china_cat

So I'm getting ready to buy advance admission tickets to the Sagrada Familia. I'm planning to get the audio guide and the tower entrance.

My question to those of you who have done this..I pick an entrance time for the church, and then an entrance time for the tower. Is there ant particular way I should do this? Church first, then tower? how long? or should I book a 10AM admission, and a 10:15 tower entry and assume I can do the audio tour of the church after the tower? I'm just confused...

Thanks for your help!

Robert2533

Allow yourself some time to see the church before heading to the tower. There's a lot to see, and deepening on the crowd, it can take some time.

china_cat

Hi Robert, thanks for your advice. I understand that we need some time to see the church. I guess what I'm asking is whether I HAVE to see the church first...if I go up in the tower do I come down still inside? Basically, are these two admissions supposed to overlap, or do they have to NOT overlap. And if they are supposed to not overlap does it make sense to do one before the other and how long should I give it?

For example
10AM church, 11:15 tower? or
10AM tower, 10:30 church? or
????

heart2travel

I am very interested in the answer to this also as I haven't bought my tickets yet.....

anyegr

When I went up in the tower I got back down still inside the church building. So, yes, you can continue walking around inside after the tower.

I got the recorded audio tour and you can skip back and forward and repeat parts. Or turn it off and then on again if you want to stay longer at a specific point. So you could do part of the audio tour before the tower and the rest after.

On the other hand, if you're talking about the tours with a human guide you have to go at the time that is available. I did not feel like doing this, so I have no idea if it's worth the money.

Important note: Do NOT miss your time for the tower. Being early is ok, if there aren't too many in line. Being late means you miss your spot.

Robert2533

We spent nearly 2 hours seeing the church when we went for a private tour with Marta (Forever Barcelona) a few of years ago and skipped the tower altogether because of the crowd.

But yes, if you want to do the tower first, then go for it, but be sure to save some time to see the church itself. It's quite amazing, especially if you do a tour with someone who worked there for nearly 10 years and knows just about everything there is to know about it's history and providing insights the auto guide doesn't provide.

china_cat

okay, i think I've almost got it, and I'm sorry if I'm being dense...

If the entrance to the towers are inside the church, then it follows that my timed entrance for the church MUST be before my timed entrance for the tower. Regardless of which I decide to see first.

this is really the crux of my question...can someone confirm?

kja

I think you'll find that choice FORCED by the Sagrada Familia reservations system. You might want to play with it a bit --- you can try various things without having to commit.

kimhe

And consider doing a guided tour, will normally add much more to the experience than the audio guide. Same price.

Mimar

Yes, the entrance to the towers is inside the church. Even if you have tickets, it will take time to get inside. You have to find the entrance, stand in a short line. And picking up an audioguide is another, longer line.

We walked around all four sides of the church before going inside, just to get a feel for the place.

china_cat

kjs, you were right, when I went through the process, it forced me to pick a tower entry after the Basilica entry.

We took Basilica at 10AM, and Nativity tower at 11:30. If its not enough time to see everything, we can complete our tour after the tower.

kimhe, your advice is well taken, and we considered the guided tour. My mom and husband both have questionable hearing and both preferred the audio guide as they expect will be able to hear it better. We may be wrong on that, but hope for the best.

Mimar, thanks for the additional info. it may not be a bad idea to get there a little early to explore the outside.