Barcelona newbie questions - Sagrada Familia, etc

[CCJack]

We have only one day in Barcelona on the NCL Epic (arrive 5 am depart 6 pm on a Sunday in June.) We would like to visit Sagrada Familia, Las Ramblas and perhaps another Gaudi building (with no long lines!). I plan on purchase tix to S. Familia from ticketmaster. A few questions:

 

1) For a Sunday, do we need to avoid service times at S. Familia? are they still open for visitors at 9 am?

 

2) What are our best transportation options. If we take a HO-HO bus, will we be able to time our stop at S. Familia to match our ticket time, or how precise are they at the S. Familia with the ticket time?

 

3) Should we be looking at just taking a taxi rather than HO-HO bus.

 

4) Any other suggestions on Gaudi buildings, or any suggestions in general. Will S. Familia and Las Ramblas fill our day?

 

Thanks very much.

[English_in_Spain]

We have only one day in Barcelona on the NCL Epic (arrive 5 am depart 6 pm on a Sunday in June.) We would like to visit Sagrada Familia, Las Ramblas and perhaps another Gaudi building (with no long lines!). I plan on purchase tix to S. Familia from ticketmaster. A few questions:

 

1) For a Sunday, do we need to avoid service times at S. Familia? are they still open for visitors at 9 am?

 

2) What are our best transportation options. If we take a HO-HO bus, will we be able to time our stop at S. Familia to match our ticket time, or how precise are they at the S. Familia with the ticket time?

 

3) Should we be looking at just taking a taxi rather than HO-HO bus.

 

4) Any other suggestions on Gaudi buildings, or any suggestions in general. Will S. Familia and Las Ramblas fill our day?

 

Thanks very much.

 

1) The ability to visit Sagrada Familia on a Sunday varies. The best way to find out is to go to the TicketMaster site and try booking tickets for your date. It will show which times are available.

 

2) To get to Sagrada Familia from the ship you can either take a taxi (about €18-20 on a Sunday) or you can get the port bus to Columbus Monument and take the metro from Drassanes (this means changing trains). Alternatively you could walk to Paral•lel metro (about ½ mile) and get a train direct to Sagrada Familia.

 

Your ticket to Sagrada Familia will be valid for entry within a one hour time band. You need to arrive there within that hour or you will not be allowed to enter.

 

3) The HoHo bus would cost €26 per person for the day (€23.40 if you book in advance online). Whether it is worth it depends on how many in your party. If there are 2 of you, return by taxi would be about €40. The advantage of the HoHo bus is that, depending how much time you have left, you could get off and see other Gaudi buildings (even if just from the outside). Even if you don't get off, you will still see something of the city.

 

4) As I said above, if you take the HoHo bus you can see how time is going and how you feel and then decide to get off and see more or just stay on the bus.

 

One thing to bear in mind when deciding what to do - you will not be the only person on your ship wanting to get off, get on the HoHo bus and go to Sagrada Familia :eek:

 

 

[KirkNC]

I would take a taxi so you can get there as quickly as possible.

[cynbar]

We were recently in Barcelona for 3 days pre cruise, and we easily used the red HoHo bus (Barcelona City Tours) to combine a city overview with our visit to Sagrada Familia. This would be my suggestion. Take the port bus to the Columbus Monument and walk up Las Ramblas. Buy your Sagrada Familia tickets for either the 12-1. Or 1-2 pm window. At some point in the morning, veer off from Las Ramblas into the Gothic Quarter, headed for the cathedral. The walk to the cathedral is about 10 minutes, not counting browsing or stopping for a bite to eat, there are shops where you can buy some food and walk with it if you like. A good street map will show you the way, or you can print out a map at home using google maps (use Hotel Colon as your destination which is across from the cathedral and right next to the HoHo stop.) Allow at least a few minutes to go into the cathedral, and there is also a pretty good restaurant on the square called Taverna del BISBE for tapas and other Spanish food. Plan to catch the bus about an hour before your window starts (green route and there is a sign there showing routes and stops. ) you can buy tickets on the bus or online, where you get a voucher to exchange right on the bus, save your paper receipt as this is your ticket to re board the bus. It will let you off in front of the entrance to Sagrada Familia, go straight to the right entrance line for online ticket purchasers. After touring the interior, get back on the bus for a nice city overview, or get off at other stops. You can always catch a taxi back to the ship or the Columbus Monument if time is short or you wear out.

