Barcelona - La Sagrada Familia ?My concern

We will have a little over a day before our cruise departs Barcelona. So our Barcelona siteseeing time will be limited. La Sagrada Familia looks very interesting to us and I would like to hear comments on the merits of going inside the church for a tour versus just seeing the church from the outside.

My main concern is the time consumed to visit. We will be there on a Tuesday. How much time would you budget for an inside visit?

We have been to Italy, Germany and Austria previously and have seen many incredible churches. This church looks so unique, but I am concerned about an indoor visit

Consuming too much time.

We will have a little over a day before our cruise departs Barcelona. So our Barcelona siteseeing time will be limited. La Sagrada Familia looks very interesting to us and I would like to hear comments on the merits of going inside the church for a tour versus just seeing the church from the outside.

 

My main concern is the time consumed to visit. We will be there on a Tuesday. How much time would you budget for an inside visit?

 

We have been to Italy, Germany and Austria previously and have seen many incredible churches. This church looks so unique, but I am concerned about an indoor visit

Consuming too much time.

 

 

In my opinion, this Cathedral is so unique you really need to go inside. Even with only one day in Barcelona, you should dedicate as much time as necessary to see this site at the expense of other things. With pre-purchased tickets, you can do this site in 2 hours or even less if you hurry. I would not hurry.

Even if you have seen other magnificent cathedrals in Europe, Sagrada Familia is worth an inside visit because it is so unique and unlike other classic churches. Be sure to do some online research before your visit so you will have a good idea about where to look for some of the special architectural and artistic features of the church. In addition, a visit to the crypt below the church is interesting and there is a separate (and free) entrance for that feature, but its opening hours are limited.

To use your time efficiently, you might want to consider visiting Sagrada Familia on the day your ship embarks. As you usually can't board the ship until around noon, you can use the morning to see the church and then go to board the ship. Just ask the concierge at your hotel to hold your luggage for you when you check out, then you can visit the church and retrieve your luggage as you head to the pier.

Unique and worth an inside visit! So different from any other church.

Agree that the inside is worth the visit 1 - 2 hours should be enough.

I agree with previous posts - an inside visit is a must. Book your tickets online so that you need not wait in the long queue.

Thanks for the great comments. We will commit the time to visit but not to climb any tower.

On advance ticket purchases, is it a requirement to select a time for your visit? Or can you just select a tour date? I had planned to visit this church on the day our flight arrives. However I would hate to miss my tour time if our flight is late. I now like doing this tour in the early morning on the day our cruise departs.

We've been there a couple of times. The last time we took the earliest entrance time. We arrived early to look at the exterior. Many individual carvings to look at. We were one of the first people in so were able to experience the interior without the crowds.

Agree with the others. Take a tour inside. With advance tickets- no waiting in line outside , two hours was fine and that included a guided tour. Skip the towers. You have to specify a time for your tickets, so advance planning is necessary to be there on time.

Thanks for the great comments. We will commit the time to visit but not to climb any tower.

 

On advance ticket purchases, is it a requirement to select a time for your visit? Or can you just select a tour date? I had planned to visit this church on the day our flight arrives. However I would hate to miss my tour time if our flight is late. I now like doing this tour in the early morning on the day our cruise departs.

Advanced ticket purchases do require a select time of entry. We went to the Basilica in 2014 on the morning of the day our cruise departed. We purchased tickets for a guided tour including a tower for 9am. The tour lasted for approx 1 hour and with left at 11am. I believe you will be amazed at what you'll see and glad that you went. Enjoy La Sagrada Familia!

Definitely visit this church, it’s spectacular. I’m not sure what else you’ve planned, but a visit to one of the Gaudi houses will help you understand the genius of this man.

https://www.globotreks.com/destinations/10-gaudi-buildings-barcelona/.

Some are open in the evening as well. Prebooking directly with the facility will ensure you get in. Some locations even offer drinks, snacks on certain days.

