Tibidabo: the best views over Barcelona and how to get there

We finally had to go to Barcelona a third time to get to Tibidabo! Tibidabo is the imposing mountain you see from every corner of Barcelona, just across the sea. Here you will find a church, an amusement park, and maybe the most beautiful view over Barcelona, which is 500 m high.

I say maybe because there are several other praised lookout points, like Bunkers del Carmel or Mirador d’Horta.

They say Tibidabo might not be worth its popularity regarding views, but I never listen to this kind of travel gossip and always want to check it out myself. And after seeing the views and the gorgeous, Instagrammable church at the top, I think it’s worth giving it a go. With one mention! This go might take half a day or even more if you also want to spend time in the amusement park. So if you don’t have enough time in Barcelona, I would say skip it for your next trip here.

Let me tell you more about Tibidabo, what you can find here, and how to get to the top. And keep reading to see where you can get the iconic shot of the church from (hint: you don’t need a drone!😉)

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Suggestions for accommodation in Barcelona in the Rambla area. We always stay on La Rambla each time; it’s close to many attractions, and we really love the vibrant atmosphere.

Low Budget

Medium budget

Other excellent options for a medium budget are Casa Lirio, Casa Abamita, Violeta Boutique, Arc La Rambla, Boutique Hotel H10 Catalunya Plaza, and H10 Universitat.

Boutique/Luxury

Other excellent Boutique/Luxury options are Iberostar Paseo de Gracia, Kimpton Vividora Hotel, Gòtic by The 5ve Soul, and The Streets Apartments Rambla.

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What can I find at Tibidabo?

You can find the amusement park, the Panoramic Area, and the Sagrat Cor temple up the mountain Tibidabo.

The amusement park

The Tibidabo amusement park is not a regular one but a 100-year-old park! And it still has many of those first attractions, although they added more with time. Check here the park’s history. They have a roller coaster, bumper cars, a huge rocking ship, teacups and more, see here all the attractions with photos and a brief description.

It’s not open year-round, so check the exact schedule here. From March to December, it’s open only on weekends and holidays, except for July, when it’s open Wednesday to Sunday, and August, when it’s open daily.

The ticket for the amusement park is €35 per person (€14 for kids between 90-120cm, free for kids under 90cm), and it includes the Panoramic Area rides.

The Panoramic Area

The Panoramic Area is a plaza with beautiful views of the sea and the entire city of Barcelona. It also has some rides, all with a panoramic theme, and many of them have been here since the park was built.

You’ll find a Ferris wheel, a plane replica of the first plane that flew in Spain (an attraction built in 1928, considered the first flight simulator; at that time, most people couldn’t afford to fly), the Talaia (a cabin that takes you very high, to even better views, opened in 1921), the Embruixabruixes aerial railway (a panoramic suspended roller coaster, originally opened in 1915 and recently restored).

Check the schedule for the panoramic area here. It’s open daily from March through December and only on weekends in February.

You can buy a ticket for the Panoramic Area only for €19 (€10.50 for kids between 90-120cm, free for kids under 90cm). I’ll detail the costs below, but know that access to the Panoramic Area itself is free; you only need to pay for rides.

Sagrat Cor Temple

It’s a gorgeous church right on top of the mountain, with an open-armed statue of Jesus above. You can visit the church for free daily. To climb up to the terrace, you need to use the tourist elevator, at a cost of 5€ per person. We did not enter the church, but I really wanted to take this iconic shot that eventually raged on Instagram 😄.

Top tip: you can take this shot from the Talaia ride once you’re high up above!

How do I get to Tibidabo?

Find all the details on how to get to Tibidabo here, but I’ll also explain it briefly below.

Tibibus

There are two Tibibuses that run only when the amusement park is open (I mentioned the schedule above), and both take you to Plaça Doctor Andreu at Cuca de Llum, the lower station of the funicular that goes up to Tibidabo.

The Tibibus journey is included in all entrance ticket types.

• Line T2B departs from Paseo de la Vall d’Hebron (here on Google Maps). It’s near the Vall d’Hebron metro station on lines L3 and L5.
• Line T2C departs from Plaça Kennedy (here on Google Maps), 1 km from the funicular. Also in Plaça Kennedy is a Tibidabo Store where you can buy tickets for the amusement park, panoramic area, or funicular.
  • To get to Plaça Kennedy, take the L7 train from Plaça Catalunya (in Spanish, this train is called Ferrocarril). The train has a specific station in the Plaça, different from the metro stations (here on Google Maps). It took us some time to find it; you need to look for the orange sign – here’s what the station looks like above ground.
  • Take the ferrocaril to Av. Tibidabo station, and from there, you can walk uphill to Plaça Doctor Andreu (but it’s quite the climb) or take Tibibus T2C.

Funicular

In Plaça Doctor Andreu, you’ll find Cuca de Llum, the lower station of the funicular that goes up to Tibidabo. It operates both when the amusement park is open and on days when the Panoramic Area is accessible.

It takes 4 minutes to reach the top and runs with a frequency of up to 15 minutes. Check the exact funicular schedule here.

The round-trip ticket for the funicular is included in all entrance ticket types. However, as I mentioned earlier, you don’t necessarily need to buy a ticket for rides; you can go up just for the views; the access to the park itself is free. In this case, you’ll only need to pay for transportation to the top, and a ticket costs 12€. It includes a round-trip journey on the funicular and the Tibibus T2C ride from Plaça Kennedy (remember that Tibibus only operates when the amusement park is open).

If the funicular is not in operation, the Tibibus buses will take you to the top of Tibidabo. However, the route is quite long, taking almost half an hour.

Costs and opening hours

The opening hours are quite particular, but mainly, the Panoramic Area is open daily, and the amusement park is open only on the weekends. To see the exact schedule for the time when you’re going to Barcelona check here, you can select a day in the calendar and it will tell you what area is open and when.

The costs are, as I said above, €35 per person for the amusement park, including the panoramic area rides (€14 for kids between 90-120cm, free for kids under 90cm), or €19 for the panoramic area only (€10.50 for kids between 90-120cm, free for kids under 90cm).

The tickets are actually bracelets that allow you access to the rides. But in reality, access to the park is free if you want to admire the views and not ride anything.

Moreover, in the Panoramic Area, you can get an individual ticket for a single ride, which is €3. Read more about the various ticket rates here.

Buying an entrance ticket gives you unlimited access to all the attractions. When we were there in March 2019, there were just a few people and no queues at all. We rode the Ferris wheel and the Talaia.

Tibidabo: the best views over Barcelona

Hopefully, I was helpful with all these details regarding Tibidabo. Even if you don’t go to the amusement park, the view over Barcelona is definitely worth the climb to Tibidabo.

If you have any other tips about Tibidabo, write to me in the comments! 😉

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