Montserrat Royal Basilica Half-Day Trip from Barcelona

Barcelona, Spain

Getaway to the Montserrat mountains on a half-day trip from Barcelona. You'll visit the Royal Basilica with its 12th-century carving of the Black Virgin and perhaps hear the children's choir sing.

After driving through picturesque little villages you will arrive at the incomparable setting of the craggy mountain of Montserrat, which rises majestically up from the plain to 4,051 feet (1,235 meters) and has amazing views.

The Royal Basilica of Montserrat has been one of Spain's most important pilgrimage sites for hundreds of years, due to its famous 12th-century Romanesque carving of the Virgen Moroneta, the Black Virgin. At 1pm on weekdays there is the opportunity to hear one of Europe's oldest children's choirs, La Escolania de Montserrat.

Do you want to ascent Montserrat mountain by cog-wheel train?
Upgrade and take this once in a lifetime opportunity to ascent Montserrat mountain by cog-wheel train. Traveling up to 4,051 feet (1,235 meters), the journey follows the remarkable forms of the mountains and provides spectacular views over Montserrat which can only be seem from onboard the cog-wheel train.

USD $60.70

Review by: Ed	December 2011
Great place to visit even with some rain and fog which was interesting in its own right. Certainly, can see all in the half day trip but would rate this in the do not miss catagory. Very interesting in the way that it all was constucted and very interesting. The church itself is a gem. Apparently, popular site for a pilgrimage. From where the bus let us off, plenty of vendors and we bought a few delicious cheese. For the tourists, like us, plenty to see and buy with some very interesting liquors. There were 2 eateries, I hesitate to call them anything else, oh well. Eat cheese and crackers instead.

Review by: Bumbleb43	November 2011
A visit to Montserrat is a must!

Review by: AdrianAtacador	November 2011
Simply breathtaking...

Review by: Timothy H	November 2011
Site was nice. Guide okay. Lines way too long. Better as a day trip to enjoy the national park around the site.

Review by: Katelan K	November 2011
This day trip was worth the whole trip to Barcelona. Views were breath-taking; guide was helpful and knowledgeable. A half-day was about the right amount to spend at Montserrat (there's only so much to do) but I'm glad I went.

Review by: Beardman	November 2011
Amazing place. You MUST take the funicular railway from Montserrat up to St Joan..there are many walks to take up there and most are only a few minutes walk to the most breathtaking scenery. We did feel that the half day is not enough time as the queues in the basilica to see the Black Madonna were dreadfully long even on a November week day. We queued for 35 minutes and were nowhere near her when we had to leave to get our bus back. This should be a whole day trip as you need at least an hour if not more up in St Joan and you need over an hour to see the basilica and the Black Madonna. We missed out on the audio visual and the complimentary liquer tasting due to lack of time. I would still recommend it, but as I said, you cannot see the Basilica properly AND the amazing views at St Joan in a half day tour.

Review by: edieeason	November 2011
There should have been more time to spend listening to the boys' choir, and viewing the "black madonna".

Review by: Dan B	November 2011
Excellent except for the weather

Review by: Indigodog	November 2011
This was a great trip with gorgeous scenery, even on an overcast day with the mountains pretty much socked-in. The bus was comfy and the tour guide really knowledgeable. If you want to get out of downtown and see a bit of the countryside around Barcelona, this is a wonderful way to do it.

Review by: Anita A	October 2011
Day trip to Monserrat was good . It was easy to locate the stop where we needed to get on . Did a half day tour on a Sunday which meant less traffic on the roads but more at Monserrat . Heard the choir which was a nice experience..

Review by: Melanie A	October 2011
We felt that the guide did a poor job of sharing historical and current information about Montserrat other than the geological cause...is Montserrat still used as a monastery? How many monks are there? What is their day like? What would we find in the museum? History of the boy's choir? (which was not performing the day we were there...would have been nice to know that in advance instead of planning our visit around the performance); How is Montserrat funded? The guide did not explain that the museum and the funicular each had a separate charge...there should have been some kind of brochure given to the participants. We were herded into the store at the beginning to do a liquor tasting....basically we were waiting in line and losing our tour time to try the souvenir shop's alcoholic products. Tour guide was oblivious to the fact that we had quite a few elderly people in the group who could not keep up with the fast pace...had the guide mingled with the group the guide would have realized that. We consistently tip tour guides ...this was the very first time we did not...wasted our time and money....our opinion of course...maybe others enjoyed it more than we did....the best part was the walk down the mountain but then we decided that it was taking too much time...that's when we discovered the "charge" to ride the funicular back up to the top.....

Review by: Louis J F	October 2011
Great Tour, Beautiful Place. Actually could be longer so you have more free time to learn or explore.

Review by: Fernando A. C	October 2011
We loved Montserrat. The tour was excelent and the guide very competent.

Review by: Vasile B	October 2011
Horrible experience - better rent a car if you want to see Montserrat. We left Barcelona one hour late, 4 groups in one (Spanish, German, French and English). Guide abandoned us at the Cremaliere, then met us for 5 min in front of the Basilica to tell us what we can do on our own in 1 hr (!). Total time speaking English: 10 min. And we had to leave 15 min after the religious service had started, in order to reach the bus in the parking lot. A complete waste of time.

Review by: Worrybob	October 2011
Just an incredible day. Everyone should do it.

