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Rising over the city, southwest of the Barrio Chino, the steep hill of MONTJUïC is by far the largest green area in Barcelona and contains the most of interest, and you'll probably want to reserve most of a day, or perhaps even longer, to spend on its substantial attractions. It takes its name from the Jewish community that once settled on its slopes, and there's been a castle on the heights since the mid-seventeenth century, which says much about the hill's obvious historical defensive role. But since landscaping at the beginning of the twentieth century, and more pertinently since the erection of buildings for the International Exhibition of 1929, Montjuïc has been the city's greatest cultural draw , with its five museums, various gardens and the famous Poble Espanyol (Spanish Village). The architecture may prove disappointing if you've been inspired by the remnants from 1888 in the Ciutadella park; modernisme was a spent force by 1929 and the Neoclassical monumental designs here seem bland by comparison. However, spurred on by the Olympics, a new spate of building and improvement work produced some rather more unorthodox designs. With these set alongside the few unusual relics from 1929, Montjuïc has never looked so spruce.

The hill covers a wide area so if you want to see everything you'll have to plan your visit fairly carefully around the various opening times

There are several approaches to Montjuïc, depending on where you want to start. The most obvious approach is to take the metro to Plaça d'Espanya . From here, you can walk (or take the escalators) up to the Palau Nacional, or take one of three buses : #13, which links the Plaça to the Poble Espanyol (last bus 10.30pm); the #50, which stops in front of the Fundació Miró; or the blue (southern) tourist route (#100) which runs past the Poble Espanyol.

There is also a toy train, the Tren Turístic de Montjuïc , which leaves from Plaça d'Espanya every half-hour (April-Oct Sat & Sun 10.30am-7.30pm; summer and Easter week daily 10.30am-9pm). It goes to all the major sights on Montjuïc (route: Palau Nacional, Fundació Miró, Estadi Olímpic, Poble Espanyol, Jardins de Miramar and back to Plaça d'Espanya; the round trip lasts about an hour). Fun for kids and fans of novelty transport.

To start at the eastern end of the hill, there's a dramatic cable-car ride from Barceloneta or from the Moll de Barcelona, near the Columbus statue, to the Jardins de Miramar (daily noon-8pm; ?6 one way, ?7.20 return). Just beyond, you can then pick up a second cable car to the castle, or simply walk to the nearby museums.

There's also a funicular which runs every 15min from metro Paral·lel to the cable-car station for the castle (summer daily every 15min 11am-10pm; winter Sat, Sun & holidays only 10.45am-8pm). From here, you're only a few minutes' walk from the Fundació Miró.

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