La Sagrada Familia Tower Visit worth it?

[AEGBRG]

Hi everyone,

 

For those of you who visited one of the two towers, is it worth the extra 5 euros? If so, which tower did you go up? The tower atop the Passion Façade or the one atop the Nativity Façade? For the rare few who have been up both, which one would you choose?

 

Also, would you recommend pre-purchasing tickets online? If so, is there a separate window for people with e-tickets and where is it located in proximity to main ticket office?

 

We plan on visiting sometime in the afternoon in July so I am expecting big lines and since we are in Barcelona only one full day, I am leaning towards buying tickets online to avoid the crowds (unless I hear from you guys the lines move quickly and it is not necessary).

 

Thanks in advance.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

By all means, pre-order your tickets. The line to purchase tickets is very long. We did not wait at all to enter with the tickets we purchased online.

 

We purchased tickets to the Nativity tower. This is the taller of the two towers--but, you must be able to walk the stairs down. [no elevator down] There are many elements of architecture that you can not see from the ground--or not very well.

 

I did a mini review of our trip to Barcelona. If you can the first page you will see some of our pictures from the tower. Then you can decide. you can see it was a rainy day while we were there. But, the views were still excellent.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1943583

[AEGBRG]

By all means, pre-order your tickets. The line to purchase tickets is very long. We did not wait at all to enter with the tickets we purchased online.

 

We purchased tickets to the Nativity tower. This is the taller of the two towers--but, you must be able to walk the stairs down. [no elevator down] There are many elements of architecture that you can not see from the ground--or not very well.

 

I did a mini review of our trip to Barcelona. If you can the first page you will see some of our pictures from the tower. Then you can decide. you can see it was a rainy day while we were there. But, the views were still excellent.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1943583

 

Thank you for the info -- great pictures BTW. I forgot to also ask if the audio guide is worth including?

[AEGBRG]

Also, is the entrance to the Basilica on Sardenya (Passion Facade side) or Marina (Nativity Facade side)?

Edited June 26, 2014 by AEGBRG

[DragonOfTheSeas]

The website says the entrance is on Carrera Marina. [i could not remember] :o

 

Here is a link:

http://www.sagradafamilia.cat/sf-eng/docs_serveis/infoAccessos.php

 

We did not do an audio tour. DH is not a fan of audio tours. We did go through the small museum attached to the church. It had in-depth signage and helped us understand what we were going to see from the tower and on the main floor. It gave a good history of the site and how Gaudi selected the elements.

Edited June 27, 2014 by DragonOfTheSeas

[Turtles06]

We went up the Nativity Façade tower as this put us up close and personal with the façade on which Gaudi actually worked. We were there in the winter, so we had no line for the tower, but my understanding is that when it is busy, the lines are typically longer for the Passion Façade tower because, as noted above, you have to walk down a spiral staircase to get down from the Nativity Façade tower and so it's not quite as popular.

 

I love going up into towers and seeing views, so I'd recommend it. But it's not everyone's "thing," it depends on what interests you. And since you have only one full day in Barcelona, you might not want to spend the extra time for the tower; again, totally up to you.

 

Have a great trip!

 

 

(View from Nativity Façade tower, by turtles06)

[Steirisch]

Yes, it is well worth the time. We enjoyed it far more than we had anticipated. Bought our tickets online. The taxi driver dropped us off in front of the church, but the entrance for tickets is at the back (?)...on the Carrer de Sardenya side. We got the audio guides and paid extra for the tower visit. It was well worth it to have the audio guide because it points out things you might miss otherwise. The tower (we went up Nativity) was great except for the walk down. Our legs hurt for two days afterwards, but we're glad we did it.

 

If you come out the same side as you entered, you can go to the left and down Carrer de Mallorca and a block or two further is a Starbucks where you can refresh yourself and gaze at the lovely towers.

[irenemc]

Totally worthy!!!The views from the tower are incredible.

The audioguide is also very informative (the explanations are long so reserve a few hours for the visit). Sagrada familia is definitely one of my favorites things to do in Barcelona!!

[annie99]

I totally agree with the above posts. Sagrada Famillia was worth every penny and the time as well. We did the Nativity Tower and saw things we could never have seen otherwise. Strongly recommend purchasing tickets online as the lines were long to buy tickets even at 9:30am.This church is like nothing you have ever seen before!

[RollieUK]

Bear in mind when planning a visit to the towers that children under 6 and people with reduced mobility are not allowed.

