# Montserrat

The sanctuary of the Moreneta, wedged between conglomerate needles an hour from Barcelona. You go up by rack railway, cable car or car, and at the top the Escolania choir and the paths await.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/montserrat · Revisado: 2026-11-13

## How do I get up to Montserrat?

There are four ways, and the choice shapes the day. By car you reach the sanctuary itself in an hour from Barcelona; at the top there is a paid, supervised car park with limited spaces, whose fee is set every year by the Parlament. If you would rather not drive up the road, park below: the rack railway leaves from Monistrol Vila, where parking is free, and it is the only transport that drops you in the middle of the complex. The cable car, opened in 1930, climbs 1,350 metres of cable in about five minutes, with a cabin every quarter of an hour and free parking at its station.

Without a car, take line R5 of Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat at Plaça d'Espanya in Barcelona: it leaves every hour from 8:26 and connects with the rack railway and cable car stations. In all, an hour and a half door to door. If you buy a package with the train included, collect the tickets at the Plaça d'Espanya station between 8:00 and 14:00. There is also a Julià coach from Carrer Viriat, next to Sants, at 9:15.

## What is there to see at the top?

The sanctuary: the basilica, open from 7:00 to 20:00, the Virgin's Throne, where the Moreneta is venerated, and the Montserrat Museum, from 10:00 to 17:45. To enter the atrium, the basilica and the camarín there is a tourist ticket; exempt are those attending Mass, guests staying there and residents of Catalonia, the rest of Spain or the European Union travelling independently, who book on the abbey's website. The most sought-after moment is the singing of the Escolania, one of the oldest boys' choirs in Europe, Monday to Friday at 13:00.

Then there is the mountain. It has been a natural park since 1987 and part of the UNESCO Central Catalonia Global Geopark since 2015. Its needles are conglomerate, pebbles cemented by lime, and about 1,250 species of plants grow on its slopes. The Sant Joan funicular goes up to the high points; the Santa Cova one is out of service for maintenance until further notice.

## Which path should I choose?

To get away from the crowds without much effort, the Els Degotalls path: 3.2 km there and back, about 50 minutes, beneath the dripping walls, with plaques to Verdaguer, Maragall or Pompeu Fabra. For a morning, the Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel and Sant Joan, 7 km and about 2 hours. And for the summit, Sant Jeroni, 1,236 m, going up with the Sant Joan funicular: 7 km and two and a half hours, with a viewpoint table pointing from the Pyrenees to Mallorca.

## And seeing it on horseback?

Montserrat can also be seen from below. On the north face, between Castellbell i el Vilar and Marganell, the ranch of Natural Hipic runs guided western-saddle rides along the paths of the natural park, Tuesday to Sunday mornings, with horses for beginners and ponies for children. You book by WhatsApp. Five minutes away you have a table at Cal Jaume, in Marganell, or at the grill Can Ferreroles Nou, and in the afternoon you go up to the sanctuary by rack railway from Monistrol Vila: it is the plan Montserrat on horseback.

## Dónde está
- Zonas: Scenic train journeys in Spain, Horse riding routes in Spain
- Cerca: Penedès (a 19.1 km), Caldes de Montbui (a 27.4 km), Barcelona (a 35.8 km), Cardona (a 37.9 km)

## Qué hacer
- **Hermitages Path via Sant Miquel and Sant Joan** (2 h · 7 km · Walkers; with children, only as far as the Sant Miquel viewpoint · Self-guided · free): What it is
It is the path that leaves the Montserrat sanctuary for the mountain's old hermitages. It begins as a paved walk to the viewpoint and chapel of Sant Miquel, climbs steeply to the Pla de les Taràntules and continues along the Sant Joan path to the ruins of the Sant Joan and Sant Onofre hermitages, set in a long crack in the rock. According to Montserrat Visita, the full route is about 7 km and about two hours. It is free and open to all. The first part, as far as Sant Miquel, anyone can do; the climb to les Taràntules calls for legs.
The route step by step

Abat Oliba hostel: the start, in front of the hostel, within the sanctuary grounds. Go up the paved path that passes the lower station of the Sant Joan funicular.
Creu de Sant Miquel viewpoint: a signposted detour leads to the cross, with wide views. A few steps further on is the Sant Miquel chapel, at 841 m, about 1.4 km and 25 minutes from the start.
Bassa de Sant Miquel and Pla de Sant Miquel: the path keeps climbing to the pool and, within five minutes, to the Pla de Sant Miquel, a crossroads.
Climb to the Pla de les Taràntules: the steep section. From the Pla de Sant Miquel it is about 200 m of ascent. You reach les Taràntules, at 994 m, about 2.8 km and 55 minutes from the start, next to the upper station of the Sant Joan funicular, where there is a nature room with information about the mountain.
Sant Joan path: take the left branch. You reach the Sant Joan chapel and, continuing, the remains of the Sant Joan and Sant Onofre hermitages, wedged into the crack.
Optional, Santa Magdalena: the restored Jacob's ladder (escala de Jacob) climbs to the Santa Magdalena hermitage. It adds difficulty and time.
Return: by the same path to the monastery, or on the Sant Joan funicular from les Taràntules, if it is running.

