A Guide To Visiting Montserrat
If you’re staying in Barcelona and want to get out of the city, I highly recommend a day trip to Montserrat. It’s located about an hour away and the views are incredible.
GETTING THERE
There are two ways to get to the top of the mountain but they both require first taking the train from Placa Espanya. You will then need to decide whether you want to take the cable car or funicular rack train to the top. The cable car takes five minutes and the rack train takes about 15. It’s important to pick before purchasing a ticket at the train station since you cannot swap once purchased.
Once you’ve made your way to the station, find a ticket booth and purchase your combined round-trip ticket. With your ticket purchased, find the R5 line headed towards Minostrol de Montserrat. It’s about an hour ride and as you get close, you’ll want to pay extra attention to the stops.
If you decide to take the cable car, you will take the Aeri de Montserrat exit and find your way to the bottom of the cable car. If you decide on the rack train, you’ll stay onboard and head one stop further to the Minostrol de Montserrat exit and get in line for the ride to the top.
MONTSERRAT
Once you’ve made it to Montserrat, there’s tons to see. You can head out on one of the many hiking trails, visit the Montserrat Monastery, stop at the museum, grab a bite to eat or just enjoy the views.
The restaurant is fairly pricey and has limited options so if you’re on a budget, I’d suggest packing a lunch.
IMPORTANT
It’s important to check the timetables for your return to Barcelona. The train back to Placa Espanya runs every hour and you’ll want to get the timing right so you don’t miss it by a few minutes and get stuck waiting for another hour. Make sure to factor in the time it takes to get back down the mountain. I’d suggest heading back down about 30 minutes before the train is set to arrive.
You can also book a tour or rent a car, but I love taking advantage of public transportation whenever I’m traveling and exploring on my own vs. with a group. If you take note of everything I mentioned above, you should be able to easily get there and back without any issues.