[pinkroses]

Cynbar, in Barcelona did you find it necessary to take a guides tour or can you do it yourself? Where did you stay? Thanks!

[cynbar]

We stayed at the Hotel Colon on the recommendation of Carol who posts here often and gives excellent advice. It has a lot of Old World charm, although it's recently renovated but they kept the old fashioned decor. It's across from the old cathedral and right in the Gothic Quarter, convenient for sightseeing and right next to the stop for both HoHo buses and a taxi stand. We got a cathedral view room and felt it was worth every cent, you get a great view of the cathedral and all the activity in the square. We didn't use any tour guides, just bought a couple guide books and mainly spent a lot of time on these boards, deciding what we most wanted to see. The bus gives you a great over view of the city and you can get off where ever you have an interest.

[cruising oceangal]

We stayed at the Hotel Colon on the recommendation of Carol who posts here often and gives excellent advice. It has a lot of Old World charm, although it's recently renovated but they kept the old fashioned decor. It's across from the old cathedral and right in the Gothic Quarter, convenient for sightseeing and right next to the stop for both HoHo buses and a taxi stand. We got a cathedral view room and felt it was worth every cent, you get a great view of the cathedral and all the activity in the square. We didn't use any tour guides, just bought a couple guide books and mainly spent a lot of time on these boards, deciding what we most wanted to see. The bus gives you a great over view of the city and you can get off where ever you have an interest.

 

Does the Cathedral view room have a balcony? I was looking on their site and it sure does look like it. Can you recommend any restaurants nearby?

 

Thanks!

[cynbar]

The cathedral view room has a French balcony, and the superior room (which we had) has 2 French balconies. The French doors open and you can stand on the balcony, also gives you the chance to leave the door open for awhile to soak up the atmosphere from the square. It was fairly quiet if you close the windows, however, and the square is pretty much deserted late in the evening through early morning so we had no trouble sleeping. The superior rooms have a lot more room and a sitting area, it was great. For meals, we had 2 dinners nearby at Melic del Gotic and El Gran Cafe, both within easy walking distance. We had lunch one day at the hotel cafe outside on the square, and another day we had tapas late afternoon at Taverna del Bisbe, which is right across the square and is open all day. The hotel restaurant is part of the lobby and really feels like you are a guest in a Spanish home (as does the hotel bar), we didn't eat there but it was full Saturday evening and people seemed satisfied. The only downside was we were not impressed with the hotel breakfast, but that's not a deal breaker,by any means. Lots of restaurants in the area, you could easily check them out during the daylight hours and choose one for dinner that interests you. Staff was very friendly and helpful at the Colon, also, and spoke perfect English.

[spicy1]

We were recently in Barcelona for 3 days pre cruise, and we easily used the red HoHo bus (Barcelona City Tours) to combine a city overview with our visit to Sagrada Familia. This would be my suggestion. Take the port bus to the Columbus Monument and walk up Las Ramblas. Buy your Sagrada Familia tickets for either the 12-1. Or 1-2 pm window. At some point in the morning, veer off from Las Ramblas into the Gothic Quarter, headed for the cathedral. The walk to the cathedral is about 10 minutes, not counting browsing or stopping for a bite to eat, there are shops where you can buy some food and walk with it if you like. A good street map will show you the way, or you can print out a map at home using google maps (use Hotel Colon as your destination which is across from the cathedral and right next to the HoHo stop.) Allow at least a few minutes to go into the cathedral, and there is also a pretty good restaurant on the square called Taverna del BISBE for tapas and other Spanish food. Plan to catch the bus about an hour before your window starts (green route and there is a sign there showing routes and stops. ) you can buy tickets on the bus or online, where you get a voucher to exchange right on the bus, save your paper receipt as this is your ticket to re board the bus. It will let you off in front of the entrance to Sagrada Familia, go straight to the right entrance line for online ticket purchasers. After touring the interior, get back on the bus for a nice city overview, or get off at other stops. You can always catch a taxi back to the ship or the Columbus Monument if time is short or you wear out.

 

Thank you for the great advice. Do you have any other suggestions for good shopping in the area?

[cynbar]

Thank you for the great advice. Do you have any other suggestions for good shopping in the area?

 

I don't really have any shopping suggestions, we were too busy sightseeing. However, lots of shops around. Some of the fun is just wandering around the Gothic Quarter with its narrow, winding streets, and popping into some of the stores and cafes that are everywhere.