Honest opinions - which Gaudi masterpieces are worth paying the entry ticket for?
 

We will have three days in Barcelona and at least one of them will be dedicated to Gaudi-sightseeing.

On my list so far are Sagrada Familia (naturally), Casa Mila/La Pedrera, Casa Batllo, Parc Guell and Palau Guell.

The ticket fees seem quite hefty (bearing in mind the Australian dollar isn't strong against the Euro) so I wanted to ask honestly, which of Gaudi's masterpieces are worth visiting internally and which are we better off just simply stopping past to admire the exterior of? Sagrada Familia we will definitely do a full visit of, including entry to one of the towers.

Yes, I know the entrance fees to the Gaudí sites are rather steep.
For Gaudí specifically and not the other 2 Moderniste architects (Domènech i Montaner & Puig i Cadafalch), I personally would prioritize La Sagrada Familia (and make that your absolute priority) with online tickets purchased in advance, then Casa Milà (La Pedrera) and Parc Güell, but that's just from personal experience. YMMV

We've visited all of them twice - except for Parc Guell. By far, our favorite was Casa Batllo. Followed by Casa Milia. I really didn't get a WOW out of La Sagrada Familia, but my wife enjoyed it. We are huge Gaudi fans. Here is my wife's Shutterfly book. Click "full screen"
https://stududley.shutterfly.com/29
Due to recent Shutterfly enhancements, captions and titles are often missing or truncated.

Stu Dudley

I'd go for Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell and see the others from the from the kerbside. We've seem all and more than once but these two never fail to amaze. The Casa's not so much on the inside, but worth seeing the outsides.

I would definitely visit Sagrada Familia and Casa Batllo. Try to get to Casa Batllo right when it opens to beat the crowds - it's worth paying extra for that. I think Casa Milo is fine from the outside, inside you just get to see a secondary apartment furnished more in the style of the late nineteenth century than the early twentieth. Instead visit a couple of apartments in the same block as Casa Batllo by other Modernisme architects. I saw Parc Guell many years ago and did not go back on my last visit. For my TR on the buildings start here (links at the top of the page): https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...casa-amatller/

Count me in for Sagrada Familia and Casa Batllo, then Parc Guell. We saw several others only from outside near Parc Guell, and did not love Casa Milo (La Pedrera which was dark and strange we thought). The view from Parc Guell is terrific, so guess you can plan this one for good weather only.

I agree that Casa Batlló is more visually stunning, more colorful on the inside. It has more of a wow factor.
My vote for Casa Milà/La Pedrera was mainly based on the access to walk up and down around the Warrior rooftop amidst the fanciful chimneys with the 360 degree view of the city and to visit to a recreation of a 19th century apartment of a bourgeoise family to get an insight into how people lived within the building at that time.

La Pedrera does offer a rather expensive night visit with a limited number of participants and a guide.

But they're both UNESCO buildings. Whichever you choose, I would second thursdaysd's advice to go as early as possible, if possible at 9 when they open. They both get very crowded very quickly.

A few tidbits to help you decide'
https://www.foreverbarcelona.com/cas...edrera-inside/
https://www.foreverbarcelona.com/cas...s-curiosities/.

I would say definitely Sagrada Familia--and I am not a fan of Gaudi, but the enormous, unusual structure is certainly worth the steep admission price, I think. Don't be put off by the crowded security check; they handle the crowds fairly efficiently. The exterior of the structure appears disjointed to me but the inside is a soaring, light-filled space.

We did not visit other Gaudi buildings but we did go to Park Guell and really enjoyed it. The back story of this site is interesting. It's a failed "real estate development" of the early 1900s, must have cost a fortune to build (thank you Eusebi Guell). The stairs, dragon, curving benches, the columned marketplace, the "Hansel and Gretel" entry buildings--all fascinating, and the gardens also are worth a leisurely stroll. Worth the entry price for sure.

You´re probably referring to those in Barcelona...but El Capricho in Comillas (Cantabria, northern Spain), at a ridiculous price of 7eur (5eur if over 65), is really worth the visit. Beautiful town, lovely northern mountainous landscape and great beach under the cliffs and an amazing cemetery. https://www.elcaprichodegaudi.com/, a house build by an early Gaudí, for the richest man in town. One of the less known Gaudí (with an accent on the "i") works of art.

https://runnerbeantours.com/casa-mil...ouse-to-visit/

Maybe the above website will help.
I liked Casa Mila a lot. Seeing the inside gave me an understanding of Gaudi’s organic architecture on a personal, intimate, human scale and the roof top is spectacular. It is a hugely different experience than the soaring majesty of Sagrada Familia and whimisical Parc Guell.
Personal thought. Obviously, if you have no real interest in a place or experience, that is different. Free tickets would not induce me to go to Disney in Paris. However, you mentioned this in terms of the great cost of the trip and the increased cost of things. In a way, the cost of the trip would make me think, “You know, I have paid so much to get here. I am not going to come all of this way, spend all of that money, then cheat myself out of an experience I want that might never come again, and in the great scheme of the entire trip, is not that much”. Believe me, I have done that and regretted it.

