Sagrada Família, Spain

Sagrada Família, Barcelona

On February 20, 2026, the Tower of Jesus Christ was topped out at 172.5 metres, making the Sagrada Família officially the tallest church building in the world, overtaking the Ulm Minster in Germany. The six central towers are now complete for the first time. Construction started in 1882. When Gaudí died in 1926 – struck by a tram, buried in his own crypt inside the building – the basilica was roughly 15-25% complete. It received its building permit in 2019, 137 years after the foundations were laid. That timeline is not incidental background; it is the most interesting thing about the building.

The completion of the Glory Facade, the main southern entrance that Gaudí envisaged as the dominant approach, has slipped beyond the original 2026 target. Current realistic estimates run to 2030-2034. The building is not finished, but it is close to Gaudí’s vision in a way it has never been before.

Visiting

Tickets must be booked in advance at sagradafamilia.org. Walk-up entry is occasionally possible but should not be counted on. Adult admission in 2026 is €26 for basic entry; €40 for the Top View ticket including tower access; €33 for a guided tour. A centenary surcharge of €2-5 applies from June 2026 onward. Children under 11 enter free; students under 30 and seniors over 65 pay €21 with ID. Timed entry slots every 15 minutes – late arrivals are refused. Book 2-4 weeks ahead in peak season.

The interior works best in the 11:00-13:00 window when light enters simultaneously through the east and west stained glass windows. The east windows in warm golden and ochre tones, the west in cool blues: the effect was designed deliberately, the colour spectrum shifting as the sun moves. The columns branch upward like a forest canopy, designed to distribute weight without flying buttresses. The ceiling above the crossing is a hyperbolic paraboloid. The audio guide is included and worth using.

Allow 1.5-2 hours minimum. Tower access requires additional booking and the Nativity tower gives better views (north toward Park Güell); the Passion tower looks south toward the sea.

The Two Facades

The Nativity facade (east) is Gaudí’s own design, finished during his lifetime, covered in dense naturalistic carving – plants, animals, human figures, nativity scenes, all in stone but with the organic texture of something grown rather than built. The Passion facade (west, by Josep Subirachs, added decades after Gaudí’s death) is deliberately stark and angular, hard-edged where the Nativity facade is soft. The contrast is intentional and striking. The Glory facade to the south is still under construction.

The Neighbourhood

The Sagrada Família sits in Eixample, Barcelona’s 19th-century grid district, known for its chamfered (cut-corner) intersections – a design innovation by planner Ildefons Cerdà that created small open spaces at every junction. The Gaudí circuit continues nearby: Casa Batlló on Passeig de Gràcia (around €35), Casa Milà/La Pedrera 400 metres north (around €28). Both are within walking distance.

Park Güell is about 30 minutes by Metro to Vallcarca or Alfons X. The monumental zone requires timed entry tickets (around €10). Book in advance for the busy months.

Eating and Staying

Bar Calders in Sant Antoni, about 20 minutes south, does good vermouth and pintxos with a local crowd. Cervecería Catalana on Carrer de Mallorca, closer to the Sagrada Família, is reliable for tapas. The Eixample is a practical base – good transport links, quieter at night than the Gothic Quarter, full accommodation range. The Gothic Quarter and El Born give better access to the medieval centre with one extra metro stop to the Sagrada Família.