilets.
- A large number of restaurants, such as those found on Avenida Francesc Macià avenue, both on the street and in the Paddock shopping mall.
- If you’re in the mood for a movie, you can go to Eix Macià cinemas, near which there are more restaurants and bars, especially the Reini Group establishments.
- In the pines between the lake and the slide park, there are picnic tables, along with huge garbage containers and recycling bins.
- Every weekend, in front of the El Corte Inglés department store, they put up fairground attractions and a churro stand, which is a perfect plan for families with children.
- It has a dog area.