The Sant Joan funicular
It saves you the climb or the descent between the sanctuary and les Taràntules. In July 2026 Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat took it out of service until further notice because the Pla Alfa had been activated due to fire risk, and it also closes for a few weeks in winter for maintenance. Check on the Turistren website whether it is running and its timetable on the day you go.
Getting there
You get up to the sanctuary by car, by the rack railway (cremallera) from Monistrol or by the cable car from the Aeri. The path starts inside the grounds, a few minutes' walk from the monastery square.
When to go
Spring and autumn. In summer, set off early: the path runs largely in the sun over rock, and with the Pla Alfa activated because of fire risk, access and services can be closed. In winter the days are short, but the clean air gives the best views. In rain, the conglomerate rock and steps are slippery.
Water, shade and services
Montserrat Visita lists no fountains on the route: fill up with water at the sanctuary before setting off. Shade is scarce beyond the Sant Miquel chapel. At the sanctuary you have a café, restaurants and toilets; on the path, nothing.
With children and a dog
With children, the walk to the Sant Miquel viewpoint is comfortable and short, along a paved path and then a track. The climb to les Taràntules is steep; if they are keen, the branch to Sant Joan and Sant Onofre from above is short, the easiest on the network according to Turistren. With a dog, on a lead.
Natural Park rules
Stay on the signposted paths and don't take shortcuts, which erode the ground. Fires and wild camping are prohibited. Don't pick plants or take rocks or animals, and respect the hermitages and private property.
Where to eat
At the sanctuary, the Hostal Abat Cisneros Restaurant serves à la carte at midday and a buffet in the evening, in the former 16th-century stables.
- **Climb to Sant Jeroni with the Sant Joan Funicular** (2 h 30 · 7 km · Keen walkers with mountain footwear; teenagers · Independent · Sant Joan funicular, €17.50 return): Sant Jeroni is the summit of Montserrat, at 1,236 m, and from the viewpoint indicator at the top you can see from the Pyrenees to Els Ports and, on very clear days, Mallorca. The easiest way up is to save yourself the first climb on the Sant Joan funicular and walk from its upper station across the top of the mountain, among conglomerate pinnacles. Montserrat Visita gives the circuit about 7 km and two and a half hours.
Seven minutes of funicular to Les Taràntules
The Sant Joan funicular has run since 1918 and leaves from the sanctuary precinct itself. In seven minutes it climbs a maximum gradient of 65.5% and leaves you at the Pla de les Taràntules, at about a thousand metres. In 2026 it costs €11.40 single and €17.50 return for adults aged 14 to 65, €5.70 and €8.75 for children aged 4 to 13, and €10.25 and €15.75 for over-65s. If you plan to walk back down through the valley, the single is enough.
The funicular stops for a few weeks every January for inspection, and in recent years it has also closed for other reasons: 26 days in autumn 2025, because of storm damage, and in July 2026 because of the Pla Alfa, when fire risk closes the area. Before you go, check on the Turistren website whether it is running that day. If it is not, the climb on foot from the monastery is much longer.
From Les Gorres to the viewpoint indicator
At the upper station, take the path on the right and follow the signs straight on. You pass Les Gorres, four rock pinnacles; the tallest, with a cross, is the Gorra Frígia. After a narrow passage between rocks, the Serra de les Paparres viewpoint is on the left. The path enters the forest, crosses the Santa Maria stream on a footbridge with a wooden handrail and begins to climb along a paved stretch; on the right you will see the path coming down that you can use on the way back. At the Sant Jeroni chapel turn left towards the summit. Before reaching the top, the Mossèn Cinto viewpoint is worth a stop.
Two ways back to the monastery
You can retrace your steps to the funicular and come down on it. Or you can take the detour you saw on the paved stretch and descend along the valley floor, by the old Sant Jeroni path, towards the Pla dels Ocells, which leaves you on foot at the monastery. This second option is the one that closes the circuit of about 7 km and the descent is longer.
No fountains or bar until the summit
It is a mountain path with a climb at the end, with no technical passages. Bring mountain footwear, water and something to eat: the route passes no fountain or bar. It is a natural park: do not leave the marked path or take shortcuts, do not light fires, do not collect plants or stones and do not camp. The park's website lets you download the route's GPS track. Montserrat Visita does not publish rules for dogs on this route, and the funicular does not say whether it admits them: ask beforehand if you are going with yours.
For a sandwich, the Cafetería de Montserrat opens at 8:45. If you want to go up by cable car from the valley and link everything, the plan Aeri, funicular and the Sant Jeroni summit organises it on a Sunday; if you prefer something shorter with the same funicular, the Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel and Sant Joan goes to Les Taràntules and the hermitages.
- **Basilica, the Moreneta and the Escolania Choir** (1 h 30 · Everyone · Tourist ticket; free for residents of Spain and the EU with booking): The basilica is the centre of Montserrat: the church of the Benedictine monastery, in the square the rack railway and cable car arrive at, and the place where the Virgin of Montserrat, the Moreneta, is venerated, a Romanesque carving that you see up close by climbing to her camarín, behind the high altar. At midday, the monastery's boys' choir, the Escolania, sings the Salve and the Virolai in the basilica. It is the scene most visitors come to see, and it is worth organising the morning around it.
Going up to the Moreneta's camarín
The basilica opens every day from 7:00 to 20:00. The camarín, the Virgin's throne room, can be visited from 8:00 to 10:30 and from 12:00 to 18:25. At midday the reopening coincides with people leaving the singing. Between 10:30 and 12:00 the camarín is closed: if you arrive mid-morning, hear the singing first and go up afterwards.
When the Escolania sings
The Escolania is one of the oldest boys' choirs in Europe: documents from the 14th century already speak of a singing school at Montserrat. According to the sanctuary it sings as follows:

Monday to Friday, at 13:00, the Salve and the Virolai.
Monday to Thursday, at 18:45, Vespers, the Salve Montserratina and a polyphonic motet.
On Sundays and religious holidays, at 12:00 the Salve and the Virolai, and at 18:45 Vespers.
On Saturdays it does not sing.

