Cementiri de Collserola

Cementiri de Collserola is the largest and most extensive cemetery in the Barcelona metropolitan area, though it actually sits outside the city's administrative boundaries — within the municipality of Montcada i Reixac, right on the border with Cerdanyola del Vallès, tucked into the forested hills of the Collserola mountain range. It is also known as the Cementiri del Nord.

Why was it built here?

By the late 1960s, the Montjuïc Cemetery, Barcelona's main historic burial ground, was running out of usable space. There was no room left within the city's municipal limits for a new large-scale cemetery, so authorities looked beyond Barcelona and chose a natural, wooded setting in the Collserola range instead. The new cemetery was officially inaugurated on June 27, 1972.

How is the cemetery laid out?

Collserola stands in clear contrast to older, historic Mediterranean cemeteries, where grand tombs and mausoleums signaled the social status of the deceased. Here the approach is functional: the site covers roughly 170 hectares, with an intentionally open, low-density layout featuring extensive forest, greenery, and gardens separating the burial areas. The cemetery is organized into 18 groupings of niche blocks, arranged in clusters of three or four blocks, generally five storeys high. Simply decorated burial niches and ground graves dominate — there are no ostentatious tombs or family pantheons in the 19th-century style. Capacity is estimated at more than 86,000 burial plots, with room for further expansion. The whole concept was also designed around convenient car access, making Collserola one of the region's earliest cemeteries planned with the automobile as the primary means of reaching it.

Who is buried here?

Among those resting at Cementiri de Collserola are Carles Buïgas (1898–1979), the Barcelona architect and engineer best known for his fountain designs, and Francesc Catalá-Roca, a celebrated Catalan photographer. The presence of such figures means the cemetery occasionally draws visitors interested in Catalan cultural and architectural history, beyond those visiting family graves.

Is it worth visiting?

Cementiri de Collserola is not a conventional tourist attraction in the sense of a monument or viewpoint, but for anyone interested in 20th-century funerary architecture, the history of modern Barcelona, or a quiet walk through greenery away from the city's noise, it can be a worthwhile stop. The surrounding Collserola forest gives the site a calm, contemplative atmosphere.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where exactly is Cementiri de Collserola located? The cemetery lies within the municipality of Montcada i Reixac, on the border with Cerdanyola del Vallès, in the Collserola mountains of the Barcelona metropolitan area.

When did the cemetery open? It was inaugurated on June 27, 1972, after the Montjuïc Cemetery ran out of space.

How large is the cemetery? It covers approximately 170 hectares of wooded terrain in the Collserola range.

How is the cemetery designed? It follows a functional layout with 18 groupings of niche blocks and extensive green space, in contrast to more ornate, historic cemeteries elsewhere.