We came for the 8a Get Your Guide tour of Monserrat. We met at the meet-up point (Julia Travel…read moreCenter at the Barcelona Nord bus station, in Barcelona) to checkin for our trip. We met our tour guide Jose Carlos and our driver, Gemma and were on our way. We made a stop at a local train station, exited the motorcoach, and took the scenic train up to Montserrat. Once at Monserrat, we went on a guided tour (equipped with one-ear headphones to hear our tour guide) of the Basilica, viewing the Black Madonna (included with the tour ticket) and having a couple of hours of free time to explore Montserrat with the great instructions provided by Jose Carlos. We hiked up to see the cross, took part in the four liquor tasting (provided with the tour ticket), and saw the "stairway to heaven" a block sculpture with ascending stairs to the sky (thanks to our tour guide Jose Carlos, who gave us directions to where it was...behind the buffet building!) There was an interactive museum on Montserrat ($) as well as a museum ($) with art from Dali, Picasso, just to name a few, and white tents lined the sidewalk with local vendors featuring their local cheese, nuts, and other food items. Montserrat is where you can also see and hear the boy's choir in the Basilica, but that show began at 1p and our tour left at 12.10p (maybe on another visit!) All in all, we enjoyed this scenic, history-filled tour. Jose Carlos was an excellent tour guide, and we appreciated his expertise in all of the details of this tour; Gemma, our bus driver, was pleasant and professional in providing a safe, comfortable drive to and from Montserrat. We highly suggest this tour if you are in Barcelona for a couple of days.

Spent the day wandering the area…read more An easy hour's train ride from Barcelona. And seriously a must see. Once the train ends you have a choice of a different railway up the mountain or a gondola type tram to the area. I chose the train. Beautiful as you rose up through the morning clouds. Once at the top head straight to the information center and check out the different options for tickets. I highly recommend getting tickets to hear the boys choir. It's a short performance and well worth it. After getting tickets, I wandered around the various museums and other buildings. Then into the main church. Wow. Incredible. Performance time came and snagged a seat on the middle aisle to watch the processional in. The 20 minute performance was fantastic. The boys have great voices and discipline. Afterwards I got in line to walk through a long narrow hallway and upstairs to view and touch the area's prized Madonna that sits high about the alter. There are some restaurants and cafeterias on the property depending on the size of meal you want. After lunch I got my map out and roamed a couple of hiking trails in the area. The views from high above the clouds were spectacular. By late afternoon I was ready to return to the city, and did the train back the way I came.

Gee, I didn't know this was a museum separate from the Cau Ferrat next door since it was all free…read moreunder the same ticket on International Museum Day (review: https://yelp.to/bIxDanekks). I only noticed weeks later when I finally read the brochure. Wasn't that stupid of me? Don't answer that. Anyway, while Museo del Cau Ferrat represents one man's collection of art, this more expansive exhibit represents the collection of not an artist but a wealthy benefactor. It was American magnate and philanthropist Charles Deering. Yes, the guy who founded International Harvester. Apparently, making his fortune in tractors meant he could afford three floors of art that spans ten centuries of art from the 10th to the 20th century. The style varies from Romanesque and Gothic to Renaissance and Baroque to Modernism. The mirador was particularly striking with the neoclassical statuary set against the Mediterranean background. RELATED - Exploring Barcelona and Sitges? Here's my collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/4dTEx5T

Great experience, definitely worth attending once you're done drink and eating lots of tapas. Good…read moreexhibits and even better view of the Mediterranean Sea.

Another excellent museum with a mixture of ancient Roman to Medieval Tarragona but mostly focused…read moreon the Roman city. Very well laid out, and the only way to see inside the corridors that you can only glimpse from the outside. If you don't have the patience for the whole museum, make sure you see the mosaics and bigger better preserved statues.

This impressive museum charts the history of Roman 'Tarraco' and contains some of the most…read moreimportant finds from the city. It is a 'must' on any visit to Tarragona. The basement includes a section of the original Roman city wall in situ, and subsequent floors include exhibits depicting civic, commercial and domestic life. Most impressive is the collection of statuary and funeral monuments, and a series of mosaics, including a wonderfully vivid and well preserved one showing some 50 species of marine life from the area. Other finds include items from shipping such as anchors and a large collection of amphorae, and household luxuries, such as glassware and jewellery. A favourite of the school party visiting at the same time as us much to the embarrassment of their teachers was the collection of erotic objects. These include brooches, ritual objects in the shape of penises and a small statue of an infeasibly well-endowed Bacchus, sporting his appendage in front of him like a third leg! Items are described in Spanish and Catalan, and there also are free guide pamphlets on each floor in English, French and German. The museum is also fully accessible with ramps and lifts. There is a small gift shop and audiovisual room used for occasional exhibitions.

Lovely lovely lovely museum downtown Barcelona. Not overly…read morepriced. Wonderful art. Great museum store. Pre order tickets, it's easy. Really a place to go!