It also does not sing during its school holidays, which the sanctuary places from St John's day to the end of August, after Christmas and after Easter, and the timetable changes with liturgical celebrations. Check escolania.cat the week you go. Arrive early if you want a place on the benches.
The tourist ticket and who does not pay
Since May 2023 the sanctuary has charged a tourist ticket for the atrium, the basilica and the camarín. It is not paid by those attending mass or other services, guests staying at the sanctuary, and residents of Catalonia, the rest of Spain or the European Union who come independently (not groups or organised trips). If you are a resident, book free on the abbey's booking website, reserves.abadiamontserrat.cat, to attend the singing, mass or to go up to see the Virgin. If you are not a resident, buy the ticket on the Montserrat Visita website, where combinations with the Escolania and the museum are also sold.
Museum, buffet and Degotalls around the singing
The Montserrat Museum is in the same square and opens from 10:00 to 17:45: it is the place for the hour left between the camarín and the singing. After the singing, the Buffet Montserrat serves from 12:15 to 16:00, and if you want a table with a tablecloth, the restaurant of the Hostal Abat Cisneros serves lunch from 13:00 to 15:00. In the afternoon, the Els Degotalls path is a flat 50-minute walk.
The sanctuary's information office opens Monday to Friday from 9:00 to 17:30 and at weekends and public holidays until 18:45; there they answer questions about the ticket and the day's timetable.
- **Els Degotalls Path** (50 min · 3.2 km · Everyone; families with children who walk · Independent · free): Els Degotalls is the flat walk at Montserrat. It leaves the sanctuary precinct along the Monistrol road and runs almost level, parallel to it, to a corner where the rock wall drips without stopping; hence the name, which in Catalan means "the leaks". It is 3.2 km out and back and about 50 minutes according to Montserrat Visita. It is the outing for anyone who has come with small children, with older people or without mountain footwear, and for anyone who wants to escape the crowd in the square for half an hour without climbing a single step.
From the Mirador dels Apòstols to the dripping wall
You leave the precinct along the road towards Monistrol and pass the Mirador dels Apòstols building, the one at the entrance. At the sharp bend that follows, take the path on the left: it runs parallel to the road, heading north-west. In about 25 minutes you reach the Els Degotalls corner. Above the path, about 200 metres higher, are the Llanos de la Trinitat, and from those walls falls the water that has been shaping the rock. On the other side the plain opens out, and at the far end, on clear days, the Pyrenees. You return the same way.
Verdaguer, Maragall and the Virgins of Catalonia
The path is full of small monuments. There are stelae and medallions dedicated to Jacint Verdaguer, the poet, to Joan Maragall, to the tenor Emili Vendrell, to Pep Ventura, the sardana musician, and to Pompeu Fabra, who fixed the standard of Catalan. Along the wall, a series of ceramics reproduces the invocations that the villages of Catalonia have given to the Virgin. For children it works as a game: counting ceramics and looking for names.
Holm oaks, box and a cool stretch
The path runs through a holm oak wood with box and laurustinus. In the dampest part, near the corner of the leaks, deciduous trees such as maple and elder appear, which change colour in autumn. It is also the first stretch of the Camino de Santiago that leaves the monastery.
Park rules and when to go
It is a natural park. Do not leave the marked path or take shortcuts, do not light fires, do not collect plants, stones or animals and do not leave litter. Mountain footwear is not needed, but the sanctuary asks for footwear suitable for walking. Groups gather in the square and the basilica at midday; first thing or last thing the path is quieter.
Before or after, in the same Mirador dels Apòstols building you have the Bar Mirador, open from 9:00 to 17:00, and on the second floor the Buffet Montserrat, from 12:15 to 16:00. If the walk feels too short, the Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel leaves from the other end of the precinct and climbs to the Sant Miquel viewpoint. If you sleep up top, the Cel·les Abat Marcet are a few minutes on foot.
- **Montserrat Museum** (1 h 30 · Everyone; a plan for rainy days · Adults €12 · ages 8 to 16 €6): What it is
The sanctuary's museum, in the same square as the basilica. It brings together archaeology of the ancient world, old and modern painting, avant-garde art, sculpture and drawing, with names such as Goya, Picasso, Ramon Casas or Lucas Cranach. It is the best option when it rains or when the mountain is shrouded in fog.
The rooms are beneath the monastery squares and in the foundations of its tower: they were designed by the Modernista architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch between 1928 and 1933, with iron beams in one part and Catalan vaulting in another. Going down to them from the esplanade is already a surprise.
What to see
Modern painting is the largest section and the one most people come to see. It began with the donation of the Josep Sala Ardiz collection in 1982 and gives a very full survey of Catalan art of the late 19th and the 20th century: Ramon Casas, Isidre Nonell, Joaquim Mir, Joaquim Sunyer, Hermen Anglada-Camarasa or Torres-García, and early work by Picasso such as The Old Fisherman.
The old painting comes mostly from the purchases of Abbot Antoni M. Marcet in Rome and Naples between 1913 and 1920: there are Gothic panels, Italian Renaissance and Baroque painting and a Penitent Magdalene by El Greco. The avant-garde section is small but has Dalí, Rouault, Poliakoff, Torres-García and Sean Scully. Until January 2027 a Kandinsky is also on show, Painting with Three Spots, no. 196, on loan from the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.
The archaeology collection, with pieces from the Near East (Persia, Mesopotamia and Egypt) that Father Bonaventura Ubach began to gather in 1906, is temporarily closed for refurbishment. If that is what brings you, ask before paying. The two temporary exhibition rooms, the Sala Pere Daura and the Espai d'Art Pere Pruna, change throughout the year.
Opening hours and price
It opens every day from 10:00 to 17:45; on 25 December, from 10:00 to 14:00, and on some days marked in its calendar until 18:45. A quarter of an hour before closing the rooms begin to be cleared and no one is let in. Admission costs €12 for adults, €10 for students, pensioners and groups of 20 or more, and €6 for ages 8 to 16. Temporary exhibitions only, €3.50. It is free on 27 April, the feast of the Virgin of Montserrat. The audio guide, in Spanish, Catalan, English, French, German and Russian, costs €2.20 extra.
Before you go in
You cannot enter with rucksacks or bags larger than 30 × 30 cm, or with umbrellas. You can take photos without flash and without a tripod. Dogs do not enter, except assistance dogs, and children must be accompanied by an adult.
The museum is a couple of steps from the basilica and the Escolania. To go up without a car, the rack railway from Monistrol or the Aeri drop you at the sanctuary.
- **Riding the Montserrat Aeri** (5 min · Everyone; if you are afraid of heights, the rack railway is better · Desde 15 € return, adult): The Aeri is the cable car that climbs from the Llobregat valley to the monastery of Montserrat. It opened on 17 May 1930 and is still run by the same company that built it with the German firm Bleichert; much of the original machinery is still in use. The journey takes about five minutes, with the conglomerate wall ahead and the river below, and a cabin leaves every quarter of an hour. It is the fastest way up to the sanctuary and the most impressive: if you are afraid of heights, the rack railway from Monistrol does the same by land.
Five minutes hanging over the Llobregat
The lower station is beside the C-55 road, from Abrera to Manresa, at km 11.5, in the municipality of Monistrol de Montserrat. There you leave the car in the free car park, buy your ticket and wait for the next cabin. At the top the cabin leaves you a few minutes' walk from the monastery square, the basilica and the museum. The Aeri also has its own stop on line R5 of the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat, which leaves from plaça d'Espanya in Barcelona: you get off the train and walk into the station.
The timetable changes with the time of year and the Aeri publishes it in its calendar; also check on its website the service status notice and the live camera before setting out.
2026 fares and combined tickets

