The sanctuary of nostra senyora del carmel

El Carmel was a rural area during the early 19th century, with a few scattered farmhouses, notable among which was Can Móra, after which the Muntanya Pelada hill was then known. Its current name derives from the Sanctuary of Nostra Senyora del Carmel, which was built between 1860 and 1864. The little church was built under an initiative from the hermit Miquel Viladoms, and years later, it was extended with a new and more contemporary church designed by the architects Francesc de Paula Daumal i Domènech and Miquel Campos Pascual. The first houses began to be built on the hill in 1875 and these gradually became what is now the El Carmel neighbourhood.

Very near the sanctuary is the Hermitage of Nostra Senyora de Fàtima, two schools and two football pitches. Beside the Virolai school there is a Mirador de Joan Sales, located on the Carmel hill, with views of the city.

The park is set around the El Carmel hill, at 256 metres in height. It is separated from the Park Güell (designed by Antoni Gaudí) by the Can Móra road, which marks the border between the districts of Horta-Guinardó and Gràcia.