The Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (MNAC) is located in the Palau Nacional de Montjuïc, a palace built for the International Exhibition of 1929 in Barcelona, Spain. The museum houses the most comprehensive collection of Romanesque mural paintings in the world, as well as works by prominent Catalan modernist artists such as Gaudí and Casas.
The Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya is open from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and on Sundays and public holidays, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The general admission ticket costs 12 euros and gives access to all the permanent and temporary exhibitions. You can also buy an Articket for 35 euros, which allows you to visit six other museums in Barcelona for a year.
To get to the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, you can take the metro (line L1 or L3) to Plaça Espanya and then walk up the stairs or take the escalators to the palace. You can also take the bus (lines 55 or 150) or the tourist bus (red route) that stop near the museum. Alternatively, you can take the funicular from Paral·lel metro station and then transfer to the cable car that takes you directly to the museum.
Some tips for visiting the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya are: book your tickets online in advance to avoid queues; download the free app Second Canvas Museu Nacional, which offers high-resolution images and audio guides of some artworks; enjoy the panoramic views of the city from the rooftop terrace; and visit the library, the restaurant and the shop inside the museum.
The Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya offers guided tours for groups and individuals, as well as educational activities for schools and families. You can check the schedule and prices on the museum’s website. Some of the highlights of the museum are: the Romanesque Art section, which displays frescoes, sculptures and metalwork from medieval churches; the Gothic Art section, which features paintings, altarpieces and stained glass from the 13th to 15th centuries; the Renaissance and Baroque Art section, which showcases works by European masters such as El Greco, Rubens and Velázquez; and the Modern Art section, which presents paintings, sculptures and decorative arts from the 19th and 20th centuries.
The Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya has some prohibitions for visitors, such as: no photography or video recording with flash or tripod; no touching or leaning on the artworks; no eating or drinking inside the exhibition rooms; no smoking; no pets (except guide dogs); and no backpacks or large bags (you can leave them in the cloakroom).