Adults: €10 single and €15 return.
Children aged 4 to 13: €5.25 and €7.50.
Over-65s, large or single-parent families, FEEC card or Amics de Montserrat: €8.75 and €12.50.
Under-4s: free.

The return is valid for three days from the first time you use it, and the single ticket, all day. Tickets are bought at the ticket office or in the Aeri's online shop. Groups of 20 or more have their own fare and must notify beforehand.
The Aeri also sells combined tickets. With a meal at the Buffet Montserrat, €35.75 for adults and €20.15 for children aged 5 to 13. With the museum, €24.25 for adults. With museum and buffet, €45.75. Discounts cannot be combined.
With a dog, by train or by car
Dogs go up free, on a lead and muzzled. If you come without a car from Barcelona, the R5 drops you at the door of the Aeri; if you come by car, the car park below saves you the paid one at the sanctuary.
A good combination is to go up by Aeri and come down by rack railway, or the other way round, although each leaves from a different station in the valley: if you left the car at the Aeri, come back by Aeri. Up top, the plan Aeri, funicular and the Sant Jeroni summit links the ride with the Sant Joan funicular and the path to Sant Jeroni, the roof of the mountain.
- **Riding the Montserrat Rack Railway from Monistrol** (15 min · 5 km · Everyone; the option without vertigo for going up to the monastery · Desde 15 € adult, return): The rack railway is the way up to Montserrat that makes the journey part of the visit. It leaves from Monistrol, in the Llobregat valley, and in about 15 minutes climbs almost 550 metres over five kilometres of track, four of them rack, with panoramic windows towards the valley and the conglomerate needles drawing closer. It arrives below the Plaça de la Creu, a step from the basilica.
From Barcelona, without a car
It is the complete journey by train: metro to Plaça d'Espanya, the R5 of Ferrocarrils to Monistrol de Montserrat (Monistrol Enllaç), where you change to the rack railway. Allow an hour and a half door to door. The Trans Montserrat ticket, from €50, combines the metro, the R5, the rack railway or the Aeri, the Sant Joan and Santa Cova funiculars when they run and the audiovisual; the Tot Montserrat, from €71.50, adds the museum and lunch at the buffet. They are open tickets: the voucher is exchanged at the Plaça d'Espanya point, from 8:00 to 14:00. The rack railway return is valid for a week, but the funiculars must be used on the day you go up. The T-Mobilitat card is not valid on the rack railway.
By car
Leave the car in the free car park at Monistrol-Vila, the one for rack railway customers, and go up by train. You save yourself the paid parking up top and the bends.
2026 prices
Return: €15 for an adult aged 14 to 65, €7.50 for a child aged 4 to 13 and €13.50 for over-65s. The first two trains of the day have a €12 ticket sold only at the Monistrol-Vila ticket office. Dogs travel free, on a lead and muzzled.
Rack railway or Aeri
The Aeri takes five minutes and hangs over the void; the rack railway takes three times longer and hugs the mountain. With small children or a fear of heights, take the train. Up top, the Sant Joan funicular goes up towards Sant Jeroni and the flat path to Sant Miquel starts a few steps from the station.
- **Western Horse Ride at the Foot of Montserrat, in Castellbell i el Vilar** (1 h · All levels; ponies for the little ones · Desde 30 € per hour, according to its website in 2020): Montserrat seen from the saddle, with no queues or rack railway: a relaxed ride through the meadows and tracks at the foot of the mountain.
What it is
It is a guided horse outing leaving from Natural Hipic, a western riding and natural horsemanship ranch in Castellbell i el Vilar, on the north face of Montserrat. You ride in a western saddle, wider and more enveloping than the English one, and follow the guide at a walk along the tracks of the Montserrat Mountain Natural Park, with the conglomerate pinnacles ahead. It is not a lesson or a sporting route: it is a ride for looking at the mountain from a place few people pass.
The ranch works with small groups, of one to four people according to its excursions page. The horses are broken in with natural horsemanship, which aims for the animal to cooperate calmly, and that shows on a ride with beginners.
Who it is for
For people who have never ridden and for those who already do: the website says they have rides for both and horses for any level. There are ponies for small children. It does not publish a minimum age or maximum weight, so tell them when you book the age, height and experience of each person, and they choose the horse and the outing.
If you are going with teenagers, western riding hooks them: the horse is guided with one hand and the ride has something of a western film about it.
Duration, days and price
The outings are paid by the hour. In May 2020 the website published that they ran Tuesday to Sunday mornings and cost €30 per hour, for groups of one to seven people. It is the only price it has published for the ride: today's and the duration that suits you best are confirmed by WhatsApp. According to that news item, there were no outings on Mondays.
In summer they offer sunrise horse riding: Tuesday to Sunday in June, July and August, you set off at 6:00, return at 8:00 and at 8:30 have breakfast at the ranch. In June 2021 it cost €75 per person, in groups of one to six. It is the way to ride without the heat and with the first light on the pinnacles; ask whether they are doing it this year.
How to book
By WhatsApp on 609 43 80 80, which is the channel the website asks for for excursions. Write a few days ahead, especially for weekends, because groups are small. Say how many of you there are, each person's experience, the day and time you prefer, and ask for the price, what is included and whether they lend a helmet.
How to get there
You need a car. The ranch is on the BV-1122 road, km 0.45, on the outskirts of Castellbell i el Vilar: about 50 minutes from Barcelona and about 20 from Manresa. Look it up on Google Maps as Natural Hípic. From there, the Montserrat sanctuary is half an hour by car, via Monistrol, where you can leave the car and go up on the rack railway.
Complete the day
Five minutes from the ranch you have two local eateries: Cal Jaume, in Marganell, with Catalan cooking and views of the mountain, and the grill restaurant Can Ferreroles Nou, on the Marganell road. In the afternoon, go up to the sanctuary for the basilica and the Moreneta or the Els Degotalls Path. The whole plan is in Montserrat on horseback and by rack railway.

