Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Don't Miss
La Sagrada Família
If you have time for only one sightseeing outing, this should be it. La
Sagrada Família inspires awe by its sheer verticality and magnificently
elaborate design - inside and out. It may be unfinished, but it attracts
around 2.8 million visitors a year and is the most visited monument in
Spain. There's much to explore here - symbol-rich facades, an other-
worldly interior and the on-site Museu Gaudí, which houses materials on
the master's life and work.
» 93 207 30 31
» Carrer de Mallorca 401
» adult/child under 10yr/senior & student €13/free/11
»
9am-8pm Apr-Sep, to 6pm Oct-Mar
»
Sagrada Família
The Design
Gaudí devised a temple 95m long and 60m wide, able to seat 13,000 people. It was to
have a central tower 170m high above the transept (representing Christ) and another 17
of 100m or more. The 12 towers along the three facades represent the Apostles, while the
remaining five represent the Virgin Mary and the four Evangelists. With his characteristic
dislike for straight lines (he said there were none in nature), Gaudí gave his towers swell-
ing outlines inspired by the weird peaks of the holy mountain Montserrat outside Bar-
celona, and encrusted them with a tangle of sculpture that seems an outgrowth of the
stone.
Guesses on when construction might be complete range from the 2020s to the 2040s.
Already, some of the oldest parts of the church, especially the apse, have required restor-
ation work.
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