Rick Steves Tour: Sagrada Familia, Barcelona

Sagrada Família Tour

ORIENTATION

BACKGROUND—A DREAM MADE REAL

THE TOUR BEGINS

1 View of the Exterior from Beyond the Pond

Map: Sagrada Família

2 Nativity Facade

3 church atrium

4 Interior

5 Glory Facade

6 Passion Facade

7 School

8 Museum

Architect Antoni Gaudí’s most famous and awe-inspiring work is this unfinished, super-sized church. With its cake-in-the-rain facade and otherworldly spires, the church is an icon of Barcelona and its trademark Modernista style. As an architect, Gaudí’s foundations were classics, nature, and religion, and this church represents all three.

Nearly a century after his death, people continue to toil to bring Gaudí’s designs to life. There’s something powerful about a community of committed people with a vision, working on a church that won’t be finished in their lifetime—as was standard in the Gothic age. It’s a testament to the generations of architects, sculptors, stone-cutters, fundraisers, and donors who shared Gaudí’s astonishing vision. If there’s any building on earth I’d like to see, it’s the Basílica de la Sagrada Família...finished.

ORIENTATION    MAP

Cost: Buy in advance online—basic ticket-€15 (church only), Guided Experience ticket-€24 (church and live guide), Audio Tour ticket-€22 (church and audioguide), Top Views ticket-€29 (church, audioguide, and one tower elevator). All options are 20 percent more if you buy at the church rather than online.

Hours: Mon-Sat 9:00-20:00, Sun 10:30-20:00, March and Oct until 19:00, Nov-Feb until 18:00.

Information: Tel. 932-073-031, www.sagradafamilia.org.