Barcelona Weekend Break

Tibidabo

Tibidabo is somewhat hard to describe, or at least hard to describe in a manner which does it justice.

Tibidabo is really just a hill or mini mountain that rises approximately 1,500 feet above sea level and offers fantastic panoramic views of Barcelona and beyond (and they really are fantastic). You can get to it by cable car (the blue tram) and train, or alternatively by road using a bus or car.

Once you reach the summit of Tibidabo you find the Sacred Heart church with a fun fare immediately beneath it, and this is where opinions of the place fall into two distinct categories.

Many of Tibidabo's visitors find the whole experience slightly tacky and see the fun fare, gift shops and other amusements as a cynical way to get tourist's money. The same viewpoint also sees the fun fare rides as cheap, out of date and inappropriately located next to a church.

There is however another stance that you can take and we chose to opt for that one.

Firstly the beautiful "alabaster" like church is undoubtedly worth seeing. It stands on the top of Tibidabo and should be pleasing to all but the most critical of eyes. It does not posses any great age, but it looks great despite that.

The fun fare is far from modern, but we thought that it looked like a well maintained version of the kind of fare and rides that would have been around in the early part of the twentieth century. Some would say tacky, we though more of an “old world charm” and some of the rides looked great. I certainly wished that I had been young enough to go on some of them.

Tourist information

Both Tibidabo and Montjuic provide spectacular elevated views down and across Barcelona city. On a weekend break, where time is short, you may decide to opt for only one of them. Which you prefer will depend on personal preference, but if time does permit, why not try both.

If you have young children, Tibidabo should provide them with some entertainment and you with a rest bite.