## Dónde comer
- **Buffet Montserrat** (Restaurant, Montserrat, €). Qué pedir: Self-service buffet of Mediterranean and international dishes; to eat without queues, go in before 13:00 or after the time of the Escolania's singing.
- **Can Ferreroles Nou Restaurant** (Restaurant, Castellbell i el Vilar, €€). Qué pedir: Meat grilled over holm oak charcoal, such as pig's trotters or pork cheeks, butifarra sausage or the beef chop; from January to Easter, calçotada.
- **La Cafeteria de Montserrat** (Café, Montserrat, €). Qué pedir: A hot sandwich or a set plate before setting out to walk.
- **Restaurant Cal Jaume** (Restaurant, Marganell, €€). Qué pedir: Something from the holm-oak charcoal grill or a rice dish, and Montserrat mató for dessert; on weekdays, the set menu of the day.
- **Restaurante Hostal Abat Cisneros** (Restaurant, Montserrat, €€). Qué pedir: traditional cooking with the odd new touch, in the dining room of the old stables.

## By car: By Car, Better to Park Down Below
Montserrat is an hour from Barcelona by the C-55 or the A-2. You can drive up to the sanctuary, but the car park at the top is paid and fills up; down below there are two free car parks from which you go up by rack railway or cable car.
Presupuesto orientativo: 60–120 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're driving
- **Alberg Abat Oliba** (Hostel): The Alberg Abat Oliba is the hostel of the Montserrat sanctuary. It occupies a 1952 building inside the precinct, completely renovated in 2018, and is the most flexible accommodation on the mountain: it has bunks for those travelling alone or in a group, private rooms for couples and almost forty family rooms with kitchens. Sleeping here lets you see the sanctuary when the last rack railway has gone, and as a guest you enter the basilica without paying the tourist ticket.
Bunks below, families above
The building is divided by floor. On the first and second floors is the hostel part: a studio for one or two people without a kitchen, rooms for 4, 6 and 10 with bunks and a private bathroom, which can be shared with other travellers or booked whole, and an 8-bed room with bunks and a kitchen. From the third to the sixth floor are the 38 family rooms: studios for one or two people, doubles and rooms for 4, 6 and 8 with beds and bunks; some have an open-plan kitchen.
There is free wifi throughout the building. There is also a public kitchen, a dining room for groups, a common area, bicycle parking, a children's play area, a lift and adapted access for people with reduced mobility.
Sheets, towels and kitchen, for a supplement
Bed linen and towels are not included: you either bring them or ask for them for a supplement when you book. Also paid separately are the cot, use of the kitchen, laundry and clothes drying, and the luggage service for groups, with prior booking. Under-3s do not pay. The sanctuary's listing does not publish prices per bed or per room: they are given by the booking engine on its website or the central office, on 938 777 701 and at reserves@larsa-montserrat.com. Payment is by AMEX or VISA card. Animals are not allowed.
Check-in from 13:00, check-out before 10:00
You can check in from 13:00 and must leave the room before 10:00. Unlike the hotel and the sanctuary's cells, the hostel does not include the rack railway ticket: if you come by car, park free at Monistrol-Vila and buy the ticket there, or go up on the Aeri from its free car park on the C-55. Without a car, the R5 from plaça d'Espanya connects with both.
The Path of the Hermitages starts opposite
The Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel and Sant Joan begins opposite the hostel and climbs to the Sant Miquel viewpoint and the hermitages. For meals, the Cafetería de Montserrat opens at 8:45 and the precinct's grocery shop, the Queviures, until 17:45 on weekdays and 18:45 at weekends: shop before closing if you are going to cook. If you are looking for an apartment with a kitchen that admits dogs, the Cel·les Abat Marcet are in the same precinct.
- **Cel·les Abat Marcet** (Apartment): The Cel·les Abat Marcet are the apartments of the Montserrat sanctuary: a 1960s building, designed by Father Pere Busquets, on plaça de l'Abat Oliba, inside the precinct. They are named after Abbot Antoni Maria Marcet, who governed Montserrat from 1912 to 1946. In 2023 a thorough energy refurbishment was carried out with Next Generation EU funds: new windows, an insulated façade and independent heating in each apartment. It is the option for staying two or three days, cooking at home and getting around the mountain on foot, and, unlike the hotel and the hostel, it admits dogs.
From the studio to the apartment for four
The building has 92 apartments, with room for 260 people. According to the sanctuary's listing, there are 14 studios for one person, 34 apartments for two, 12 for three and 34 for four. All have a living-dining room, equipped kitchen, full bathroom, heating, telephone and television. There is a lift and adapted access for people with reduced mobility. Payment is by AMEX or VISA card.
