Mac Rating: 5.00 | Votes: 1 | Date: 21/06/2026 00:03:00

A former bullring turned shopping and leisure complex, Arenas de Barcelona stands by the Placa d'Espanya, its circular brick wall a survivor from the building's first life. The original Plaza de Toros de las Arenas opened in 1900, designed by the architect August Font i Carreras. Bullfighting at the ring declined through the 20th century, and the last fight was held in 1977. The building also served over the years as a venue for opera, theatre, rock concerts and political gatherings, and even as a barracks during the Spanish Civil War, before falling largely into disuse. Rather than demolish a structure so tied to the city's history, the council decided to keep its striking neo-Mudejar facade. A redevelopment led by the British architect Richard Rogers, with Alonso y Balaguer, lifted the preserved wall and built a new complex behind and within it. Reopened in March 2011, the centre spreads retail, restaurants and entertainment across several floors, with multiplex cinemas, a gym and other leisure uses. A separate adjoining building added shops, restaurants and offices. The most distinctive feature of the conversion is the great domed roof, structurally independent of the old facade, and the public walkway that runs right around its rim. This rooftop promenade offers a 360-degree view taking in the nearby Montjuic and the square below. The historic outer wall appears to float above a recessed, glazed ground floor, an effect created by raising the load onto new supports so that the street-level entrances sit beneath the original brickwork. As well as drawing shoppers, the building is visited as a piece of architecture and for its viewpoint, and its position beside the Placa d'Espanya transport hub makes it easy to reach. Its survival illustrates a wider pattern in the city, where redundant structures have been reworked for new uses rather than cleared away, keeping a familiar landmark in service.