[sbflcruiser]

We just visited, and I agree if you are going to visit pre-purchasing tickets is a must. We also did the Nativity tower, which as stated you must walk down. It was already hot when we were there in June, so if you are planning on a July afternoon, just consider how warm it will be climbing down all those stairs 400+). Not sure what all your trip entails, due to limited viewing from the top, I personally thought going to the roof of the Barcelona Cathedral was better viewing and photo ops.

 

There was a separate line inside the church for the towers, so by the time you waited for the elevator (which only holds 6 people at a time) then the actual walk down, it does take some time. You can also only go as fast as those in front of you. I think it took around 1.5 hours for our time just for the tower.

 

We enjoyed Barcelona, it is now in our top 5 favorite places..

[SteveinPhilly]

Great thread - though old - so not sure anyone is monitoring it. We will buy tickets on line and do audio tour and tower. We only have TWO days in Barcelona (was there one day years before) so we want to make bast use of time. My wife is not big on stairs - me 'm pretty good going down. So she'll want the one with elevator both ways. My problem is that I'd love the best views but it appears it takes almost an hour going down the 400 steps. Really?

 

And do you need to pick which tower and time when you buy on line? I think so.

 

Steve

[Bruin Steve]

Great thread - though old - so not sure anyone is monitoring it. We will buy tickets on line and do audio tour and tower. We only have TWO days in Barcelona (was there one day years before) so we want to make bast use of time. My wife is not big on stairs - me 'm pretty good going down. So she'll want the one with elevator both ways. My problem is that I'd love the best views but it appears it takes almost an hour going down the 400 steps. Really?

 

And do you need to pick which tower and time when you buy on line? I think so.

 

Steve

 

Steve,

Last time we did it, we took the elevator that forced us to use the stairs going down...It was in July...and there was zero line for that elevator. The other one had a LONG line. What was really cool about the walk down was NOT necessarily the view from the top...it was all of the photo opportunities on the way down--the little bits of detail on the facade that you could get cool shots of up close. We just took the walk very slow--stopping for photos every several steps. People who take that other elevator, just going to the top, then quickly back down, miss an awful lot.

 

We'll be back this June, but with my sister and brother-in-law...and I know that my sister has some issues with stairs--but we will ask and leave it up to her...Of course, once you take that elevator, there is no turning back...

[SteveinPhilly]

Steve,

Last time we did it, we took the elevator that forced us to use the stairs going down...It was in July...and there was zero line for that elevator. The other one had a LONG line. What was really cool about the walk down was NOT necessarily the view from the top...it was all of the photo opportunities on the way down--the little bits of detail on the facade that you could get cool shots of up close. We just took the walk very slow--stopping for photos every several steps. People who take that other elevator, just going to the top, then quickly back down, miss an awful lot.

 

We'll be back this June, but with my sister and brother-in-law...and I know that my sister has some issues with stairs--but we will ask and leave it up to her...Of course, once you take that elevator, there is no turning back...

 

Hi Steve (great name BTW :D): My concern is more about time. I know you took a lot of photos but I read somewhere that we should allow 1/5 hours for just the tower because of slow folks. I'd hate to have my wife wait an hour for me. What is reasonable amount of time for the tall tower?

 

Also, when you buy your tickets on line, I think you select the time too, right? And do you need to choose which tower?

 

We are there on Monday, June 20th.My plan was to take Metro from our hotel near the Food Market at about 9Am and book audio tour for 10Am and then the tower for noon. Or should we do the tower first because of heat?:confused:

 

 

Thanks

Steve

[samavarcruiser]

Absolutely do NOT miss it!

[Bruin Steve]

Hi Steve (great name BTW :D): My concern is more about time. I know you took a lot of photos but I read somewhere that we should allow 1/5 hours for just the tower because of slow folks. I'd hate to have my wife wait an hour for me. What is reasonable amount of time for the tall tower?

 

Also, when you buy your tickets on line, I think you select the time too, right? And do you need to choose which tower?

 

We are there on Monday, June 20th.My plan was to take Metro from our hotel near the Food Market at about 9Am and book audio tour for 10Am and then the tower for noon. Or should we do the tower first because of heat?:confused:

 

Thanks

Steve

 

Maybe someone with a more recent experience could answer a bit better than I can...Last time we did this was a few years ago now...and we did not buy our tickets online. We just walked up and bought them there. And heat was not a problem. Also, it did not take us all that long to make it down--easily less than an hour, to my recollection...And the stairway was not that crowded that anyone blocked us going down. Since only a limited number of people go up in each elevator, there are a limited number coming down...The elevator is small.

[SteveinPhilly]

Absolutely do NOT miss it!

 

See my questions of the OTHER steve - below - and please answer if you can.

 

Thanks!

