New rules for tour buses going to Sagrada Familia

The dedication of the inside of the Sagrada Familia church and the completion of the works in the naves increased the number of paying visitors in 1 million just in 2011. And that's not counting the many tourists that just walk around it taking pictures.

The neighbors complaints have increased, and that has led the City Council to move the tour bus stops a couple of blocks further, in the hope to reduce the number of groups around the church.

Luckily, that's not going to affect most of my tours, as I usually move around with either subway/taxi or in private minivans for upto 6 passengers + guide + driver, and we'll still be able to stop right by the church.

However, bus tours will have to preview now longer times to visit the church as the walking involved from the bus and back will eventually take 20-30 extra minutes (depending on how big the group is and how long do you need to wait by the traffic lights to cross two busy streets).

The City Council has only previewed 2 exceptions: primary and secondary school groups, and groups with people having walking issues (as long as they have required a special authorization to the City Council in advance and that they can prove that they have a reservation to visit the inside of the Church).

While the neighbors seem happy with this solution, tourguides and travel agents aren't satisfied at all because they'll have to invest much more time for the church (time that will have to be taken from other city sites), and foresee the danger of having to cross too many busy streets with large groups to reach the church. Plus it won't even be allowed to drive around the church with the bus, what might imply eliminating the church from some itineraries due to a lack of time...

Personally, I'm not too convinced either and I believe that the neighbors will soon realize that the plan wasn't such a good idea: if before only the sidewalks around the church used to be crowded by tourists, now the problem will be extended to the nearby streets leading to the new bus stops. There the sidewalks aren't that wide, and there won't be enough space for even two groups trying to go through in opposite directions at the same time... And I don't want to even imagine when (illegal) street vendors start occupying the floors with their cheesy souvenirs and counterfeit bags, or when pickpockets start taking advantage of the chaotic crowds... Omg.

Anyway, let's see how everything goes...

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5+ out of 5 for my Gaudí Tour!

A few weeks ago I gave Colleen Conway and a friend of her a Gaudí tour that she booked through Toursbylocals. We had a great time together and I loved answering all of her insightful questions. Here is the review she posted: 

 

I'm always so happy to contribute to create the best Barcelona experience for my guests!

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Secret Pedrera

The Casa Milà, also known as La Pedrera is an impressive appartment building built by Antoni Gaudi in the early 20th century, and its look goes beyond any other modernist work in the Eixample district.

This March 14th have been presented the new nighttime visits that will allow visitors to approach this beautiful space from a new, more intimate point of view. And I was there to offer you a preview!

The visit starts in the patio, where visitors are recieved by their guide and introduced to the history of the building, their owners, Gaudí and the time when they lived. An original slides display accompanies the explanations and introduces the visitors into the private atmosphere of the inhabitants of the house.

The visit continues with stops where we get in touch with these characters, that we can see from behind the windows: the concierge and his wife, Ms. Milà giving orders to her maids while getting ready for a big party, a group of ladies of the high society having a tea... The perfect mise-en-scene to get to know the different layers of the society from hundred years ago.

Next, we are allowed to enter an apartment decorated with period furniture. It is the same one that visitors see during the daytime, however, the dimmed light of the evening makes you feel like the tenants are going to appear around the corner any time.

Only half the apartment is visited though, the visit continues up the service stairs to the attic, where thanks to another audiovisual trick we'll be able to spy a young maid watching the laundry late at night…

After that we are directed to the rooftop where the guide gives the last explanations before leaving the group around the fantastic chimneys and ventilation towers, even more impressive in the dark than they are with daylight. Seeing the Sagrada Familia church illuminated in the distance and framed by an arch of the rooftop is an image that you will never forget!

The visit finishes downstairs in a mezzanine with an incredible organic ceiling, where the guests are offered a glass of cava.

