Wife and I are thinking of getting the Modernista card for 72 hours. We'll actually be in Barcelona for 4 days, but probably jet lagged, so wanted to activate the card the next day.
But the card advertises free transit frm the airport for train.
Should I take that as literally meaning train only? Not bus?
And the card says it activates at first admission... does anyone know if it handles the airport transit separately, or does that count as the start of my 72 hrs?
Thanks.
The website says the card "is activated the first time you use it at any of these attractions or services", so I think the clock must start ticking from the time you step onto the train from the airport. You probably want to pay for that separately. I used the Aerobus myself, which would be a separate ticket anyway. The Aerobus runs really frequently and takes you to Placa de Catalunya. If you're staying near there, it's a good option.
I think this card must be quite new. The price seems fair; you might actually save money if the covered sights align very well with what you want to do in the city, because a lot of the Barcelona entry tickets are very expensive. However, I have some concerns:
Two of the sights most often mentioned by posters here (La Sagrada Familia and the Picasso Museum) are not covered by the card. Not only would you have to pay for them separately, but the time spent seeing them would reduce the time available to take advantage of having the card at the sights it does cover.
There are other sights many visitors like to see, time permitting, including the Barcelona Cathedral, Miro Museum, etc. How do they fit into your priority list?
The website doesn't seem to say anything about prebooking entry times, which is normally required for Casa Batllo, Casa Mila, Palau Guell and Palau de la Musica (for the English tour); entry lines are extremely long at the first two, and the Palau de la Musica Catalana's English tours sometimes sell out. The website doesn't say you go to the head of the entry line automatically with the card. How long might you wait before you get inside? If you show up somewhere at 11 AM, how do you fit in with the folks who have 11 AM entry tickets? Do you (heaven forbid) have to go through the regular ticket-purchase line, show the card, and then get handed a ticket for the next available entry time (which could be hours later)? That would be a disaster when you have only three full days in Barcelona.
Barcelona public transportation is relatively inexpensive, so the transportation component of the card isn't worth much--the value is mostly in the waived entry fees.
Before committing to this card, I'd want clear information on how it actually works when you show up at one of the sights. Here's an email address for inquiries: reservas@barcelonaturisme.com
I have very similar questions about this card that I have been trying to research for a future trip. The card is very appealing to the architecture nerd in me, as I am planning to visit many of the sights covered by the card regardless. So I’m interested to read if anyone replies with experience about this card. Especially about how it works with untimed tickets if you don’t have the ability to book time slots in advance.
