Barcelona Time Savers
Make the most of your time in Barcelona by following our time saving tips.
Buy Tickets Online for the Sagrada Familia Cathedral
You can spend hours standing in the blazing Barcelona sun to buy tickets to Barcelona's number one tourist attraction, the stunning Sagrada Familia Cathedral. Instead, avoid this unpleasant scenario by buying your tickets online and printing them before you leave home.
To buy tickets, visit the Sagrada Familia Cathedral Admissions page. Click on the link for Online Advance Ticket Sales at the bottom of the page. You'll be routed to the Spanish Ticket Master site to select dates and times and enter your payment information (don't worry - it's in English, and doesn't rip you off with outrageous fees). Once you've completed the transaction, you can print out the tickets or collect them at ServiCaixa terminals of "la Caixa" bank.
As a bonus, you'll bypass the entrance line by accessing the cathedral at the entrance on Carrer Sardenya in front of the Passion Facade.
Note that advance purchase tickets do not include access to the towers. For tower access, you'll need to wait in the ticket line inside of the cathedral to buy tower tickets. The tower line may be long, but its worth the wait to see the details on the sculptures decorating the cathedral's towers.
Directions: C/ Sardenya, between C/ Mallorca and C/ Provença in front of the Passion Façade. Metro: L2 and L5. Exit at the Plaça de la Sagrada Familia. Price: 13€/adult, 3€ for tower access.
Buy an Articket
The Articket is a museum pass to 7 of Barcelona's most famous museums including the must-see Picasso Museum, Gaudi's La Pedera (Casa Mila), Joan Miro Museum, and the National Museum of Catalonian Art (MNAC).
The Articket costs 30€ (5% discount if you buy online). If you plan to visit the 4 sites listed above, consider the math:
Picasso Museum - 11€
La Pedera - Casa Mila - 16.50€
Joan Miro - 10€
Total purchased separately is 47.50€. If you buy the Articket, you'll save 17.50€ and bypass the ticket lines (worth the money in peak tourist season to avoid standing in the huge lines). Unlike other city's museum passes (e.g., Paris), you don't need to visit museums on consecutive days. Instead, the pass is valid for 3 months.
You can purchase the Articket before you leave home at the Barcelona Tourism website (best option for the 5% discount). When you purchase the Articket online, you'll receive an e-mail voucher that you'll need to present at the ticket office of the first museum you visit.
Or, you can buy the ticket at any one of the 7 museums or at Barcelona tourism office at Pl. Catalunya, Pl. Sant Jaume, or Sants train station.
Note: Many museums do not have signs specifying which line is for Articket holders. Find the "Group" entrance and show your Articket to bypass the long, individual ticket lines.