The listing does not publish prices: they are given by the Montserrat Visita booking engine when you choose dates and occupancy. If it shows as closed for your days, call the central office, on 938 777 701, or write to reserves@larsa-montserrat.com.
Children free and dogs for a supplement
Children up to 12 do not pay if they are with two adults, with a maximum of one free child per apartment: a family of two adults and two children pays for one of the two. Dogs are welcome with a supplement per stay; the listing does not say how much, so ask when you book. To go up with your dog, the Aeri takes it free, on a lead and muzzled.
Rack railway included and shopping before you go up
If you book on the Montserrat Visita website, the rack railway ticket for every day of the stay is included: you park free at the Monistrol-Vila station, collect the ticket at the ticket office and go up without a car. You can come down and go up each day without paying more. As a guest, you also enter the basilica without the tourist ticket.
You enter the apartment from 13:00 and leave it before 10:00. For cooking, the precinct's grocery shop, the Queviures, opens from 9:00 to 17:45 on weekdays and until 18:45 at weekends and public holidays; for the first dinner, bring your shopping from below.
Els Degotalls and Sant Jeroni from plaça de l'Abat Oliba
From plaça de l'Abat Oliba you can walk to the Els Degotalls path, flat and 50 minutes, which works with small children, and to the Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel. With a full day, the climb to Sant Jeroni on the Sant Joan funicular takes you to the top of the mountain. The Cafetería de Montserrat opens at 8:45 if you do not fancy breakfast at home.
- **Hostal Abat Cisneros** (Hotel): The Hostal Abat Cisneros is the hotel of the Montserrat sanctuary, a three-star in the Plaça de l'Abat Oliba, a few steps from the basilica. Its building has put up pilgrims since 1563; it became a guesthouse in the late 1950s and was modernised afterwards. Many rooms look onto the mountain or the square, and beyond it, the Llobregat valley. Sleeping here is the way to see Montserrat at sunset and first thing in the morning, when the sanctuary empties of coaches and day visitors.
Eighty-two rooms, nearly all with twin beds
There are 82 rooms for 153 guests: 17 singles, 55 doubles and 4 with a sitting room; 12 are connecting, handy for a family who want two rooms side by side. Most of them, 58, have two beds, and 24 have a double bed: if you want one, ask when you book. 62 face the mountain or the square. All have a bath or shower, satellite television, telephone, parquet floors and heating.
The hotel has a lift and step-free access for guests with disabilities, a bar and restaurant, meeting rooms, a reading room, safes and a children's play area. Groups can request a porter service with advance booking. Payment is by AMEX or VISA card, and animals are not allowed.
The sanctuary's listing does not publish prices or check-in and check-out times: these come from the Montserrat Visita booking engine or the reception, on 938 777 701 and at reserves@larsa-montserrat.com. Members of Amics de Montserrat get a discount.
The rack railway is included if you book on their website
If you book on the Montserrat Visita website, the rate includes the rack railway ticket for every day of your stay. You collect it at the ticket office at Monistrol-Vila station, where parking is free, and you go up without a car. If you would rather drive all the way up, the sanctuary car park is paid, with a public fee set every year, and has limited spaces. As a guest, you enter the basilica and the Virgin's camarín without paying the tourist entrance fee.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner in the old stables
The restaurant of the Hostal Abat Cisneros occupies the 16th-century stables, with a stone vault and the rock of the mountain as a wall. It serves lunch from 13:00 to 15:00, and its booking system also opens breakfast sittings, from 8:00 to 10:00, and a buffet dinner, from 19:30 to 21:00; book on 607 243 305. The other options on the site close in the afternoon: the buffet at 16:00 and the cafeteria at 17:30, or 18:30 at weekends. For a quick breakfast, the Montserrat Cafeteria opens at 8:45.
The basilica on the same square
The basilica and the Escolania are on the same square: the choir sings Monday to Friday at 13:00 and on Sundays at 12:00, and the basilica opens at 7:00, before the first rack train goes up. A few minutes' walk away, the Camí de les Ermites and the Els Degotalls path begin, and the Sant Joan funicular climbs towards Sant Jeroni.
### Servicios
- **Montserrat Rack Railway at Monistrol-Vila**: Rack railway station with free parking · climbs to the heart of the sanctuary · connects with the R5 from Barcelona

