We have tickets to see La Sagrada Family, Park Guell, and La Pedrera on one day at the end of this month. I was about to also buy tickets for Casa Batllo and see that there is renovation going on of both the facade and the Noble Floor. How much of the house will be unviewable? Is it still worth it to go? Is that too much for one day anyway? Should we consider Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau instead?
Posted by
Washington DC
27093 posts
I saw Casa Batllo before the renovation work began so I have no specific guidance to offer, but Sant Pau is lovely, hasn't been reported to require advance purchase of tickets (which ties you down to a strict schedule) and was blissfully uncrowded at the time of my 2015 visit. It's a multi-building complex where you could spend 2 hours or more, though I'm sure some folks go through it faster than that. You won't regret seeing Sant Pau.
Posted by
50 posts
I think Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau is worth the visit. The whole complex is huge and you get to explore numerous buildings with contemporary designs. When we went there it wasn't crowded and we enjoyed the leisure walk around the whole complex and going in and out of the different structures and learning about the rich history of the place.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
If you are seeing three Gaudi sights, that's enough for one trip. So, renovations aside, I'd see Sant Pau, as it's by a different architect, rather than Casa Batllo.
Also, trying to see all three of your Gaudi sights in one day is not only a lot to take in, but also logistically not fun. With the expense of these, you'll want to take some time at each.
If you have time, see Palau de Musica Catalana (same architect as the Sant Pau) - breathtaking.
Posted by
Ohio
29 posts
We visited Casa Batilo last month along with Sagrada Familia as part of a group tour with the Barcelona Guide Bureau. The facade was covered so we didn't see that and it was very crowded even with managed admittance. I would not suggest visiting as part of a tour. Too many people and I think we would have managed better on our own. The guide was very good by the way but too small of a space to cram so many people in and still get a good view of the design. I highly recommend Casa Vicens though. It was Gaudi's first house and was just recently restored and opened to the public. The day we visited it was not crowded at all.
Posted by
Oak Park, Illinois
4535 posts
The issue between La Pedrera (Casa Mila) and Casa Batllo is that they are so different. Casa Mila has more traditional apartments (the one you tour is nicely decorated as if someone lives there) and an awesome roof deck. Casa Batllo has an awesome apartment design, but it is not decorated and the roof deck is small and less ornate. So invariably, if you see one and not the other, you'll be missing something. But unless you are really into Gaudi, it's fine to pick one and enjoy what you do see. And if Batllo is under renovations, that would make sense to skip this time. Casa Mila also has a nice museum with some of his furniture designs and some exhibits on his design approach.