A few years ago, on a trip with family, I skipped buying something for my GD that was only a few dollars, but seemed an extra extravagance at the time. I never saw it again and have wished many, many times that I had bought it.

I was with friends on a trip to Europe and they wanted to take an excursion that seemed pricy to me. We skipped it. My friend died and we never got to take another trip together. I have regretted it ever since.

I liked both Casa Battlo and Mila, I don't think of one as superior nor that Mila was dark. If anything, I would have called Casa Battlo darker. inside. I liked Parc Guell least. But I didn't go to all these on the same trip, I think that would be overload when there is so much else to do. Of course i was at Parc Guell in summer and it was pretty hot but I don't understand the fascination with that place. It's more difficult to get to. His house inside the park was nothing that special, I didn't think. This park didn't used to be as overwhelmingly popular as it is now, not sure what changed. I mean you didn't used to have to get time reservations. it just depends why you want to go, for park reasons, I just think there are other nice park areas that are easier to get to and closer to other things I wanted to do.

One of my favorite Moderniste buildings-
A spectacular, profusely decorated Moderniste building, not the work of Gaudí but instead of his teacher, Domènech I Montaner, is the Palau de la Música Catalana, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, completed in 1908.

It can be seen on the inside via a 50-minute guided tour in English (or several other languages). Price: €21. The guided visits are limited to 15 participants, and they sometimes do sell out during high season.
During the pandemic they added an audio self-guided tour (but must bring your own headphones and the visit doesn't include the stage). Price: €17.

You can also enjoy the magnificent concert hall by attending an evening concert.
When I plan a trip to Barcelona, the very first thing I check is the Palau concert schedule. The Palau holds excellent concerts and on most evenings of the year--classical guitar, piano, chamber quartet, jazz (Voll Damm jazz festival venue), opera, ballet or their Gran Gala Flamenco--and ticket prices start at €15.
It's a real treat for us to attend a concert there. Most all sight lines are fine, so no need to splurge for the most expensive seats.
www.palaumusica.org

I vote for Sagrada Familia, Casa Batllo, Casa Mila, and Parc Guell!

Hi!
I recommend you visit the Sagrada Familia first thing in the morning (because of the type of light that comes in), and then visit outside Casa Batlló and Casa Milà. Then I would pay to visit Casa Vicenç, more unknown and without so many people (21€). I would also visit Parc Güell: it is free every Sunday in summer (from April 1 to October 31) from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. In winter (from November 1 to March 30), the first Sunday of each month.
Other modernist things that are worth visiting, even if they are not by Gaudí, are: Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau (architect: Domènec i Montaner; 16€) and Palau de la Música (the music palace, also by Domènec i Montaner; 16-20€).

I vote for Sagrada Familia and Casa Batllo. Although Sagrada Familia I did not enjoy as much as others.

Sassafrass, your personal comments about not picking up the gift for GD and the skipped excursion on a (unknown at the time) last trip with a friend choked me up. Thanks for the cautionary reminder.

As you can tell, I still think about it and feel sad. To save only a few dollars, I passed on what could have been the best memory of the last day of our trip. I miss my friend terribly. I often forget, but am trying hard to keep these lessons in mind.

An incident with DH, but a different ending. He convinced a couple of friends to go on a trip to France and Spain with us. One had to borrow some money to go, but for some reason DH was persistent in encouraging her to do it. He even loaned her some money! She went and had a wonderful time. A few months later, she was diagnosed with terminal cancer and lived only a few weeks. The last time we visited her, she had all of the pictures from the trip spread on her coffee table and shared them with friends who visited her. She hugged and thanked DH over and over again for making her dream to visit Europe happen.

Generally, I would always advise people to live within their means, but there are situations where being overly frugal is not good either.

We were really not impressed with Park Guell. We kept thinking there had to be more after all the hype, but there wasn’t.

Sassafrass, I agree with your sentiments exactly, and that is so sad about your friends who passed away shortly after. I have always believed that if one can afford to travel to Europe, I/we should visit the sites we want to visit after spending all that money to get there. It doesn't make sense to skip what could be very memorable experiences to save a few dollars. While the Gaudi sites do seem expensive now (compared to when we went in 2010), the costs are negligible compared to the cost of the entire trip. Pay for the tickets with your credit card, enjoy the sites/experiences, and if you have to, live a little bit frugally when you get home for a few weeks. People always say they will return to a certain place to see the sites they missed, but one never knows what the future will bring. Life (and death) happens.