In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Take the FGC R5 from Plaça Espanya (hourly from 8:26) and change at Monistrol de Montserrat for the rack railway, or at Montserrat-Aeri for the cable car; about 1½ hours each way. The combined train and rack-railway ticket is €28.80 return. Visitors who do not live in the EU need a tourist ticket for the basilica and the Black Virgin, bookable a month ahead. The Black Virgin’s chapel closes from 10:30 to 12:00, and the boys’ choir sings at 13:00 on weekdays outside summer. Or book a tour: here a tour costs little more than the train. The Montserrat tour with the cogwheel train, the Black Madonna and a wineryad is from £33.43, about £9 more than the train and rack railway alone, and puts the transport and the visit in one booking.
Getting there on your own
Montserrat’s visitor site gives two ways up from the FGC R5 line (Barcelona–Manresa), which leaves Barcelona-Plaça Espanya every hour from 8:26 (montserratvisita.com, 30 September 2026):
| Way up | Get off the R5 at | Ride to the monastery | Return fare, ride only |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rack railway (Cremallera) | Monistrol de Montserrat | 15 minutes, every 20 minutes, climbing more than 600 metres over 5 km | €15 |
| Cable car (Aeri) | Montserrat-Aeri, one stop earlier | 5 minutes, every 15 minutes | €15 |
- One ticket for train and rack railway: the FGC and rack-railway pack from Plaça Espanya is €28.80 return or €15.90 one way for an adult, prices valid to 31 December 2026 (turistren.cat, 30 September 2026). Monistrol de Montserrat is in fare zone 4.
- Travel cards don’t reach the top: the T-mobilitat is not valid on the rack railway, the cable car or the funiculars; buy their tickets separately.
- Coming back: the rack-railway trains that leave the monastery at a quarter past each hour connect with the R5 to Barcelona.
- Collecting a package: packages that include the train from Barcelona are collected at the FGC station at Plaça Espanya between 8:00 and 14:00 only; outside those hours they cannot be exchanged.
The rack-railway station at the monastery. Photo: Kaboldy, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
The Trans Montserrat package, sold online and at FGC Plaça Espanya, bundles a metro ticket, the FGC train and rack railway both ways, the Sant Joan funicular, the Audiovisual Space and entry to the Black Virgin’s chapel without a booked time. It is valid on any date to 31 December, can be cancelled only within 15 days of purchase, and has no discounts (fgc.cat, 30 September 2026).
Tours from Barcelona
Compare a tour with €28.80 (about £24.68 at the ECB rate of 29 September 2026) for the train and rack railway, before the tourist ticket. Tour prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” price on 30 September 2026.
The monastery of Montserrat. Photo: Bernard Gagnon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Cogwheel train, Black Madonna and a winery
From £33.43 · 4.7 stars from 6,967 reviews · 6 hours
Barcelona: Montserrat, Cogwheel, Black Madonna & Winery Tourad goes up by the rack railway and into the monastery, then on to a family-owned winery; lunch or tapas there is an upgrade.
Rack railway and the Black Virgin, half a day
From £42.98 · 4.6 stars from 9,129 reviews · 5 hours
Barcelona: Montserrat Tour with Rack Railway & Black Madonnaad is the half-day version without the winery: the rack railway up, the basilica and the Black Virgin, and the rock formations of the massif. It is the most-reviewed of the tours on this page.
Transfers and basilica entry
From £34.24 · 4.7 stars from 3,648 reviews · 6 hours
Barcelona: Montserrat Tour, Transfers & Basilica Entryad names basilica entry in its title: the ticket visitors who do not live in the EU need.
Small group, early start
From £34.71 · 4.8 stars from 1,844 reviews · 5½ hours
From Barcelona: Half-Day Montserrat Small Group Guided Tourad leaves early in the morning, with a guided tour at the top and free time after it.
Cable car and an easy walk
From £63.43 · 4.9 stars from 1,313 reviews · 6 hours
From Barcelona: Montserrat Monastery, Easy Hike, Cable Carad goes up by cable car and adds the cloister, an old chapel and a walk with views over the massif.