Price: €30/person
Reservation in advance is recommended: reserveslapedrera@oscatalunyacaixa.com

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New rules at the Sagrada Família Church

The incredible increase in the number of visitors at the Sagrada Família Church, Gaudí's masterpiece since Pope Benedict dedicated it in November 7th 2011 (over 1 milion more people in one year!) has forced them to introduce new rules and restrictions for groups and guided tours.

So far, they do not affect small groups of 8 people or less (that means that won't affect most of my guests, and we can still show up anytime during your tour, break the line and get in). However, larger groups absolutely require a reservation and pre-payment of their tickets. Tourguides are given a special sticker to get in (what means that tourguides caught explaining inside without the required sticker will be immediately expulsed from the enclosure). Plus now, groups larger than 30 people will not be allowed to enter the museum area to see the plaster models (they can still see the façades and the interior of the church). They'll control that giving a red sticker - instead of green - for tourguides with over 30 people in their group.

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Sagrada Família news

Two news about the Sagrada Família Church this month:

1. After several weeks of being closed for repair works due to the fire caused by a mentally-ill person last April, the Crypt has been finally reopened to the public last Sunday. Great news!

2. The door of the main entrance, that after Pope Benedict dedication of the church had remained outside of the visitors itinerary, has been finally added to it and now visitors are allowed to see it and read on it the words of the Our Father prayer in Catalan and the first sentences of it in upto 50 different languages from all over the world. Quite impressive!

Sagrada Família Church closed Aug 13-15th!

I just got an update on which days the access to the Sagrada Família Church will be limited or closed due to religious celebrations.

Most of them will be only affecting a few Sundays in the year and only in the afternoon after 1pm, but I can confirm now that the Church will be totally closed to visitors on August 13th, 14th and 15th due to a International Youth Eucharistic gathering.

To see the whole schedule, check here (note that even when the services are scheduled for 5pm, the church will be closing at 1pm so they can proceed with all the required logistics).

The Bennett are back! And they got some special tours!

You might remember Brian and Bev Bennett, that I mentioned in several older posts. Well, Bev's mother wanted to come to Barcelona, so they took her here along with Brian's syster.

We first planned a daytrip to Girona (that's one of my favorite destinations!). I usually combine it with a visit to the Dalí Museum in Figueres, but they thought it would be a too intense day for the old lady so they asked to be taken somewhere in the countryside for lunch. That was an unusual request, but some colleagues recomended me a local restaurant located inside a typical "masia" (Catalan farmhouse). It took us a bit to find, even with the driver's GPS, but we finally got there.

It was gorgeous and the food was great! Traditional Catalan food, beautiful quality and lots of fresh veggie choices (remember Brian and Bev are vegetarian). It was worth the effort of getting there!

Then the next day we wanted to do some touring in Barcelona. We got a minivan, to make it easier for Brian's mother. We used it for 4h, then had the driver taking her back to the hotel while the rest of us continued exploring a little bit more.

They had asked me to do some modernism off the beaten path, but we hadn't really discussed it much, so in the end I improvized an itinerary that was quite a success!

We started by some remarkable buildings by Puig i Cadafalch near Passeig de Gràcia, then explored the Eixample district on the way back to la Rambla (where they were staying). I told them about how Ildefons Cerdà's city plan had evolved to become what the city is now, and saw examples of different architectural styles. We passed 100yo pharmacies, quiet private alleys... even a gothic cloister dismantled piece by piece and taken from its original location to be rebuilt in the Expansion Area. We finished with an early Gaudí work: Casa Calvet, very close to the city center.

I loved that stroll so much that I'm thinking about creating a tour I can sell from my Toursbylocals profile! Keep posted on that!

Special Gaudí tours for the Kerlin

The Kerlin family are Gaudí lovers. Specially Kevin, the father, are passionated about the architect's works, and for their trip to Barcelona they asked me to show them his early works and other sites outside the city center. The itinerary was customized inch by inch to include all the sites they wanted to see!

My driver collected them at the airport, and I joined them at the entrance of the city: at the gate of the gardens of Palau Reial, where we wanted to see a fountain and a pergola designed by a very young Gaudí.