We visit the museum in our trip celebrating our 30 years wedding anniversary. I was amazed at the…read morevast collection of paints statues and different plates and jars... great experience

This is an incredible experience once you navigate the hundreds of stairs to get to the top. It's…read moreworth it. We came on the first Sunday of the month and it was free. Bonus! There were lots of people here, to be expected. The art is beautiful. It's nice to see all the different time frames. Some of the art we saw from the 1400s was very special. We feel so fortunate to not only have enjoyed the museum, but also the restaurant at the top with a view. Definitely a great way to spend the afternoon in Barcelona. Most of the rooms are air-conditioned and that helps too.

Hard to miss and it's huge Beautiful museum…read more It's Catalonian which Barcelona has this divided populations and language and even politics and laws But nonetheless it's a great place to wander around

Casa Batllo is a work of art! This is Antoni Gaudi's most…read morefamous works, located in the heart of Barcelona & became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005. This house was originally intended to be a luxury apartment building, with the owner & his family residing in the lower level, the "Noble Floor", and tenants living in the upper levels. We got tickets from GetYourGuide & decided to do the Gold Tier the night live music experience on the rooftop terrace. This came with an audio guide, augmented reality tablet, Dome experience, concierge room access, front row seats for the concert, & glass of cava wine. The whole experience was lovely! Entrance time was 8pm & we arrived 20 min before, which a line had already formed. I loved the augmented reality tablet; it shows you what the rooms looked like with furniture, when the family lived there 120 years ago. We did this experience on the first day of arriving in Barcelona & was a great way to start the trip! We honestly were expecting a group of performers but it actually ended up being one singer, who was amazing! I highly recommend this experience to anyone looking to visit Casa Batlló. We were also able to get a photo on the top floor, looking out of the window which was super cute. The experience was ~2-2.5 hrs overall.

Very very popular tourist spot. We snagged tickets on get your guide with the gold tier ticket…read more Lining up we were in the shorter line with priority access to the house tour of Batlló. We showed up for our time slot, waited about 20 min early, staff came out and handed us tokens and wristbands. Token is for a drink included (champagne). Gaudi had a wild mind. The architecture was definitely... different haha not my taste but i appreciate the vision he created. I'd probably go crazy if I lived in such a house but the place is huge, so many rooms and floors with so many hiding spots, boy hide-n-seek would slap. I do love me some history, so seeing all this and listening to the headset on the self guide was enlightening. We grabbed tickets that included a show on the rooftop and it was nice. We ordered some drinks and snacks and enjoyed our live performance. Super cute for date night!

AWE. Shock. Chills. Amazement. Tears. Inspiration. Joy…read more All the things I felt while getting to see the life work of the person that has impacted my life in so many ways. Built in his hometown and on the ruins of an old municipal theatre, where his first public exhibition took place as a child. It's now the world's largest collection of his work with over 1500 pieces. Salvador Dalí is a workforce. His brain was magic and I'm so happy he took us to his incredible world of fantasies and surrealism. Getting to see his greatest and last work of all time and being able to sit right on the place where his body rests as you admire the room, ceilings, walls, sounds and work of the greatest surrealist of all time, is something I will never forget. An absolute experience of a lifetime. Heart thumps, goosebumps, knees weak arms are heavy, mom's spaghetti type of experience. He created the world's largest surrealist object and got buried right in the glass dome he designed as his "final surrealistic act". He literally became a part of his greatest work of art. It's an honor to know his work and to be able to get to visit a place like this is a huge privilege I will never forget. It's not just a gallery but a surreal playground.

I love dali's art. He is very special and talented, and I sat there for hours trying to figure out…read morethe art. There were bathrooms, a gift shop, and cool rooms to keep me entertained. The town around the museum is really cool too. I love the coin machines! Be sure to bring one euro if you want to use them!

Our trip to Sitges wasn't just about beaches, bars, and boys. I mean Jamie W and I did other…read morethings. Give me a second. Ah yes, we went to this museum, for example. It was hard to miss on the cobblestone streets of El Baluard. We had absolutely no knowledge about the museum and just noticed a queue in front of it. It might've been because it was International Museum Day, and admission was free. This was the first of two adjoining museums, this one focused on the wrought ironwork and art collections of late 19th century Catalan artist and writer Santiago Rusiñol. They converted two old houses into an exhibition space that reflects his eclectic tastes running from archeological ruins to El Greco paintings. Over two floors, it was an impressive display for just one person to bequeath the city, and the Maricel museum is just up the stairs next door. RELATED - Exploring Barcelona and Sitges? Here's my collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/4dTEx5T

Enjoyed the museum experience, they had excellent exhibits in the multilevel museum. It's sits on…read morethe edge of the of the cliff overlooking Mediterranean, just plain gorgeous.

This is the home of Gala who was Dali's wife. The story goes that he built the place for her…read morebecause she tired of the visitors to their home they shared. He had to get written approval from her to visit. The home was unique and very Dali but the gardens were my favorite part. Little surprises hidden among the trees and birds! You cannot take photos inside the home but are allowed to photograph the garden. This is chronologically the third stop you should take on the Dali triangle tour but I found time wise that it was best to start here in Pubol, travel to Port Lligat for Dali's home, and finish with the museum in Figueres. All three can be done in one day with careful planning.