Montserrat All-in-One Pass with Train, Funiculars, Museum and Lunch

How to get to Montserrat from Barcelona

Your day begins with a metro ride to Plaça d'Espanya, where regional trains on line R5 towards Manresa leave throughout the day. The journey along the Llobregat valley takes about an hour, and the jagged silhouette of the mountain grows on the horizon as you approach. You collect the pass beforehand at the tourist information office on Plaça de Catalunya.

The final climb is your choice. Get off at Monistrol de Montserrat for the rack railway, which winds up the slope in about 15 minutes with sweeping valley views, or one stop earlier at Aeri de Montserrat for the cable car, a thrilling five-minute ride straight up the rock face. Both are included, so many travellers go up one way and down the other.

The Monastery and Basilica of Montserrat

The Benedictine monastery of Santa Maria de Montserrat was founded in 1025 and still has a community of monks. Its basilica houses the Virgin of Montserrat, a twelfth-century Romanesque wooden statue darkened over time and known affectionately as La Moreneta, the patron of Catalonia. Pilgrims queue to pass behind the altar and see her up close.

The monastery also has one of the oldest boys' choirs in Europe, whose singing fills the basilica at set times on most days outside school holidays. Allow time to walk the main square, the atrium of the basilica and the viewpoints over the valley. Arriving early helps you enjoy the basilica before the busiest hours of the day.

The Santa Cova and Sant Joan funiculars

The pass gives unlimited rides on both funiculars, which open up the mountain beyond the monastery. The Santa Cova funicular descends to the start of a gentle path along the cliffs to the Holy Cave, the chapel built where, according to legend, the image of the Virgin was found. Modernist sculptures line the way, and the walk takes about 20 minutes each way.

The Sant Joan funicular climbs one of the steepest tracks in Europe to around 1,000 m, where marked trails lead past old hermitages and viewpoints. The most popular continues to Sant Jeroni, the highest point of the massif at 1,236 m, with views on clear days to the Pyrenees. Wear good shoes and carry water for any walk.

The Museum of Montserrat and the audiovisual space

The Museum of Montserrat holds a surprising collection for a mountain monastery: archaeology from the ancient Near East, including pieces from Mesopotamia and Egypt, a gallery of old masters, and an important collection of Catalan and modern painting from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It is a calm, rewarding visit of about an hour.

The audiovisual space, also included, introduces daily life inside the monastery, the history of the community and the meaning of Montserrat for Catalonia, a good first stop to understand what you will see. Together with the funiculars, these visits turn a quick look at the basilica into a full and varied day, with something for art lovers, families and walkers alike.

Catalan lunch and the natural park

Lunch is included at a restaurant on the mountain, with typical Catalan dishes served in the middle of your day, so you do not need to plan or budget for a meal. Afterwards there is time for a last walk or a funicular ride before the train back to Barcelona.

The mountain itself is protected as a natural park. Its rounded pink pinnacles are made of conglomerate, pebbles and sand cemented together millions of years ago and sculpted by wind and rain into the shapes that gave Montserrat, the serrated mountain, its name. The best time to visit Montserrat is spring or autumn, when the air is clear and the trails are cool.