Montserrat is about 45km outside of Barcelona and should be a “must do” day trip during your visit to Barcelona.
It is a beautiful monastery with amazing views of Barcelona and the surrounding area!
We went with our great friends (so it was even more fun and special!) and hired a private driver and guide for the day and that was really enjoyable. You can check out this link for travel tips to Montserrat.
It’s home to the wooden statue of the Virgin Mary of Montserrat-or the black Madonna. In fact, the monastery was built around worshipping her. You will have to wait in a very long line if you wish to touch her hand and pray!
Photo credit: Montserrat Tourist Guide.
Montserrat means “saw mountain” in Catalan. To me, it looked like fingerling potatoes…but maybe I was just hungry!
It’s easy to spend the entire day touring Montserrat, at the very least, a few hours.
You can walk around, tour the abbey, see the Madonna, ride up the funicular, have lunch, buy local products, listen to the famous boys choir, tour the impressive museum or, if you are really adventurous, go rock climbing.
We started our day with a private tour of the Museum of Montserrat. It was quite impressive-Picasso, Monet, Dali, Caravaggio and an excellent collection of ancient artifacts. We were even surprised with some delicious cava and local pastries at the end of our tour. Now that’s what I’m talking about!
After the Museum, we went inside the Santa Maria de Montserrat Abbey. It was beautiful.
Next up was a steep funicular ride on the Funicular Sant Joan to the viewpoint.
It was gorgeous!
As with all my posts and pictures from our travels, you just can’t get the same feeling by looking at pictures. You’ve got to get out and experience it for yourself!
Next up…Gaudí
Laurie Travels Sometimes 