Monserrat Monastery Tour
The Hilton Hotel teamed up with Disney Cruise Line and offered us an early morning tour to Monserrat Monastery. Disney Cruise Line picked up our luggage and sent it to the ship on a separate bus. Our tour bus for Monserrat Monastery left immediately after breakfast and arrangements had been made to drop us at the Disney Cruise Line Magic at noontime for our Transatlantic sailing.
If you want a chance to see the Black Madona which the Monastery is famous for you must arrive on one of the first busses of the day. By 9:30 AM all admissions to that area are gone. The tour bus takes about an hour from Barcelona on all flat highway roads. At the base of the mountain it is a steady uphill climb to the top on a very winding one way road full of hairpin turns. At some points you will be looking off into the bear edge of nothing straight down. Once you reach the top the bus parks in the lot at the dining room and bathrooms. You will need to follow the path down to the Monastery. The tour bus then leaves and parks in a different parking lot. The walk to the Monastery is beautiful with a view for miles. There is an incline car that runs up and down the mountain and a hiking trail that runs side of it. The Monastery is built into the mountain. Outside is a gift shop and the entrance. Be prepared to climb lots of stairs on the self guided tour. If you are lucky enough to arrive early the meeting point for the Black Madonna is pointed out to you. The Monastery is beautiful and services go on almost continuosly. You will be left on your own for about an hour and a half with instuctions to walk back to the restaurant area to meet your tour guide and bus driver. It is amazing how many cars line the road with people hiking to get to the top. There is very little parking at the top.
Set the GPS to CITY OF BARCELONA SPAIN