Confusion over Sagrada Familia Towers

See https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/spain/guidebook-updates for a few updates about ticket purchase, although that may not address your question.

"Best" is subjective. We went up the Passion tower. You take am elevator up and spiral staircase down. It was great

I chose the wrong word when I used best. I'm not looking for the better one. I want to know the main difference between ascending and descending both. That's where the confusion lies.

The main point of confusion is perhaps thinking the view from the towers is OF either the Passion or Nativity sculptures. It is not, and these are best viewed from ground level. You are high up and close to the stonework, as well as the brightly coloured tile mosaic work. The Passion Tower has views to the sea. The Nativity Facade has views to the mountains. Ascent (by lift), and descent (by narrow spiral stairs) is the same for both.

David, are you sure? I didn't ascend one of the towers, but I'm sure someone posted here quite recently that you descend from one of the towers by elevator and from the other by stairs.
I guess this is just proof that the online information about seeing LSF is sometimes a bit lacking in detail.

Here's from the Sagrada Familia website

"You can choose to go up either the tower on the Nativity facade with views over the east of Barcelona, or the tower on the Passion facade facing the city centre. Visitors must take the stairs down from the towers, both on the Passion façade and the Nativity façade."

My memory fails me (hopefully Enric may assist) but my recollection from my first visit in 1989 is that only one set of towers could be accessed at that time.

So it seems that both towers offer the chance to go down the spiral staircase then?

you MUST come down via stairs now. There is no longer any option letting you take the elevator down from either tower. They have set up a one way walking option once you leave the elevator. ( I cannot do long spiral staircases, so had to be refunded). This is valid as of September 2016.

If you search on youtube, you can see videos from tourists of each and use that to help decide which you prefer. But it's not like you can really go wrong either way, right?

Just returned and if I remember correctly I was only given the option of going up the Passion Tower. The views were pretty good and since I was one of three people that were the first to go up it was nice having the space and the spiral staircase pretty much to myself.

I just went up the passion tower on Oct. 4. There were people in front of us in line and the person taking tickets told them that they were at the wrong tower, to go to the Nativity tower.