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Barcelona: La Sagrada Familia

  • 2015-03-11
  • antonin
  • architecture
  • barcelona
  • catalonia
  • catalunya
  • facade
  • gaudi
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  • la-sagrada-familia
  • museum
  • photography
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  • planning
  • spain
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  • Barcelona: La Sagrada Familia

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I don't often let my photos speak entirely for themselves on this blog, but other than for a few tourist tips, I'm going to let them do just that. Why? Because I can't describe how beautiful it was to spend the day at La Sagrada Familia, the masterpiece basilica of Antonin Gaudi's design that is still under construction today. If you are visiting Barcelona, you simply have to set aside a day for exploring it. Plan it into your agendas now. I'll wait.

So here are the basics:

Location: In the Example, 401 Carrer de Mallorca. Buy tickets on the Passion side and enter on the Nativity side.

Tour Prices: Varies depending on if you want a guide or not and if you want to visit the towers or not. We did not get a guide, but we did do the towers, which was 19.50 Euros. WORTH IT. Do the towers unless you are not physically able to climb stairs, go through narrow passages, or get afraid of heights. Note: The price is for only one of the two sets of towers, and it's the luck of the draw which you get. Both have great views, though, and the experience is supposedly similar in each.

Time: We spent around four hours at la Sagrada Familia, which gave us time for the towers, the museum beneath the church's main floor, and exploring the inside and outside at our leisure. But neither of us stops and ponders for long, so you may need more. Plus, if you want to see the colors change, stick around for a while.

Wait Time: You can buy tickets online and save yourself the wait for tickets at the church itself. We didn't, however, and it only took about 20 minutes to get in—but the line was only wrapped around one street corner. I believe it gets a lot worse in summer. We were there in December.

Decorum: This is an operational church. Quiet reverence is the best way to behave on your visit there.

And now, enjoy my favorite photos from La Sagrada Familia.

The interior:

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For more pictures of the interior, click here.

The Nativity Façade:

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For more pictures of the Nativity Façade, click here.

The Nativity Towers:

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For more pictures of the Nativity Towers, click here.

The museum:

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For more pictures of the museum, click here.

The Passion Façade and Gaudi's studio and schoolhouse:

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For more of the Passion Façade, click here.

I hope you enjoyed viewing those a tenth as much as I enjoyed taking them. Seriously, if la Sagrada Familia is not on your itinerary, it needs to be.

Next Barcelona blog? Eating, drinking, and strolling through beachside Barcelona.