Barcelona gains a new promenade by the sea at the former Baleària terminal

Barcelona is not one of those cities where there are many promenades where you can almost touch the water without leaving the urban fabric. It's hard to get that feeling of breathing the sea without having to get your feet wet, with a seafront that gets lost between port infrastructures and crowded beaches in summer. To the small exception achieved among the sailboats moored in Port Vell, on the Bosch i Alsina dock, another section is now added where you can walk right next to the water's surface.

The Port of Barcelona has opened to the public the area behind the Customs building, which until recently was occupied by the Baleària terminal, long protected by fences that prevented passage but also hindered the view of the coastline. This was the case until it was decided in the middle of last year to install the base of the America's Cup host team, Emirates Team New Zealand, freeing up spaces that were previously restricted to ensure the safety of ferry embarkations bound for the Balearic Islands. "The goal with the arrival of the competition has been to reconnect Barcelona with the sea," defends the mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni.

After an investment of almost 1.7 million euros, a new promenade now allows connecting La Rambla and the Barcelona dock, where the World Trade Center (WTC) is located, and, above all, doing so very close to the sea. A total of 4,300 square meters have been gained in what is known as the Drassanes dock because the Drassanes beach used to be there. The design was carried out by architect Jordi Henrich, who at the time defined the Barcelona dock, to maintain the aesthetic. Over six months, the works have served to carefully renovate the pavement, taking into account that the Ronda Litoral runs underneath. In the middle of the route, some shaded benches are appreciated on hot days like this week.

This is a first step for the transformation project that the port wants to execute on the Barcelona dock. Few Barcelonians usually travel there, unless they work in one of the companies located in the WTC. It is more often trodden by cruise passengers who take buses that take them on excursions around the city. It doesn't help that only the central area of the dock can be transited, with its sides closed because they are destined for port activity. The South terminal is still operational on the Barcelona dock, with capacity for two medium-sized cruises, with its closure scheduled for 2026, after the North terminal ceased operations last October.

"We want this Barcelona dock to become Barcelona," summarizes the port president, Lluís Salvadó. To do this, it is contemplated to extend La Rambla beyond the Columbus statue and make it reach the WTC, passing, precisely, through the space that has been freed up with the transfer of the Baleària terminal to the Adosado dock. It is not yet known what this future Rambla del Port will be like; there is talk of it being a walkway, but Salvadó hopes it will be resolved between this first edition of the America's Cup and a future one, provided that whoever wins the regatta wants to keep the headquarters in the Catalan capital.

The port contemplates extending La Rambla beyond the Columbus statue and making it reach the WTC

From the new Rompeolas Rambla and the recovery of the Eastern dock warehouses for cultural uses to the transformation of the fish market. Without a doubt, the novelty that has attracted the most attention has been the launch of the nautical bus, a project that had been rumored in the port for some time but had been stalled until the regatta accelerated many plans forgotten in drawers. It remains to be seen how the Portal de la Pau facade looks, which has been covered for months by scaffolding from which work has been done to make it beautiful again.