At the top
Opening hours from Montserrat’s visitor site, read on 29 September 2026:
| What | Hours | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Basilica | 7:00–20:00 | Visitors who do not live in the EU need the tourist ticket for the atrium, the basilica and the Black Virgin’s chapel. |
| Black Virgin’s chapel (the Throne) | 8:00–10:30 and 12:00–18:25 | In packages that include it, the booked time is the time for the chapel; see everything else before or after. |
| Escolania boys’ choir | 13:00, Monday to Friday | Does not sing from 24 June to the end of August, after Christmas or in Holy Week; times change with services and the school calendar. |
| Museum of Montserrat | 10:00–17:45 weekdays; 10:00–18:45 weekends | The cable car sells a return with museum entry for €24.25. |
| Audiovisual Space | 9:00–18:45 weekdays; 9:00–20:00 weekends | Included in the Trans Montserrat package. |
| Sant Joan funicular | Varies by season | €17.50 return; up to the higher paths and viewpoints above the monastery. |
The Black Virgin in the basilica. Photo: José Luiz, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
- The tourist ticket is not needed by people attending mass or other services, by residents of Catalonia, the rest of Spain and the EU travelling on their own, or by guests staying overnight on the mountain.
- Book a month ahead at most: tourist tickets and packages open one month before the date.
- The Santa Cova funicular, down to the chapel where the Black Virgin was found, is out of service for maintenance until further notice (Turistren, 29 September 2026).
- Buy tickets from montserratvisita.com, the monastery’s visitor site; travel agencies and guides book through the Montserrat Bookings Centre.
GetYourGuide also resells a museum and monastery ticketad (from £19.71, 4.6 stars from 2,173 reviews) for visitors making their own way up.
A day, hour by hour
The Black Virgin’s chapel shuts from 10:30 to 12:00, so on the first train you arrive as it closes. Build the day round the chapel and the choir instead:
| Time | What |
|---|---|
| 9:26 | R5 from Plaça Espanya |
| About 11:00 | At the monastery: the museum or the Audiovisual Space first |
| 12:00 | The Black Virgin’s chapel reopens |
| 13:00 (Monday to Friday) | The Escolania in the basilica, outside summer and Holy Week |
| Afternoon | The Sant Joan funicular and the paths above the monastery |
| A quarter past the hour | Rack railway down, connecting with the R5 to Barcelona |
The rock pinnacles of the Montserrat massif. Photo: Bernard Gagnon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Combining it with somewhere else
- Wine: the half-day wine and tapas tripad pairs a guided visit to the mountain with a winery (from £76.28, 4.8 stars from 2,067 reviews, 7 hours).
- Girona and the Costa Brava: the Montserrat, Girona and Costa Brava day tripad is from £56.56 (4.8 stars from 1,963 reviews, 11½ hours).
Montserrat is one of several day trips from Barcelona: the same page compares Girona and Figueres, Sitges, Tarragona, the Costa Brava and Andorra. For the sights back in the city that need booking, see what to book before you go in Barcelona.
Common questions
How do I get from Barcelona to Montserrat by train?
Take the FGC R5 (Barcelona–Manresa) from Plaça Espanya; trains leave every hour from 8:26. Get off at Monistrol de Montserrat for the rack railway (15 minutes up) or one stop earlier at Montserrat-Aeri for the cable car (5 minutes up). Allow about an hour and a half each way.
How much is the train to Montserrat?
A combined FGC train and rack-railway ticket from Plaça Espanya is €28.80 return (€15.90 one way) for an adult, prices valid to 31 December 2026. The rack railway alone is €15 return and the cable car €15 return.
Do you need a ticket to enter Montserrat basilica?
Visitors who do not live in Catalonia, the rest of Spain or another EU country need the tourist ticket for the atrium, the basilica and the Black Virgin's chapel. It is sold in several combinations on montserratvisita.com and can be booked a month ahead. People attending mass or staying overnight on the mountain are exempt.
Is a Montserrat tour worth it?
More often than for most day trips. Tours with transport start at £33.43 on GetYourGuide, against €28.80 (about £24.68) for the train and rack railway alone, before the tourist ticket. A tour also saves the change at Monistrol and the hourly train back.
