5 excuses to visit the bowels of award-winning homes

GironaArchitecture is much more than plans. It's a way of designing life. When we enter someone's home, we also enter their privacy. It's no surprise that there is interest in learning about the interiors of famous—but also curious—buildings that surround us. Aware of this interest among citizens, the Girona branch of the Official College of Architects of Catalonia (COAC) is expanding its public tours and visits—not just for professionals—to award-winning buildings and houses this fall. In total, it has promoted more than 40 activities throughout the district, many of which involve guided tours by the architects who have built award-winning houses. We review five excuses to explore their interiors.

In less than 48 hours, the Cadaqués Archivoltà sells out every year, selling out all 40 places to visit the Cap de Creus village. This year, its eighth edition is being held on October 11th, as part of World Architecture Day, and it will focus on buildings outside the old town. Under the title "Other Architectures of Cadaqués," you will discover houses from the modern movement designed by internationally renowned architects such as Correa & Milà, Barba Corsini, and Harnden and Bombelli, among others. Specifically, curators Aureli Mora and Omar Onaque of AMOO Studio will visit Casa Rumeu. These are three Cadaqués stone hexagons built in the 1960s by Correa & Milà.

The capital of Alt Empordà opens its doors to its architecture this year. It will take place on November 9th with a revisit to the postmodern movement that emerged in the 1970s. A tour will be held of a single-family house located on a corner in the Parque-Sol residential area, designed by Benet Cervera y Flotats and M. Assumpció Alonso de Medina Alberich. A central staircase organizes the house, giving it a geometric expressiveness inside and out that defines the neighborhood's urban scene.

Last year, Olot's Plaza Mayor has undergone a complete renovation of its façades and the regeneration of its public space. This project, designed by Un Par de Arquitectos, Quim Domene and Pep de Solà-Morales, has also received the Landscape Award in the 2025 Girona Urban Architecture Awards. Domene and Solà-Morales will lead a guided tour on November 15th.

At the end of the Second Republic, Girona residents rushed to see the affordable Escatllar houses, now located in the Devesa neighborhood. What were once humble homes have become coveted residences in recent years. At the Architecture Awards, the INCOVI renovation received the Opinion Award. It can be visited by its designers on November 22nd.

On November 29th, you can visit one of the winners. ex aequo of the Architecture Awards: the conversion of a 17th-century mill into a luxury villa for rent to foreigners using simple materials, the shadow of Lluís Escarmís, of CMV Architects.