How To Spend A Day At Montserrat From Barcelona

What Is Montserrat?

Montserrat is a range mountain peaks in Catalonia Spain known for it’s unique saw-like formation and its long religious history.

These days, people visit Montserrat Spain for many different reasons – religious or not!

Religious Importance Of Montserrat

Montserrat does have a long religious history attached to it, so you can’t avoid religion entirely when you visit.

The religious history of Montserrat Spain dates back all the way to the Romans when they set up a place of worship in these mountains. Since then, the Benedictine monks have lived at Montserrat since the 11th century.

But it was the 12th Century when things really got interesting – a Black Madonna was found – today known as Our Lady of Montserrat. There are several Black Madonnas that exist, but Our Lady of Montserrat is one of the most popular. This has resulted in Montserrat Spain becoming a place of pilgrimage ever since. 

Don’t worry if you’re not religious, you can still enjoy a day trip to Montserrat from Barcelona by enjoying the many non-religious activities at the mountain peak… 

How To Get To Montserrat From Barcelona

You have two options for getting from Barcelona to Montserrat Spain. The most popular option is to take the train, but you can also drive if you prefer.

There are a few things to watch out for depending on which mode of transport you choose.

Related

Guide To Visiting Girona In One Day From Barcelona

Option A: Driving From Barcelona To Montserrat

Driving to the mountain top gives you the most freedom. You can arrive and leave when you want and there isn’t any fitting the train times into your schedule. There’s a paid parking lot at the top of the mountain so you can drive all the way up.

We didn’t drive up Montserrat, so I can’t tell you how it is from personal experience. All I can say is that we chose not to drive based on past experiences driving in European mountain ranges… the lanes are never wide enough and there are a lot of blind corners with people driving really fast around them. We didn’t think it was worth the risk.

Need to rent a car in Barcelona? Check out Enterprise.com

Option B: Train +

The most popular and brainless way to reach Montserrat from Barcelona is to take the R5 train. The train doesn’t take you all the way up, so you have three options to get to the peak: you can hike, or take either the cable car, or rack railway.

The train leaves from Placa d’Espanya metro station in Barcelona (follow signs for L8 and the orange train symbol).

The only thing to watch out for is that the train doesn’t leave very often – only once every hour. So you really don’t want to miss it. Make sure you leave ample time to find the train and buy your ticket (there can also be some long lines at the ticket booths too).

At the station, you can buy your train tickets but also a combined ticket for either the cable car or the rack railway. Make sure your ticket is for both ways.

Keep an eye on your belongings and pockets while buying tickets and waiting in line. This is apparently a favourite spot for pickpockets.

Check updated train times.

Should Buy Cable Car Or Rack Railway Tickets For Montserrat?

There are three ways to get from the train station to the top of Montserrat Spain: hiking, cable car, or rack railway. The important thing to know is that there’s really no wrong choice for how to get to the top.

But which one should you choose? The cable car or the rack railway? Both options are roughly the same price (only a 50 cent difference) and they bring you to the same spot at the top.

The main difference is that you get off at a different train stop for each. For the cable car you’ll want to get off first at Aerie de Montserrat, whereas the stop for the rack railway is one stop further at Monistrol de Montserrat. 

The one you choose will ultimately depend on which one you prefer. For us, that was the rack railway.

Why We Chose The Rack Railway?

There were a few reasons that led us to choose the rack railway over the cable car to get to the top of Montserrat Spain. The main factor was honestly because cable cars scare us, and there was no real benefit of taking it.

For starters, there’s no place to sit on the cable car. The rack railway is a train with seats and can fit a lot more people. We weren’t sure how many people they could fit in one cable car and we didn’t want to have to wait in line.

A vote for taking the cable car is that it’s supposed to be more picturesque than the rack railway. But I wasn’t at all disappointed with the views on the way up.

You also don’t have to worry about missing the train or waiting too long at the bottom. The times for the rack railway line up perfectly with the train back to Barcelona.

Secret Option C: Driving + Rack Railway

If you have a car and would rather not risk driving all the way up, there is a secret option you can take which might be the best of both worlds.

There’s a second parking lot at the bottom of the mountain. The rack railway stops here before it starts going up (Monistrol Vila). You will have to pay for the rack railway, but the parking lot itself is free.

This way, you don’t have to deal with train times and you don’t have to drive through a scary mountain range.

Organized Tours From Barcelona To Montserrat Spain

Another option for getting to Montserrat from Barcelona is to go on an organized tour. They will leave from Barcelona and handle all the transportation for you. There are a few Montserrat organized tours from Viator to choose from.

The simplest tour is a half day trip to Montserrat from Barcelona, the tour includes transportation, free time, and a guide.

Or this tour that includes tapas and wine for lunch, along with a tour of Montserrat from Barcelona.

But if Montserrat is your main interest, then book a day trip to Montserrat that includes an easy hike.

How Much Does Visiting Montserrat Cost?

The Montserrat mountain peak, Montserrat monastery, and seeing the Black Madonna are all free to visit. If you want to do anything else on the mountain peak, that will cost extra.

There are two extra funiculars you can ride either higher up the mountain (Sant Joan) or lower down (Santa Cova). Both of these funiculars cost extra. There’s also a museum you can visit that costs extra to visit.

There are combined tickets you can buy that will give you a discount. You can buy tickets at the information desk once your at the top of the mountain.

What To Do At Montserrat Spain?

You Can Still Visit Montserrat Even If You Aren’t Religious

What To Wear To Explore Montserrat From Barcelona?

You’re going from a beach town north to a mountain peak so expect it to be a lot cooler in Montserrat Spain. Not only is it colder an hour north from Barcelona, but now you’re also going to the top of the mountain.

So dress warmer than you normally would to visit Montserrat Spain. You may want to bring a wind breaker and wear hiking shoes as well if you’re planning on hiking.

Update! That was my experience visiting Montserrat in December, but my parents had the opposite experience visiting in June. They noticed that Montserrat was about 5°C warmer than in Barcelona.

So if you’re visiting during the summer months, consider actually planning for warmer weather in Montserrat than in Barcelona.