## Car-free: Without a Car, by Train and Rack Railway
Montserrat is one of the few mountain sanctuaries you can reach comfortably without a car. The Ferrocarrils R5 leaves Plaça d'Espanya every hour and connects with the Aeri and the rack railway; up top, everything is done on foot and with the funiculars.
Presupuesto orientativo: 50–100 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir without a car
- **Alberg Abat Oliba** (Hostel): The Alberg Abat Oliba is the hostel of the Montserrat sanctuary. It occupies a 1952 building inside the precinct, completely renovated in 2018, and is the most flexible accommodation on the mountain: it has bunks for those travelling alone or in a group, private rooms for couples and almost forty family rooms with kitchens. Sleeping here lets you see the sanctuary when the last rack railway has gone, and as a guest you enter the basilica without paying the tourist ticket.
Bunks below, families above
The building is divided by floor. On the first and second floors is the hostel part: a studio for one or two people without a kitchen, rooms for 4, 6 and 10 with bunks and a private bathroom, which can be shared with other travellers or booked whole, and an 8-bed room with bunks and a kitchen. From the third to the sixth floor are the 38 family rooms: studios for one or two people, doubles and rooms for 4, 6 and 8 with beds and bunks; some have an open-plan kitchen.
There is free wifi throughout the building. There is also a public kitchen, a dining room for groups, a common area, bicycle parking, a children's play area, a lift and adapted access for people with reduced mobility.
Sheets, towels and kitchen, for a supplement
Bed linen and towels are not included: you either bring them or ask for them for a supplement when you book. Also paid separately are the cot, use of the kitchen, laundry and clothes drying, and the luggage service for groups, with prior booking. Under-3s do not pay. The sanctuary's listing does not publish prices per bed or per room: they are given by the booking engine on its website or the central office, on 938 777 701 and at reserves@larsa-montserrat.com. Payment is by AMEX or VISA card. Animals are not allowed.
Check-in from 13:00, check-out before 10:00
You can check in from 13:00 and must leave the room before 10:00. Unlike the hotel and the sanctuary's cells, the hostel does not include the rack railway ticket: if you come by car, park free at Monistrol-Vila and buy the ticket there, or go up on the Aeri from its free car park on the C-55. Without a car, the R5 from plaça d'Espanya connects with both.
The Path of the Hermitages starts opposite
The Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel and Sant Joan begins opposite the hostel and climbs to the Sant Miquel viewpoint and the hermitages. For meals, the Cafetería de Montserrat opens at 8:45 and the precinct's grocery shop, the Queviures, until 17:45 on weekdays and 18:45 at weekends: shop before closing if you are going to cook. If you are looking for an apartment with a kitchen that admits dogs, the Cel·les Abat Marcet are in the same precinct.
- **Cel·les Abat Marcet** (Apartment): The Cel·les Abat Marcet are the apartments of the Montserrat sanctuary: a 1960s building, designed by Father Pere Busquets, on plaça de l'Abat Oliba, inside the precinct. They are named after Abbot Antoni Maria Marcet, who governed Montserrat from 1912 to 1946. In 2023 a thorough energy refurbishment was carried out with Next Generation EU funds: new windows, an insulated façade and independent heating in each apartment. It is the option for staying two or three days, cooking at home and getting around the mountain on foot, and, unlike the hotel and the hostel, it admits dogs.
From the studio to the apartment for four
The building has 92 apartments, with room for 260 people. According to the sanctuary's listing, there are 14 studios for one person, 34 apartments for two, 12 for three and 34 for four. All have a living-dining room, equipped kitchen, full bathroom, heating, telephone and television. There is a lift and adapted access for people with reduced mobility. Payment is by AMEX or VISA card.
The listing does not publish prices: they are given by the Montserrat Visita booking engine when you choose dates and occupancy. If it shows as closed for your days, call the central office, on 938 777 701, or write to reserves@larsa-montserrat.com.
Children free and dogs for a supplement
Children up to 12 do not pay if they are with two adults, with a maximum of one free child per apartment: a family of two adults and two children pays for one of the two. Dogs are welcome with a supplement per stay; the listing does not say how much, so ask when you book. To go up with your dog, the Aeri takes it free, on a lead and muzzled.
Rack railway included and shopping before you go up
If you book on the Montserrat Visita website, the rack railway ticket for every day of the stay is included: you park free at the Monistrol-Vila station, collect the ticket at the ticket office and go up without a car. You can come down and go up each day without paying more. As a guest, you also enter the basilica without the tourist ticket.
You enter the apartment from 13:00 and leave it before 10:00. For cooking, the precinct's grocery shop, the Queviures, opens from 9:00 to 17:45 on weekdays and until 18:45 at weekends and public holidays; for the first dinner, bring your shopping from below.
Els Degotalls and Sant Jeroni from plaça de l'Abat Oliba
From plaça de l'Abat Oliba you can walk to the Els Degotalls path, flat and 50 minutes, which works with small children, and to the Path of the Hermitages by Sant Miquel. With a full day, the climb to Sant Jeroni on the Sant Joan funicular takes you to the top of the mountain. The Cafetería de Montserrat opens at 8:45 if you do not fancy breakfast at home.
- **Hostal Abat Cisneros** (Hotel): The Hostal Abat Cisneros is the hotel of the Montserrat sanctuary, a three-star in the Plaça de l'Abat Oliba, a few steps from the basilica. Its building has put up pilgrims since 1563; it became a guesthouse in the late 1950s and was modernised afterwards. Many rooms look onto the mountain or the square, and beyond it, the Llobregat valley. Sleeping here is the way to see Montserrat at sunset and first thing in the morning, when the sanctuary empties of coaches and day visitors.
Eighty-two rooms, nearly all with twin beds
There are 82 rooms for 153 guests: 17 singles, 55 doubles and 4 with a sitting room; 12 are connecting, handy for a family who want two rooms side by side. Most of them, 58, have two beds, and 24 have a double bed: if you want one, ask when you book. 62 face the mountain or the square. All have a bath or shower, satellite television, telephone, parquet floors and heating.
The hotel has a lift and step-free access for guests with disabilities, a bar and restaurant, meeting rooms, a reading room, safes and a children's play area. Groups can request a porter service with advance booking. Payment is by AMEX or VISA card, and animals are not allowed.
The sanctuary's listing does not publish prices or check-in and check-out times: these come from the Montserrat Visita booking engine or the reception, on 938 777 701 and at reserves@larsa-montserrat.com. Members of Amics de Montserrat get a discount.
The rack railway is included if you book on their website
If you book on the Montserrat Visita website, the rate includes the rack railway ticket for every day of your stay. You collect it at the ticket office at Monistrol-Vila station, where parking is free, and you go up without a car. If you would rather drive all the way up, the sanctuary car park is paid, with a public fee set every year, and has limited spaces. As a guest, you enter the basilica and the Virgin's camarín without paying the tourist entrance fee.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner in the old stables
The restaurant of the Hostal Abat Cisneros occupies the 16th-century stables, with a stone vault and the rock of the mountain as a wall. It serves lunch from 13:00 to 15:00, and its booking system also opens breakfast sittings, from 8:00 to 10:00, and a buffet dinner, from 19:30 to 21:00; book on 607 243 305. The other options on the site close in the afternoon: the buffet at 16:00 and the cafeteria at 17:30, or 18:30 at weekends. For a quick breakfast, the Montserrat Cafeteria opens at 8:45.
The basilica on the same square
The basilica and the Escolania are on the same square: the choir sings Monday to Friday at 13:00 and on Sundays at 12:00, and the basilica opens at 7:00, before the first rack train goes up. A few minutes' walk away, the Camí de les Ermites and the Els Degotalls path begin, and the Sant Joan funicular climbs towards Sant Jeroni.
### Servicios
- **Montserrat Rack Railway at Monistrol-Vila**: Rack railway station with free parking · climbs to the heart of the sanctuary · connects with the R5 from Barcelona
- **R5 Train from Plaça d'Espanya**: Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat from Plaça d'Espanya · every hour from 8:26 · stops for the Aeri and the rack railway