[ollienbertsmum]

Maybe someone with a more recent experience could answer a bit better than I can...Last time we did this was a few years ago now...and we did not buy our tickets online. We just walked up and bought them there. And heat was not a problem. Also, it did not take us all that long to make it down--easily less than an hour, to my recollection...And the stairway was not that crowded that anyone blocked us going down. Since only a limited number of people go up in each elevator, there are a limited number coming down...The elevator is small.

 

We went two weeks ago. We got timed tickets for 9.15 entrance and 9.30 Tower. We went up the Tower on the Passion Facade side which I thought was going to be the lift down and we ended up coming down the stairs. I actually was underwhelmed by the Towers, I think that was because I was so overwhelmed by the beauty of the Basilica itself. There were no queues to go up or down the Tower, this may be because we were there early.

 

To the OP, you do not have to book a timed Audioguide, you just go around at your own pace. We picked up the audio guide, went up the Tower and then came down and took our time going around the Basilica. I want to go again, it was so beautiful.

[OBX-Cruisers]

just for information sake: We booked our tickets for the Church and Tower last October but the HAL Nieuw Amsterstam could not enter the port that morning because of near gale winds coming directly off the shore.

Although we did see the church from the outside the next day, our tickets of course were booked for the day we were not able to get into port.

I applied for a refund and have to commend the organization for checking out the reason we could not keep our booking and for fully refunding all of the funds.

So this year we will be spending FOUR days in Barcelona precruise and will again plan to prebook online. I am REALLY greatful for people on Cruise Critic who have pointed out the fact that I did not appreciate about having no choice but to walk down on the Nativity side.........THAT was the side we were supposed to have seen last October without knowing about that downhill trek which would be hard on my wife with her new hip.

Seeing all of the crowds in October, if you are in the city for only a short time then by all means prebook online....painless and efficient

Edited May 9, 2016 by OBX-Cruisers

[SteveinPhilly]

We went two weeks ago. We got timed tickets for 9.15 entrance and 9.30 Tower. We went up the Tower on the Passion Facade side which I thought was going to be the lift down and we ended up coming down the stairs. I actually was underwhelmed by the Towers, I think that was because I was so overwhelmed by the beauty of the Basilica itself. There were no queues to go up or down the Tower, this may be because we were there early.

 

To the OP, you do not have to book a timed Audioguide, you just go around at your own pace. We picked up the audio guide, went up the Tower and then came down and took our time going around the Basilica. I want to go again, it was so beautiful.

 

Thamks Ollie, Bert and "Mum" This gives a little more but I'm still confused :confused: so please bear withme as I rephrase my question :o

 

I'm told that you pick a time for "Entrance" to the Basila and then pick up audio guide when you are there and to allow 60-90 minutes. There is a separate entrance for the towers, right? And you pick a time for that visit. I am guessing it might be best to do tower first - as you did. So, if I'm correct you ENTERED the Basillaca at 9:15 and then (while in the Basillica - went to the elevator to do the tower at 9:30 and when you came down you did the audio guide - so you can take the audio guide up (and down with you, right?)

 

So you went to the tall tower and walked down? How long did the whole tower thing take you? I ask because my wife said she doesn't need the tower but will wait for me at ground level.

 

BYW, I'm going away for 5 days so probably won't see yours - or others replies.

 

Steve

[tyrannosaur]

I came across this post when I searched about the topic, maybe someone could answer Steve's question about audio guide first or tower first, or if audio guide can be picked up after tower tour. Also whether the entrance to La Sagrada is on Marina, which of the 2 towers to pick (is Passion tower taller with better view? Nativity tower built by Gaudi?).

Thanks in advance!

Chuck

[SteveinPhilly]

I came across this post when I searched about the topic, maybe someone could answer Steve's question about audio guide first or tower first, or if audio guide can be picked up after tower tour. Also whether the entrance to La Sagrada is on Marina, which of the 2 towers to pick (is Passion tower taller with better view? Nativity tower built by Gaudi?).

Thanks in advance!

Chuck

 

I'll do the best I can.

 

Pick an entrance time (morning is best) and then a tower time for about 45 minutes later. This will give you time to walk around before taking the Elevator up. You get your audio guide OUTSIDE the Church and return it there. So you take it with you to the tower. I thought the Nativity Tower was the best views. Happy to send my video. And when you are up top you are caged in so heights (which I don't do) are not an issue. And the walk down is cool because trhere are window.

 

Most important is to BUT tickets on line inadvance at the OFFICIAL website. Google "Sagrada Familia" and "Official"

 

Hope that helps. It's amazing. BTW another great view (and it's FREE) is the top floor cafeteria of El Cortez Ingles Dept store.

[EnricM]

Post #21 at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=52744949#post52744949