Barcelona and Montserrat in 7 Days on a Budget
Seven Days: Add Costa Brava by Rental Car
Seven days nests the full six-day rail spine, Montserrat, Girona-Figueres, Tarragona, Sitges and Penedes, from the 6-day itinerary , then adds a seventh day in Costa Brava, the one gateway route with no direct train. This is the version for a full week based in Barcelona without touching the city’s own sights; the full day-trips guide covers the cost math behind every leg below.
Book these before you go:
- Dali Theatre-Museum entry: buy online through salvador-dali.org ahead of a summer visit; desk tickets cost more and queues build by mid-morning in July and August.
- A Montserrat day tour , if you’d rather skip managing the FGC-to-Cremallera connection yourself.
- A Girona, Figueres and Dali day tour , which folds both towns and the museum ticket into one price.
- Rent a car in Girona for Costa Brava , the only day trip on this list without a direct train.
- A hotel near Barcelona-Sants for the whole week; you won’t need to change base for any of these seven days.
| From Barcelona to… | Time | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Montserrat (FGC R5 + Cremallera, Placa Espanya) | ~1-1.5h | EUR 15.90 combined ticket |
| Girona (Rodalies fast train, Barcelona-Sants) | ~40 min | EUR 9-17 |
| Figueres (Dali Museum, regional continuation) | 35 min-1h further | EUR 10-25, plus EUR 18.50-22 museum |
| Tarragona (Rodalies regional, slow train) | 75-90 min | EUR 7.50-9 |
| Sitges (Rodalies R2 Sud, Sants or Passeig de Gracia) | 35-40 min | EUR 4-5 |
| Penedes (Rodalies R2/R4, Vilafranca or Sant Sadurni) | 40-50 min | EUR 4-5.50 |
| Costa Brava (rental car, no direct train) | 1.5-2h drive | Car rental plus fuel and tolls |
Day 1: Arrival and orientation
Base near Barcelona-Sants or Placa Espanya rather than Barceloneta or the Gothic Quarter; every route on this trip, bar Day 7, leaves from one of those two stations. Confirm tomorrow’s FGC departure time to Montserrat before you turn in.
Day 2: Montserrat
FGC R5 from Placa Espanya to Monistrol de Montserrat, about an hour, then the Cremallera rack railway or the Aeri cable car for the final 5km up the mountain. The combined FGC-plus-Cremallera ticket is EUR 15.90 one-way (EUR 28.80 return), confirmed on cremallerademontserrat.cat . Budget a full day for the monastery, the Black Madonna and a hiking trail; current hours are on montserratvisita.com .
Day 3: Girona and Figueres
Fast train from Barcelona-Sants to Girona, about 40 minutes for EUR 9-17. Morning in the old town, cathedral steps and the Jewish quarter (El Call), then a regional continuation to Figueres for the Dali Theatre-Museum: EUR 18.50 online (EUR 20.50 at the desk), rising to EUR 22 online in July and August. Direct fast train back to Barcelona from Figueres-Vilafant in the evening.
Day 4: Tarragona
The slower Rodalies regional train, EUR 7.50-9 and 75-90 minutes, drops you directly in Tarragona’s historic center; the faster Avant/AVE (EUR 14-16, 45-60 minutes) leaves you roughly 10km outside town instead. The UNESCO-listed Roman amphitheater, circus and forum run about EUR 5 per site, or EUR 15 for a combined 5-site pass.
Day 5: Sitges
Rodalies R2 Sud, every 20 minutes or so from Sants or Passeig de Gracia, 35-40 minutes for EUR 4-5, the cheapest ticket on this trip. Beach and Modernisme seafront promenade for the day; trains run late, so there’s no need to rush back.
Day 6: Penedes
Rodalies R2 or R4 reaches Vilafranca del Penedes (the wine capital, home to the VINSEUM museum) or Sant Sadurni d’Anoia (the cava epicenter, Freixenet and Codorniu both nearby) in 40-50 minutes for EUR 4-5.50. Winery tours and tastings run EUR 15-50 a person; book directly with the estate, and check the evening timetable before you settle into a long tasting.
Day 7: Costa Brava by rental car
The one day on this trip that needs a car: Costa Brava towns like Tossa de Mar, Cadaques and Begur have no direct fast train from Barcelona. Rent a car in Girona , the nearest hub with real pickup availability, and budget 1.5-2 hours of driving each way depending on which town you pick. Return the car before your flight rather than driving straight to an airport rental desk on departure day.
Do you need a car for any of the first six days?
No. Every leg through Day 6 runs on a train that’s cheaper and less stressful than driving Barcelona traffic or hunting for mountain parking at Montserrat. A car only earns its cost on Day 7, since Costa Brava is the one region here with no direct train connection at all.
Is seven day trips too ambitious from one Barcelona base?
Not if you keep each day to one region, which this itinerary does throughout. The real risk with seven days isn’t fatigue from too many trips, it’s the temptation to double up two of them into a single rushed day; resist that and each of these seven stays genuinely worth the ticket.
Buy the Dali Theatre-Museum ticket online before you leave home. It’s the one reservation on this seven-day trip that gets meaningfully more expensive and more crowded if you leave it for the door.