De Gaudí: Minor works

Not far, we also stopped at the famous Dragon Gate of the Güell Pavilions.

Next we drove to Casa Vicenç, in the Gràcia District.

De Gaudí: Minor works

Then continued to Torre Bellesguard, where I was also able to show them a viaduct (sort of a bridge) that has been recently restored.

De Gaudí: Minor works

We then visited the Park Güell - not at all a minor work, of course, but you do need some transportation means to get there, and since we were on the minivan we agreed it was convenient to include it in our tour. To their request, we changed a bit my usual itinerary so they could get to the Hill of the Three Crosses at the very top of the park and we also had some time to visit the Gaudí House-Museum.

So far we had covered all the Gaudí sites we had planned for the day, but before I left them at their hotel we still had some time to stop at the Hospital de Sant Pau by Domènech i Muntaner, the AGBAR tower by Jean Nouvel and the Fish sculpture by Frank Gehry.

Two days later, we were ready to meet again for our next Gaudí adventure, but this time we went out of town: Montserrat and the Colònia Güell.

Since the Kerlin do a lot of research to prepare their vacations and know exactly every single thing they want to see, we prepared a very complete but packed itinerary and we agreed that we'd have to strictly stick to the timings if we wanted to cover it all. I must admit I wasn't very confident we'd be able to make it but... we did! They were very good respecting our schedule because they had very clear goals, and we made it in a way that everything felt fun and not that rushed.

So first of all, we departed the hotel ponctually at 8.45 and arrived to the foot of Montserrat just on time to take the cablecar. Mission 1 completed!
Then we run to the Black Madonna shrine before it closed for morning mass (we really only had to speed up until we crossed the church side door: once inside we relaxed... Mission 2 completed! Good job!

And by the way, on the way to the Shrine we were able to see the Crucifix that some specialists claim it was made by Michaellangelo himself! (guess what, the Kerlin are also Michaellangelo's lovers!)



Now we had to move on quickly to the Funicular of St. Joan, were we arrived 5min before the second funicular of the day departed. It took us up the hill: hour plan was walking down back to the Monastery to enjoy the mountain views. I love this excursion, and it takes only some 45-50min (make sure to wear good walking shoes, though!).

After the hike, we headed to the Museum. Of course, Kevin had a list of pieces he wanted to see! We covered them all except for one Picasso and one Dalí that had been sent to a show somewhere else, but I got to show them other interesting pieces that they didn't expect to see there.

12.30 and we were totally on our schedule. We entered the church, found 4 seats and waited for the choir to sing. We also used this rest-time to discuss a bit more about Montserrat, Gaudí and many other things.

De Montserrat

After the choir, time for lunch! Food isn't specially great in the mountain, but we were fine with the simple dishes sold at the cantine. Our next mission was getting the first Funicular de la Santa Cova of the afternoon (funiculars close for lunchbreak). Gaudí was quite young when we was asked to participate in the construction of the Path of the Cross on the way to the Holy Cave, and he was in charge of one of the Misteries of Glory: the Resurrection. We of course made the funicular, and got to Gaudí's mistery in only 8min. Then they preferred skipping the Cave so we had some time for souvenir shopping before leaving the mountain. We got back to the Funicular and manage to get the one before the one we had planned: that earned us 20extra minutes for shopping. Yeah!

And by 14.55 the driver was picking us up to take us to the Colònia Güell. 5min ahead of schedule! Impressive! So on the way to the Colònia we even had the time to stop over the Walden-7 building, that Kevin was interested in seeing aswell.



We all loved the Crypt made by Gaudí in la Colònia Güell. We spent some 30min visiting, then returned to Barcelona. What a complete day it had been!

Two great sites are back!!!!

What an exciting month has been March!
Two really good sites have just been reopened to the public after years of being closed for refurbishment works. I'd missed them so much!
So taking advantage of a last-minute cancellation, I spend a whole morning exploring them in depth. What a privilege!



