archbishop's palace (palacio episcopal)

Probably the greatest surprise in our northern Spain tour last year. We were really looking forward to visiting one of Gaudi's earliest works, and we realized that pics can't capture its magic. It's the place to be in Astorga, ideally early in the morning, when you can wander around and enjoy the silence within those walls and stained glass windows... One of the few monuments in Spain where we were allowed to take as many pics as we wanted, which is algo something we didn't expect in a small town like Astorga.

Astorgas is a nice town with GREAT chocolate and a very nice Gaudi Cathedral. We've seen a lot of Gaudi in Spain but outside from the overwhelming Sagrada Familia in Barcelona this one was also built for religious purposes. It doesn't take long to breeze through and it is well worth the detour. That and the chocolate.

The archbishop's Palace was created about 1890 by Gaudi (a friend). The building looks like a fairy-tail with many towers. The bishop did not liked the building and never lived in it. We didnot visited the palace. In the same time Gaudi created a nice building in Leon: Casa de Botines.

This palace & its adjacent cathedral are truly breathtaking. Out of nowhere & right off the main road between Astorga & Ponferrada, this place was amazing. Highly recommend it on the road to Santiago.

The Palace was closed so we had to content ourselves with viewing it from the outside - which was OK, if you like Gaudi's style of architecture...

Bishop Grau and Gaudi were friends and when he asked Gaudi to design a palace for him after the existing one burned. The interesting fact to me personally, revolves around the fact Gaudi did very few works outside Barcelona. Knowing that I was not a fan of Gaudi's work, I nearly passed. However, since the cost of entry was only one euro additional when visiting the Cathedral, I felt the visit was worth the money. I was very happy I decided to go in. I am a fan of great buildings and this is certainly beautiful. The stained glass and open feeling of the building is wonderful. Even on a cloudy day, the light emitted through the glass was wonderful.

The Archbishop's Palace (also known as the Palacio Episcopal or el Palacio de Gaudi) is a beautiful building right next to the Cathedral of Astorga. You can walk in through the gate and enter the museum and courtyard for free to get some great pictures, but you have got to pay to enter the palace itself. Upon entering, there is an art gallery on the first floor with a digital display in Spanish. The room has gorgeous wood floors, stained glass, and high arched elaborate ceilings that connect with several other rooms, which feature exhibitions of jewelry and ornate crosses. To the left of the entrance is another exhibition room with various crucifixes and statuettes. As you continue through the first floor, there are tapestries, columns that attach to the ceiling, paintings, and even more statues on a wooden wall. Finally, the floor has an art room with jewelry, a projector presentation, and cutlery. A spiral concrete staircase adorned with stained glass leads to the second floor. Upon entering, there is a room full of crosses that leads to an open room in the middle. Here, there are three marvelous rooms attached in each direction. The first features a statue of Jesus and Mary under 20 decorated stained glass windows, incredibly high ceilings, and has huge murals on the walls. The next room features red velvet chairs and a table under more stained glass. The final is an empty throne under narrow pieces of glass and artwork. All three are absolutely gorgeous and should not be missed in Astorga whatsoever.

One of the stops on the Camino I walked was Astorga, I was able to get accommodation in the Gaudi Hotel opposite the Archbishop's Palace, I could simply walk out of the hotel into Gaudi's Palace with the cathedral right beside. If you like Gaudi's work this is something you will really enjoy. The day's walk was a difficult one and this was a wonderful reward.

This is an early building by Gaudi which the bishop did not like. I beg to disagree. It is interesting outside and beautiful inside. The tile and stained glass windows are gorgeous and the artifacts inside were mostly interesting. Be sure to visit all floors and watch out for the entry to the stairs so you don't trip. If you are in the town, it is worth a visit.

On a sunny day the place shines with fine and intricate stained glass. It is really a must see destination in town, hard to believe the second bishop hated such a place of grand beauty. My only complaint is that there are no great views from inside the castle. It's all very inward looking.

I really got an appreciation for Gaudi with this visit. They show a short video where you learn a lot more about the place and the man. Loved the architecture, the lines, the details. I really liked that it is a Museo de los Caminos. Impressive architecture inside and out.

While hiking the Camino we stayed in Astorga overnight at an Albergue. We saw the castle and decided to pay the admission and see the inside. The inside has many fascinating rooms and a beautiful view from the upper floors. In the basement there are many artifacts and timelines, well worth a viewing. It has a fascinating history, one of which is that the front of the building was not engineered correctly and had to be rebuilt!

So beautifull building. It looks like a castle from a fairytale. This is something very special you have to see if You are around Astorga. There is also nice square there and a lot of shops with chocolate.

Apparently built between 1890 and 1913, sometimes called the Gaudi Palace, but built for the Archbishop by Gaudi. Great looking building in good state of repair, worth a visit.

Antoni Gaudi built this residence for the Bishop. The Bishop died before he could move in. His successor hated the building and lived elsewhere. That was the start of the building's path to becoming a museum. From the outside it initially looks like a residential castle. Closer up, it looks very modern. Alas, in the spirit of gouging tourist money, you must buy entry to a boring museum to see the inside of the building. The guards will even chase you away from the door if you do not have a ticket. So, no peeking.