question about Montserrat in the afternoon

This is our first time in Barcelona and I really want to go to Montserrat; however, our flight arrives at 1215pm and I predict we won't arrive at the hotel until 130pm. I do have a question. Has anyone ever gone in the late afternoon to Montserrat via the train (not interested in a tour - we like doing things on our own)? We are arriving in Barcelona on 11/4/17. Our cruise takes off on 11/5/17 and I don't want to chance it that day. If you have, what is the latest you can get a train/all trains? I have looked at the train schedule websites and cannot find the answer to this.

Where exactly did you look at?

various sites (google was not really my friend).

https://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/en/tour/barcelona-montserrat.html

The train to montserrat leaves Placa Espanya and takes an hour to get to the Montserrat aerial stop and few minutes more to the Rack Railway. (We took the rack railway, b/c wife is afraid of heights) Both the aerial and the rack railway take another 23 minutes to get to the top.

trains leave every half hour or so in the afternoon its 12:56 pm, 13:36 , 13:56 , 14: 36 pm etc. from Espanya.

The Boys choir sings at 1 pm, so you will miss this in an afternoon trip. but its still worth the trip. this is a very doable DIY trip. No need to take a paid tour. with your limited time, just buy the Adult Return ticket for 19.30 Euro each. You can get them from the ticket machine at Placa Espanya. The ticket machines have an English Option and you will need a CC with a chip and PIN.

last train from Monserrat leaves at 18:41 hrs from the train station and you will need to board the rack railway or aerial at least 1/2 hour earlier to catch the last train.

So assuming you could catch the 13:36 train from Placa Espanya, you'd arrive an hour later at the rack railway around 14:41, add 23 minutes to the top. So 3 pm when you got there. You could walk around for 2-3 hours, (that's more than enough time to see the black jesus, walk around and enjoy the view) (but not enough time to hike on the trails to the cave) then catch the rack railway back down at 17:00 or 18:00 and catch the train back to Barcelona at 17:41 or last train at 18:41 hrs. so yes it's doable.

It's will be rushed to catch last train. Make sure & bring jackets. It's the Black Madonna not Jesus

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There is so much to see there, you can spend the whole day trying to take in everything however if you can get there by 3 PM and spend 2/3 hours you should see a lot and enjoy the view, getting you back around 5 or 6 maybe. Our last visit to Barcelona was in 2011 and we took one day for Montserrat. We did tour so can't speak on the Trains but dkata gave you very helpful information.

great information and thank you so much. We are going to give it a try.

Going to Montserrat requires half a day at the very least -assuming you don't want to hike a bit, which is also one of the main reasons for going to Montserrat, in that case, a full day. If you can't spare it, I honestly wouldn't go at all... you're going to waste half of your time travelling to/from.

A full article I created about Montserrat, hope it's helpful: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/spain/a-visit-to-montserrat-the-holy-mountain-near-barcelona-in-catalonia

thank you for all the time you took to help many of us!

My pleasure

Going to Montserrat requires half a day at the very least -assuming you don't want to hike a bit, which is also one of the main reasons for going to Montserrat, in that case, a full day. If you can't spare it, I honestly wouldn't go at all... you're going to waste half of your time travelling to/from.

 

A full article I created about Montserrat, hope it's helpful: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/spain/a-visit-to-montserrat-the-holy-mountain-near-barcelona-in-catalonia

Thinking about it, I think it would be better to relax at hotel then grab something to eat and explore the city. Montserrat will wait until we are there for a few more days. Thanks for your help. .

Good decision to follow Enric's advice. If this is your first time in Barcelona, there is plenty to do in the city the day you arrive (if you feel up to it after your overseas flight) and the next morning before boarding your cruise. Montserrat is far from Barcelona and requires a lot of energy if you really want to enjoy the full potential of the site. A lot of tourists think it's just listening to the choir and standing in line to see the Madonna, and they can plan one or two hours there and check Montserrat off their list. That's a real shame.