Sagrada Família reopens to general public on May 29 for first time since pandemic began

The Sagrada Família will welcome the general public back from Saturday, May 29. 

Initially, visits will exclusively be reserved for weekend mornings and afternoons, Saturdays and Sundays between 9 am and 3 pm.

Tickets to visit the architectural jewel will go on sale from May 21 at noon.

Antoni Gaudí’s iconic cathedral has not been open for the general public since before the pandemic began in March 2020. 

However, the doors of the Sagrada Família were not completely closed over the past year, as thousands of free tickets were offered to health workers and Barcelona residents last autumn. 

As of last month, the unfinished masterpiece stretches 11 metres taller into the skyline of the Catalan capital thanks to the addition of the pinnacle on the tower of the Virgin Mary, now 127 meters in height. The official Twitter account for the Sagrada Família described the work as the "last step before completing the tower!"

In September, it was announced that Barcelona's incomplete art nouveau masterpiece will not be completed by the centenary of architect Gaudí's death in 2026, as initially planned, due to the halt in construction caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Construction, which is mainly funded through ticket sales, resumed in January, after grinding to a stop in May 2020, two months after the basilica had closed its doors to visitors.