Casa Batllo or Casa Mila

Casa Battlo.

Casa Batllo. Beautiful. More to see. So much detail.

Casa Batlló is the more colourful, playful one, very “wow” from the outside, with dragon-like shapes, balconies like masks, and a fairytale vibe. Casa Milà, known as La Pedrera, is bigger and more architectural: wavy stone façade, surreal rooftop chimneys, and a stronger sense of how Gaudí thought about buildings. Both are worthwhile; each has its own style. For a first-time visitor, Casa Batlló feels more magical and easy to love; La Pedrera feels more impressive if you’re into design, structure, and rooftops.

La Pedrera literally means “the stone quarry” in Catalan -the local language here in Catalonia-, and the local bourgeoisie gave it that nickname because when Casa Milà was built, its huge rough stone façade looked strange, heavy and unfinished, almost like a cliff or quarry in the middle of the city. It wasn’t meant as a compliment at first; people mocked it, but the name stuck. Today, it makes sense more nicely: the building really does feel like carved natural stone, very different from the colourful fantasy of Casa Batlló.

Thank you.

We visited both Casa Batllo and Casa Mila. While we enjoyed both of them, Casa Batllo is more interesting, more quirky, and more colorful.

Would it be possible for you to visit both of them? Even though I recommend Casa Batllo if you can't visit both, the Casa Mila rooftop really is amazing!