Behind the restoration of Barcelona Pool House

As we prepare to open our third House in the city, discover what it takes to transform a historic Catalan family home into our newest club

Monday 8 September 2025 By Chloe Lawrance

Barcelona is already home to two of our Houses: Soho House Barcelona, situated in the Gothic Quarter, and Little Beach House Barcelona, our coastal escape overlooking the bay of Garraf. The city will soon welcome its third club, Barcelona Pool House, tucked away in the leafy Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district.

Think of the House as a retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city; a spot for you to focus on all things wellness, with a gym, treatment rooms, a 14m outdoor pool and garden, plus two floors of club space with a bar and restaurant.

Situated on Avinguda del Tibidabo, part of the ‘garden city’ envisioned by Dr Salvador Andreu in the early 20th century, the building itself is steeped in history. His vision was to create a hillside escape for wealthy Barcelona residents, with large homes, plenty of green space, and even its own transportation courtesy of the Tram Blau (which is now disused). The relaxing atmosphere of the area remains, and the tree-lined street offers the perfect spot for members to unwind.

Built in 1906, the House was designed by Josep Masdéu i Puigdemasa and Josep Pérez, a showcase of the Catalan Modernist movement made famous by Antoni Gaudí and other architects of the era. It was intended to be a family home – and indeed it existed as one for much of the 20th century – thought to have been designed as a gift for the original owners’ two daughters.

Restoring the club to its former glory has been a really important part of the process of getting it ready for members. That meant maintaining three essential parts of the Catalan Modernist design: its flooring and ceilings, and the frescoes adorning the walls around the building.

Intricate frescoes were an integral element of the era’s design; the vibrant, colourful depictions used to signal both personal and wider Catalan identities. One of the most prominent throughout the House is a Medieval-style scene on the walls of the main club space. Female figures thought to be the owners’ two daughters are depicted alongside armoured knights, court ladies, and a greyhound (a symbol of lineage and loyalty) in a wooded landscape.

These kinds of scenes were commonplace, reflective of the movement’s desire to romanticise the Middle Ages as a time of nobility, spirituality, and collective values in the face of industrialism. Elsewhere in the House, the hallway walls feature a natural scene, complete with flowers, clouds, and birds – equal parts calming and intricate. As part of the restoration of these frescoes, the team has worked to carefully consolidate the surface of them, before using conservation-grade adhesive to reattach loose pigment. The final step has been to delicately fill in missing areas or details with natural paints, matching them as close to the original vision as possible.

The same attention has been given to restoring the typical Catalan ceilings. Look up when you visit the House and you’ll see the vaulted detailing in the main club space, finished with motifs of abundance: garlands of flowers, fruits and leaves. The building’s flooring, which largely consists of colourful mosaic tiles placed in intricate geometric patterns, needed little work: a polish was just about all it took to bring it in line with the rest of the club. That’s down to the original hydraulic tiling – thought to have been produced in Valencia – which is found throughout the space. Mainly made up of cement, pigment and marble, and created using a hydraulic press as opposed to a traditional kiln, the sturdy flooring has remained in excellent condition, despite over a century of use.

As the team works hard on its restoration, Barcelona Pool House will open its doors to members later this year. Discover more and apply for membership now