We cruised the Epic out of Barcelona last Feb and got into Barcelona a few days earlier. The Sagrada Familia is well worth seeing. We couldn't get tour tickets withan English speaking tour guide so we did the tour by ourselves. we are returning in early Dec to cruise the Spirit and we are definitely going there nagain Enjoy Barcelona is beautiful

We first visited the church in 2005, then again in 2010 and again in 2014. It has been very fascinating to see the developments.

By all means see the whole place. And don't miss the museum. It is well worth the time. On our first visit (when the interior of the church was still early days) we spent more time there than we did in the church.

This really is a must-see.

Mura

We will have a little over a day before our cruise departs Barcelona. So our Barcelona siteseeing time will be limited. La Sagrada Familia looks very interesting to us and I would like to hear comments on the merits of going inside the church for a tour versus just seeing the church from the outside.

 

My main concern is the time consumed to visit. We will be there on a Tuesday. How much time would you budget for an inside visit?

 

We have been to Italy, Germany and Austria previously and have seen many incredible churches. This church looks so unique, but I am concerned about an indoor visit

Consuming too much time.

 

 

Seeing the outside of the Basilica without going inside is worthwhile but I have been to Barcelona on multiple pre-cruise stays - and have to give another vote for you doing the inside tour on the day of your cruise.

We did this two years ago - we went up the towers, although I did not find the towers were a 'must do'. In order that we had plenty of time, I booked the first tickets of the morning, I used an audio guide and it took me about 2 hours to see everything. I wanted to just sit and enjoy more but we had to get back to the hotel to check out.

I had selected my hotel to be within walking distance of Sagrada Familia, but you could easily take a taxi.

Update. We are definately going to prebuy an early am inside tour of La Sagrada Familia on our cruise departure day. After the tour, we will return via taxi to our hotel and checkout. Then take another taxi to the ship for boarding.

Our time in Barcelona is limited so I have to be efficient with our time. On our day of arrival, I am planning to do a tour of the Gothic Quarter and a Los Ramblas walk.

Update. We are definately going to prebuy an early am inside tour of La Sagrada Familia on our cruise departure day. After the tour, we will return via taxi to our hotel and checkout. Then take another taxi to the ship for boarding.

 

Our time in Barcelona is limited so I have to be efficient with our time. On our day of arrival, I am planning to do a tour of the Gothic Quarter and a Los Ramblas walk.

Good plans there. I am not sure if your Gothic Tour will be self-guided - but you can download a Rick Steves tour and follow that.

You can check if Runner Bean has a tour of the Gothic Quarter the day you are there. We did this tour, where the guide works for tips, and found it well worth it.

We will have a little over a day before our cruise departs Barcelona. So our Barcelona siteseeing time will be limited. La Sagrada Familia looks very interesting to us and I would like to hear comments on the merits of going inside the church for a tour versus just seeing the church from the outside.

 

My main concern is the time consumed to visit. We will be there on a Tuesday. How much time would you budget for an inside visit?

 

We have been to Italy, Germany and Austria previously and have seen many incredible churches. This church looks so unique, but I am concerned about an indoor visit

Consuming too much time.

 

I pre-booked tickets @ $13 pp approximately, picked up tickets at the booth and walked inside. Timed it for 3 PM. Stayed inside for about an hour. No tour. It is the magnificence of this cathedral and it's architecture that is a not to be missed site. This was our 2nd time to Barcelona so had to go into the church.

Don't miss The Sagrada Familia. It is breathtaking & grotesque at the same time and should not to be missed. It is hard to imagine, yet when you see it, it will all makes sense. The natural blend well with the abstract and the organic mixes perfectly with the geometric.It is a work of art that is still under construction. It is definitely a Gaudi masterpiece. Buy tickets ahead of time on line and go early in the morning when less crowded. Walk around it to see all the details and do some research so you know what your looking at. We spent about 2 hours in side.

We visited the outside only last time we stopped in Barcelona due to time and next visit we will definitely be buying inside tour tickets. It's quite hard to describe how incredible it is.

I have to admit that 99% of the time I couldn't give a hoot about churches and their architecture. But I was staggered by the size and beauty of the Sagrada Familia, as well as the story behind it. It won't be like anything you've ever seen before.

Get the audio guide. Very well done.

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