First of all, a must-see Gaudí site: The Palau Güell, a private mansion built for his best friend and benefactor Eusebi Güell that is considered a precursor of the masterpieces he'd be building later on.

The visit includes the entrance hall, the basement where the stables were located, the main staircase, the main floor with all the social areas (dinning room, lost-steps room, reception rooms... as well as the impressive central room with its magnificent hyperbolic dome) as well as the back patio, then it continues with the upper floor where the private dormitories where located, and it finishes with the attic (now used for an exhibit on the building restoration process) and the fairy-tailish rooftop where Gaudí was already starting to play with the smokepipe shapes.

Unfortunately, the structure of the building is very delicated and the access is limited to only 185 people at a time and tourguides will not be allowed to skip the entrance lines with small groups (as we are used to have the privilege to do in most other sites). But if you are interested in visiting it with me, we can always meet directly there and I'll be there a bit early to make sure to get the tickets for the right time!



The other wonderful museum that just reopened is the Museu Marès. Frederic Marès was one of the most important Catalan sculptors of the early 19hundreds, and he was also an avid collector. This museum displays his collections: a huge sculpture collection not of his works but mostly of religious christian sculptures from the middle ages upto Marès times, as well as his "collector's cabinet" showing daily life objects from the 17 to the early 19hundreds including all kind of fans, women jewelry, smoking pipes, ceramic, weapons, clocks, toys, toilettery...

While I must say visiting the whole museum listening to the audioguide point by point was quite exhausting (it took me 3h!!), I'd probably recomend only people who are very interested in medieval art visit the street level where the sculpture collection is, and the rest go straight to the upper floors to enjoy the Collector's Cabinet. It can be fun even for kids! Just do it lightly, because it can again be overwhelming at some point!
Anyway, I'm planning to take my grandparents there next week as I'm (so far!) still available on Tuesday. I'm sure they'll love to see all this old stuff

Variations on my tours

On April 15th I had two very different tours, where we introduced some interesting variations on my usual itineraries. I wanted to share them to show you how it's always possible to adapt to your needs and interests during my tours.

In the morning, I had a deutch group and with them we wanted to visit the Sagrada Família Church and the Park Güell. Their travel agent had arranged the reservation in the church, but they also wanted to take the elevator to the tower. I don't always have the time to do that (specially if in 4h we are supposed to see also Gaudí's appartment buildings in Passeig de Gràcia), but since we were only visiting two sites we had plenty of time available.

The rules in the church have recently changed, so now we had to buy the elevator tickets as we went in and they gave us a time slot to go there (before, you just used to stand in line until it was your turn...). We had just some time to explain the Nativity façade before taking the elevator in that side. However, as I was explaining I could see something didn't look right by the elevator zone... And surely enough, when we approached the hostess there she told us that the elevator was closed for some technical reason, and at the ticket office they didn't know that!


Oh well, part of my job is solving problems so the tour goes as smoothly as possible, isn't it? So there I went, back to the ticket office, speaking with the right people and trying to be as proactive and diplomatic as possible. At first they were saying that there weren't tickets for the other elevator (the one in the Passion Façade) until much later... too late for us, as we were due to be at the Park by then! But in the end we got permission to show up there whenever we could and they'll sneak us past the line. That was perfect!

So after visiting the inside of the church, we proceeded to the elevator. We rode to almost the top, then continued one floor up to a platform from where you start seeing the city views, and then took the stairs down... Yes, they are narrow, steep and maybe a bit claustrophobic but... they are such an adventure! I took some pictures with my phone to share them with you.

The group loved this little detour on my average tour, and then we continued with the usual explanations of the Passion Façade and the Museum. Then the group split in 5 taxis and we got to the Park Güell, where appart from a detailed visit of the monumental area, at the end we still had some time to go up to the Hill of the Three Crosses to admire the city views. Part of the group, however, preferred to stay at the Main Entrance enjoying a drink at the terrace of the café instead. It was a lovely morning!