Review by: Rob	October 2011
Montserrat is amazing. Definitely take the cog railway option up the mountain to Montserrat. Rated the tour as 4 stars because an extra half hour there would have been very welcome. Be sure not to miss the farmers market and get some great cheeses, fig bread and other specialties on the way back to the tour bus.

Review by: Barry B	October 2011
Very pleasant visit. The time at Montserrat was short and you had to be selective and not try to see it all. If I did it again I would choose a tour that spent more time there.

Review by: Holskipolski	October 2011
OK tour to a wonderfully scenic, beautiful and interesting spot. Line for Black Madonna was 3 hours long, so only the devoted should waste their time. No one could do it with the tour bus schedule in any case. The schedule also only provided about 4 minutes to hear the acclaimed choir. Our tour guide was almost superfluous. Provided little commentary and did not "guide" when we got to Montserrat - only gave options for what we could do on our own. I almost always tip a guide, but did not in this case, because she did nothing to earn it. The tasting of spirits was only a ploy to get you to buy something.

Review by: fmaniac	October 2011
Found this trip very disappointing and not wortyh the price. It was described as a traveling through villages., but all we saw was industrial areas and factories on the way. The guide was poor at communicating and wasted a lot of time explaining herself. We learned very little from the Guide of Julia's about the monastary. We had to 15 minutes while she gathered tickets for us. The tickets turned out to be for a tasting of liqours (sales pitch) and a slide show. We thought we would learn more from the show but it was a slideshow with no explanations. Their was a service at the church so we could only walk into the back of the full church. The Black Madonna had a locg line due to the church services. We did not have enough time to use the cog raiway or walk the paths. Waste of a time!

Review by: regina r	October 2011
nice tour but wish we ha more time

Review by: Marilyn S	September 2011
Fantastic location and trip. Well organized. I had broken a bone in my foot before trip and had a walker, but tour guide took good care of me.

Review by: Friedol W, South Africa	July 2010
Enjoyed every moment of the trip

Review by: Miguel A, United States of America	July 2010
Excellent, but I wished we could have more time. There is so much to see and not enough time.

Review by: Haroutyun S, United States of America	June 2010
We are happy .Excellent expirience.Well done.Thank you.

Review by: BRIAN L, Canada	June 2010
Fabulous trip to Monsterrat ,our guide was very good and informaitive,the bus ride up the mountain was great,the scenery terrific.We went to Mass in the Church and listened to the boys choir,truly amazing,would do it again,thanks to all at Julia Travel

Review by: Pamela W, Canada	May 2010
Amazing location. Had we known how beautiful the place is, we would have gone on the full day trip.

Review by: Brendan B, Ireland	April 2010
Take the full day trip. Time passes so quickly on the mountain.

Review by: Anonymous, United Kingdom	April 2010
An excellent half day trip, very scenic and we loved the hiking trail which leads all the way to the top with fantastic views. Would have wished to spend longer as half day did not seem enough. The trail itself takes 4-5 hours if you want to get to the very top. Trip definitely recommended!

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	April 2010
It was a great trip in spite of the fact that the bus broke down on the way up the mountain. Tour guide said it was the first time there had ever been any issue in the 10 years she was doing the trip. Another bus was re-routed promptly and the trip was extended to allow for the lost time. Montserrat is definitely worth the trip. The bus appeared modern and well maintained so I think the transmission problem was just a fluke.

Review by: Dennis S, United States of America	March 2010
Excellent tour, guide was very good and knowledgeable - breathtaking views.

Review by: Terra H, United States of America	February 2010
The guide did the tour in Italian, English, and Spanish and managed to keep up a great sense of humor throughout the tour. Monserrat itself is a beautiful sight to see. We managed to go on the most perfect clear day and the mountains were easily visible under a blue sky background. The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and I would highly recommend this tour.

Review by: Michelle B, Australia	October 2009
This trip was really good. It was just amazing to have a look around here. We got to hear the boys choir sing also which were really good. The funicular ride up to the top of the mountain has amazing views. Could have quite easily spent a whole day here. Half a day is really not long enough.

Review by: Joan R, United States of America	October 2009
Informative trip to beautiful place. Good amount of time to explore and enjoy the site. Very glad we went.

Review by: Anonymous, Australia	October 2009
We really enjoyed the day! The tour guide was extremely informative. Highly recommend the day.

Review by: Michelle D F, Cayman Islands	October 2009
A must see! Don't miss it!

Review by: Peter M, Canada	October 2009
We enjoyed the tour very much! Montserrat and its setting in the mountains was stunning! Our tour guide was outstanding! She was very helpful, knowledgeable and a excellent communicator in the many languages she spoke.

Review by: Gloria W, United States of America	September 2009
We had a very good experience with the company coordinating this trip in Barcelona. In reading many of the reviews before we left, there were comments about not enough time, but everything worked out for us knowing we had just a half-day excursion. The guide was wonderful and the scenic routes taken were astounding. This is a must-see for anyone visiting Barcelona and, if time allows, take the all day trip.

Review by: Joe Z, United States of America	September 2009
Excellent tour and excellent guide. He was energized, nice and knowledgeable, and was happy to answer all questions.

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	September 2009
Awesome trip! Everyone should do it. The guides were the best!

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	August 2009
The tourl guide was extremely good, with the ability to speak 3 different languages during the trip.

Review by: Henry B, United States of America	August 2009
It was an excellent trip!