Barcelona: 8 Tips for visiting Gaudi’s Casa Batlló
Also known as Casa dels Ossos, or the “house of bones”, Casa Batlló in Barcelona looks like something Tim Burton and Walt Disney might have dreamed up for a movie set. Famed Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí built it in 1877 for one family, then renovated it into the masterpiece that it is today for another family in 1904.
Sporting an iridescent scaled facade and curving, bony balconies, the building always manages to give off an otherworldly feel. Unfortunately, a visit to this Gaudí masterpiece can mean slapping down €22.50, and getting jostled by passers-by while you inch towards the entrance, wishing you’d spared yourself the fuss, snapped a shot from across the street, and taken your €20 elsewhere for tapas and beer.
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Instead, you can make the most of your time and money when visiting this architectural jewel by following these easy tips:
1. Book your tickets online ahead of time
This can’t be stressed enough. If you don’t book your tickets online ahead of time, you’ll have to wait in not one, but two lines when you arrive, and during the busy summer months, there’s always a chance that you won’t be able to get a ticket for the same day.
If you really hate to wait in line, you can pay about €5 extra to skip the line with a “FastPass” ticket. When you book your ticket online, book a time of the day that’s still marked green for high availability — that means fewer people have already bought tickets.
2. Be sure to buy the right ticket
Don’t pay more than you have to! There are discounts for kids between 7-18 years of age, students with an I.D., Barcelona city and province residents, and adults over 65. Children under 7 years old are free. Teachers and tour guides accompanying a group also get in free.
If you book your tickets online ahead of time, and your Spanish or Catalan is pretty good, you can probably get away with booking resident tickets, as the reservation is unaffected by your billing address, and I.D. is rarely requested at the door.
3. Take advantage of any discounts available
Have you purchased other tickets or tourist cards? If so, you might be eligible for a discounted ticket. You’re in luck if you’ve purchased tickets for the Tourist Bus, Barcelona City Tours, the Modernism Route, the Barcelona Walking Tours, or bought the Barcelona Card, Minicard, or Pass.
4. Go first thing in the morning on a weekday
Trust us, you want to avoid the crowds. Thus, get there 10-15 minutes before Casa Batlló opens at 9 am on a weekday, preferably between Monday and Thursday, when there are fewer Spanish and European tourists in the city. Weekdays in January and February are even better, as Barcelona has fewer visitors during these colder months.
5. Once inside, go straight to the roof
Most visitors gradually work their way up through the house, following the numbers on the audio guide. Get away from the crowds by taking the stairs straight to the top and spending some time alone on the building’s rooftop terrace, posing with its iconic chimneys.
6. Skip the gift shop
The museum’s store has lots of beautiful souvenirs, but they come at too steep a price in cash, not to mention the wait in line. Time is too precious waiting in line for postcards and magnets, even when they’re printed with designs from Barcelona’s most famous modernista master.
7. Go late for a “magical night”
While it may not save you cash on admission, you might end up ahead by going for an evening concert and tour of the museum. Called “Magical Nights”, you can roam the house without the crowds, then stick around for live music and two drinks on the rooftop terrace. You can reserve a tour plus the rooftop concert, or only the concert for a slightly lower entry price. (And if you’re willing to risk it, some concert attendees without the tour add-on have been permitted to roam the house some when they first arrived.)
8. Use the free Wi-Fi
Finally, and perhaps of least important, you can also take advantage of the museum’s free Wi-Fi. This will at least save you the hassle of searching for bar or café with free wireless after your tour…
Your tips?
Have some tips for visiting Gaudi’s Casa Batlló? Add them in our comments section below!
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