Next I took a taxi back to the city center where I had a sandwich before I met my afternoon clients, Gerald Bender and his daughter. We also had planned a Gaudí tour, this time including Casa Batlló and Casa Milà and not taking the elevator. We moved faster than the average, so we managed to cover everything and still had about a half an hour left. They were insterested in strolling around the Gràcia district which happens to be walking distance from the Park Güell where we were, so that's where we headed.

I don't often get to show my clients non-tourist areas such as local districts off-the-beaten-path, although I do offer neighbourhood tours. We walked the village-looking streets, passed lively local squares and learn about the area history. It's also a young place where many local designers have open their little trendy shops and cafés, and they were very interested in that particular side of Gràcia. I love shopping for clothes there too!
At the end of the tour, I helped them getting a cab back to the hotel and I went to catch the bus home, not without seating on one of my favorite little cafés before and have a snack to risen my energy levels after a long but fun day.

Yesterday's fire at the Sagrada Família has not affected much the visitors area

Yesterday morning a man sneaked into the sacristy of the crypt of the Sagrada Família church (the little room where the priests keep their robes and other religious materials), tryied to steel some objects and set the robes in fire. The perpetrator was caught when he was still inside, and the firemen managed to stop the fire from spreading into the rest of the crypt although the sacristy was totally burnt up.

It looks like no Gaudí's original designs have been damaged by the fire, although the effect of the fire and the smoke has still to be evaluated.
Because of this emergency, over 1500 visitors were evacuated last morning (I had a day-off yesterday, so my tours weren't affected), but in the late afternoon the church was reopened to the public.

This morning I was there with the Wrubel, a lovely family from Connecticut, and we were allowed to tour as usual. Only the apse alley that goes around the altar was closed, as there are windows overlooking the crypt there (I could see them all black from the smoke). Also a smoked scent could be flared in the main nave. As for the museum, where one of the rooms also has a few windows giving to the crypt, the visit was also as usual, except for the end of the mentioned room, where a safety cordon prevented visitors from approaching the blackened windows. The rest of the room, where recently have been moved mr. Berenguer's beautiful drawings of the church finished project, was perfectly accessible.

I hope the crypt won't have been too affected by the smoke: it is the place where Sunday masses and other normal services are hold (only special events are being celebrated in the main nave so far), and it had just been restored a couple of years ago.

Progress in Sagrada Familia

Now that the interior of the church has been completed, the next big changes will be seeing 10 more towers built. And well, it looks like soon we'll start witnessing it!

Today I noticed the base of the future Tower of the Virgin Mary is starting to rise! Check the picture and look for the much clearer part of the stone.

The skylight outer structure had been there for some months already, and the first lower pieces of the tower tell me soon the body of the tower will be covering it.

It might look like a small change for those who see it for the first time, but to me it's the exciting promise of huge changes coming soon that will change forever the city skyline!
Enviado desde mi dispositivo BlackBerry® de Orange.

My new pics from the Sagrada Família!

Today I finished my morning city tour at the Sagrada Família, and after my clients left I went back in and spend some time taking some pictures of the newest things inside. It was the first time that people was allowed to walk around the presbitery (i.e. the alley around the altar, in the apse), and I trully loved it! And the ruled geometry of the vaults over the altar and the transept are beautiful! Don't miss it!

The Pope consacrates the Sagrada Familia church

The Pope Benedict XVI has been in Barcelona to consacrate the Sagrada Familia Church, whose inside naves have been finally completed (although there are still many minor details missing inside, and 10 more towers need to be built outside including the main entrance - The Glory Façade.

A beautiful cerimony took place this morning, and the Pope also declared the church a Basilica, a hierarhic catholic title only accorded to some very special churches in the world.

The Sagrada Familia is getting ready for the Pope!

Altar and chandelier

This last months there is been lots of news at the Sagrada Familia. The Pope Benedict XVI is coming to inaugurate and consacrate the inside on November 7th, and they are hurrying to have the naves nice and ready for his visit!