## As a family: Trains, Cable Car and a Level Walk

With children, the ascent is already half the outing: the rack railway or the cable car makes the day. Up top, it is best to alternate some time at the sanctuary with a short path.

### What works best
The Aeri: five minutes hanging over the valley; ages 4 to 13, €7.50 return

The Els Degotalls path: 50 almost level minutes, with gravestones and ceramics to look for

The Escolania singing at 13:00, Monday to Friday: a children's choir

The stretch of the Camí de les Ermites up to the Sant Miquel viewpoint

A horse ride at Natural Hipic, down below, in Castellbell i el Vilar: they have ponies for little ones; the website sets no minimum age

### Sleep
Cel·les Abat Marcet: apartments with kitchen; one child free up to age 12 with two adults

Alberg Abat Oliba: 38 family rooms, free up to age 3

### Eat
Buffet Montserrat, no booking, from 12:15 to 16:00

Cafeteria from 8:45 for sandwiches

Down below, Can Ferreroles Nou, with a summer terrace where the children play

### Keep in mind
The museum costs €6 for ages 8 to 16

The paths are stony: a baby carrier is better than a pushchair beyond Els Degotalls

### Qué hacer as a family
- Hermitages Path via Sant Miquel and Sant Joan
- Basilica, the Moreneta and the Escolania Choir
- Els Degotalls Path
- Montserrat Museum
- Riding the Montserrat Aeri
- Riding the Montserrat Rack Railway from Monistrol
- Western Horse Ride at the Foot of Montserrat, in Castellbell i el Vilar

## With teenagers: Up to the Roof of Montserrat

A teenager gets through the sanctuary quickly; the mountain lasts a good deal longer. Plan the day as an ascent with the monastery as base camp.

### What works best
Sant Jeroni, 1,236 m: 2 h 30 with the Sant Joan funicular, and a table that points out everything from the Pyrenees to Mallorca

The Camí de les Ermites, with hermitages tucked into cracks in the rock

Going up by Aeri, with the conglomerate wall right in front of you

A western-style horse ride at the foot of the mountain, at Natural Hipic, also for people who have never ridden

### Sleep
Alberg Abat Oliba, with bunk-bed rooms and a shared kitchen

### Eat
Sandwiches from the cafeteria to take to the summit

### Keep in mind
There is no water or anywhere to buy anything at the top

The Sant Joan funicular has its annual overhaul in January

### Qué hacer with teenagers
- Hermitages Path via Sant Miquel and Sant Joan
- Climb to Sant Jeroni with the Sant Joan Funicular
- Riding the Montserrat Aeri
- Riding the Montserrat Rack Railway from Monistrol
- Western Horse Ride at the Foot of Montserrat, in Castellbell i el Vilar

## Consejos

### Arrive before ten
Groups arrive mid-morning. First thing, the basilica and the viewpoints are quiet.

### Plan the day around the Escolania
It sings at 13:00 from Monday to Friday. Check its calendar: it changes with liturgical festivals and the school year.

### Come down on the rack railway at quarter past
Those leaving Montserrat at quarter past connect with the R5 to Barcelona.

### Wear mountain footwear
The paths are stone and in some stretches the climb is steep. The park asks you not to leave the marked trails.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### Do I have to pay an entrance fee?
For the atrium, the basilica and the Virgin's camarín there is a tourist ticket. Exempt are those attending Mass, guests staying at the sanctuary and residents of Catalonia, the rest of Spain or the EU travelling independently, who book on the abbey's website up to a month ahead.

### When does the Escolania sing?
Monday to Friday at 13:00; on Sundays it takes part in the conventual Mass. It does not sing from Sant Joan until the end of August, nor after Christmas and Easter.

### How long does it take from Barcelona?
An hour by car. By public transport, an hour and a half with the R5 from Plaça d'Espanya and the rack railway or cable car.

### Do the funiculars run?
The Sant Joan one runs all year except for its annual overhaul in January. The Santa Cova one is out of service for maintenance until further notice.

### Can I go with children?
Yes. The rack railway and cable car are already part of the excursion, and the Els Degotalls path, at 50 minutes, is short and almost flat.

### Can I stay overnight in Montserrat?
Yes, inside the sanctuary: the three-star Hostal Abat Cisneros; the Cel·les Abat Marcet apartments, which accept dogs, and the Alberg Abat Oliba. If you book through the hotel's or apartments' website, the rack railway is included.

### Can I go horse riding in Montserrat?
Yes, at the foot of the mountain. Natural Hipic, in Castellbell i el Vilar, runs guided western-style rides Tuesday to Sunday mornings; you book by WhatsApp and you need a car.

### Where can I eat?
At the sanctuary there is a cafeteria, a buffet and the restaurant of the Hotel Abat Cisneros, open from 13:00 to 15:00. The Bar Mirador dels Apòstols, from 9:00 to 17:00, is good for a coffee with a view.