Spanish Civil War 1936–1939
Refugi 307, Poble-sec (MUHBA)
Barcelona · Air-raid shelter
The story
Barcelona was bombed around 200 times during the war, mostly by Italian aircraft of the Aviazione Legionaria flying from Mallorca, with German participation. The residents of Poble-sec, a working-class district near the port and the Montjuïc gun batteries, dug this shelter themselves from 1937 under the Junta de Defensa Passiva. Its roughly 200 metres of narrow vaulted tunnels had water, a first-aid room, toilets, a fireplace and a children's area. Shelters like this saved many lives during the raids of 1938, including the three days of 16–18 March, when about 1,000 people were killed. After the war it was used to grow mushrooms and later as makeshift housing.
What you can see today
About 200 m of original galleries dug into the Montjuïc slope, with benches, the infirmary and toilets, and interpretation of civil defence in the city.
Plan your visit
Carrer Nou de la Rambla 175–179. Guided visits only, run by MUHBA (usually on Sunday mornings); book ahead online. Not suitable for claustrophobes.
- Open
- Sun guided tours 10:30 (EN), 11:30 (ES), 12:30 (CA); Mon–Sat (Sat pm only) booked groups; closed 1 Jan, 1 May, 24 Jun, 25 Dec
- Price
- €3.50; free with Barcelona Card
- Booking
- Guided visits only; book via barcelona.cat/museuhistoria or tel. 93 256 21 22
Checked September 2026 from official sources: barcelona.cat. Things change, so check before you travel.
Sources
- poblesdecatalunya.cat/element.php?e=9062
- poblesdecatalunya.cat/element.php?e=9062
- barcelona.cat/en/conocebcn/pics/el-refugio--98090150721
- tracesofwar.com/sights/90490/Air-raid-Shelter-Refugi-Nr-307.htm
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Barcelona
Nearby sites
- Castell de Montjuïc · under 1 km
- Teatre Poliorama, La Rambla (Orwell's rooftop) · 1 km
- Plaça de Sant Felip Neri (bombing of 30 January 1938) · 2 km
- Barcelona Cathedral – the religious persecution of 1936 · 2 km
- Telefónica building & Plaça de Catalunya (May Days 1937) · 2 km
- Fossar de la Pedrera, Montjuïc · 2 km
All 158 sites in Spanish Civil War 1936–1939 →
The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939
A free field guide for your phone: the route, the maps and the stories built in, even with no signal. The battlefields, trenches, ruined villages, shelters, museums and memorials of the Spanish Civil War across the whole of Spain, told fairly from both sides.
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