In a short perior of time I've seen how the last scaffolding remaining inside have been dismantled (of course, outside there is still a lot going on!), the final pavement placed, and lots of new details added: decoration in the skylights, stained-glasses around the altar, lamps at the capitals of the columns... and my favorite: the Christ and a gorgeous chandelier with crystal grapes hanging over the altar.

Lifting up skylight decorations

I love to see new things everytime I go in!
Plus now it's easier to see the architects, that otherwise are working in their office. Here you see the Head Architect, Mr. Bonet (the one holding the helmet).


For more information on the Pope's visit (site in Catalan and Spanish).

Casa Batlló nights!

Totally recomended! I can't say anything more!

The Porter's Lodge at the Park Güell reopen!

Since last Saturday the Porter's Lodge of the Park Güell (the pavilion at the main entrance with a mushroom-looking chimney) is open again to the public after restoration works that have taken over 1 year. The exhibit on the park on show inside has also been totally transformed and modernized with the addition of many interactive screens and slide/video shows.

I visited it this morning after I finished a Gaudí tour with for the Tawil, clients of one of the US luxury travel agencies that work with me. I found the new exhibit quite informative, although the information they give is pretty basic compared to my average explanations of the Park. Anyway, it is at least useful for those who visit the park with no previous background reading. My favorite part, however, are the bright colours of the walls, the shapes of the beams of the ceilings, and of course, the unsual views of the Park you get through its windows.

This new site is run by the Museu d'Història de la Ciutat.
By the way! The entrance is free of charge until next July, after which they will be charging an entrance fee (the staff I asked wasn't able to give me more information on that: I'll keep you posted!).

Fees updated in La Pedrera

From yesterday, the price of the entrance fee to visit La Pedrera (Casa Milà) is 11 euro.

Still amazed at the Sagrada Familia Church

I've been entering the Sagrada Familia Church a few times a week these last 10 years, and still nowadays it continues amazing me: every new detail, every new element completed, every change...

This week I really felt there like the very first time. Since next November the Pope of Rome will be consacrated the interior of the Church, the workers are hurrying up to have the naves ready for the visit. This week they have finished retiring the scaffolding they used to build the central skylight over the altar. Seeing that space finally cleared really touched me. The view of the golden rays of the vault, and the elegance of the four red porphyr columns just left me without words.

I'm excited about the many more surprises coming up along the summer, as more and more of the inside will be completed. I have no words to express the way I feel about it.

Training seminar: Revisiting Modernism + Visit to the Museu del Modernisme

Continuing with the training sessions organized by the Catalan Gouvernment, this morning I attended a very interesting seminar on Modernism.

The well-known art historian Mireia Freixa gave us a lecture on how Modernisme (Catalan Art Nouveau) has been interpreted through the last century and what are the current new approaches.
Next, her doctorate student Ms. Fátima López told us about a new route on the local industrial past based in the story of the Vilumara family (documented silk merchants in the middle ages, still in the textil industry in the 18 hundreds), and then introduced us to the few pharmacy stores that have preserved their original furniture and decoration from the Modernist times.
I found both speaches very illuminating, and I took some good ideas and resources to add up and enrich my own tours.

But the best part of the training session was visiting the recently open Museu del Modernisme. Ms. Freixa gave us a great tour totally focussed on our "tourguide needs".

This Museum is run by the Pinós family, owners of the Gothland art gallery (the first in town to start dealing with modernist items). A totally private initiative, it is a delicious show based on the private collection on the family that makes a great introduction to the local modernist furniture, painting and sculpture. A must for those wanting to get a closer insight to this exciting period for the history of Barcelona... and neither as far not as long-to-visit as the MNAC, the ultimate museum of Modernism in town.

I trully recomend it, and I hope I'll be including it soon as a regular part of my tours!

By the way, I want to acknowledge Ms. Gema Losa, from the Museu del Modernisme, for allowing me to take these pictures and to publish them.