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Barcelona Cathedral, Basilica SJD Granada, Alcazar in Sevilla -- Questions about ticket purchase

Posted by on

Hi all,

I have read about the difficulties with buying tickets to some the sites. I have been able to purchase Sagrada Familia and other sites, without a problem. But, I cannot purchase Barcelona Cathedral tickets no matter what I try. We are looking to visit on a Tuesday in the second week of January in the afternoon. Will it be difficult to buy tickets on the spot?

For the Basilica San Juan de Dios we would like to keep it flexible between the two days we have in Granada (in case there is no time on arrival day). These tickets do not become available until next month (I think). I would prefer to be able to walk in and purchase the tickets on the spot, but would it be difficult to get in? Visiting the second week on January.

Finally, the Alcazar in Sevilla. Tickets still not showing up for sale in January. We need to visit on a Saturday. Do the tickets come up for sale only at the beginning of the month, or should I be checking daily for the second week of January?

This has been the hardest trip to plan, mainly because it has been so hard to purchase tickets in advance. It feels like I will never be ready!

Thank you all for your advice as always.

Posted by
29913 posts

I visited the Barcelona Cathedral in August 2016 and did not buy a ticket in advance. At the time, I think entry may have been free for part of the day, but I may be mistaken, or it may have changed. I wouldn't worry about getting a ticket ahead of time. You may encounter a dress code, however. I think people were being turned away for bare shoulders, bare midriffs, bare knees, etc. Before I reached the door, I was instructed to remove my sun hat, so they were being fairly strict.

I walked right up to San Juan de Dios and paid the entry fee in May 2019. I'd be very surprised to hear of a problem there. I suppose you might end up in a bit of a line if a tour group arrives just in front of you and needs to buy tickets on the spot, but otherwise there should be no issue.

Buying a ticket for the Alcazar in Seville ahead of time is a must. Tickets for the Royal Apartments (which I have not seen) do sell out well ahead of time. I didn't think the Alcazar sold out very early until I went to the official website and found tickets available only for December, not for September, October or November. That is shocking to me. The Alcazar is very popular, but in April 2019 I just went online a few days in advance and bought a ticket. There were still tickets available for purchase onsite, but the (outdoor) ticket line is usually very long, so you don't want to be stuck in that line. I don't know when tickets go on sale, so I'd suggest visiting that website as frequently as you can remember to do so until January tickets pop up.

Perhaps another poster knows what's up with the Alcazar ticketing process. It looks as if local tour companies may be buying up tickets very early so visitors are forced to pay for tours--but I'm just speculating.

Posted by
2493 posts

We visited the Barcelona Cathedral in May of 2024 and had no problem getting walk-up tickets mid-morning on a Saturday. At that time, the ticket office located to the left as you faced the cathedral.

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