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Barcelona offers a wide range of interesting options all year round and opens its doors to everyone. Make the most of the sunshine to go for a stroll and take a dip in the sea on one of the city’s accessible beaches. Experience Gaudí’s nature with your hands, add a sign-language tour or an audiodescribed show to your plans… Do you need any more ideas? You’ll find them with the SEARCH FACILITY or on the SUMMARY for accessible places of interest!

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Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar

Santa Maria del Mar

The basilica of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona, also known as the "cathedral of La Ribera", is one of the most perfect examples of Gothic style architecture due to its harmonious proportions and the serenity of the ensemble.

In the Middle Ages, the long periods of time it took to build a church – often more than a century – usually involved changes in architectural style. Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona is an exception. It was built in just 55 years, from 1329 to 1384, and is the only surviving church in the pure Catalan Gothic style. Its structure comprises three naves of the same height, underpinned by very tall columns set 13 metres apart, a distance unsurpassed by any other existing medieval building. This gives the impression of sublime width, height and airiness, as if gravity had been reversed and pulled the immense blocks of stone upwards. The many stained-glass windows of the church of Santa Maria del Mar play an important role in giving this impression.

The window of the Ascension, in the chapel of Santa Maria, and the Lavabo in the chapel of Sant Rafael, as well as the great rose window are some of the most outstanding examples of the church. The latter was destroyed during the earthquake that shook Barcelona in 1428, and remade in the mid-15th century. If you look at the floor you'll see private tombs and those of Barcelona's medieval guilds and brotherhoods. The basilica of Santa Maria del Mar, which was designed by Berenguer de Montagut, was the place of worship for the shipwrights and merchants of Gothic Barcelona.

From the rooftops of the Basilica you can enjoy Barcelona from a privileged perspective that helps to understand the medieval urban framework and the structure of the city center. A 360º vision that will not leave you indifferent.

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General details


Address: Plaça Santa Maria, 1 (08003). Barcelona
Phone: 933 102 390
Web site: www.santamariadelmarbarcelona.org
E-mail: parroquia@santamariadelmarbarcelona.org
Opening time: Monday to Sunday, from 10am to 8.30pm.

Cultural visit: Monday to Saturday, from 10am to 6pm. Sunday, from 1.30pm to 6pm.
Guided tours: Catalan, Spanish and English.


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Accessibility details


The interior of the church presents no accessibility problems. There are protruding elements in some areas of the church (fonts, loudspeakers) which people could bump into, particularly the blind and visually impaired.

There are information panels in one of the side chapels by the entrance describing the history of the church, how it was built and its dimensions. There are three steps leading into this chapel.

The bell tower is open to visitors from May to October. It is accessed by a very narrow and steep spiral staircase which is completely inaccessible to visitors with reduced mobility.
Motor impairment: accessible with assistance
The entrance for people with reduced mobility is located on Carrer Santa Maria, at the side façade. There is a ramp that makes access relatively easy.

The entrances on the Plaça Santa Maria and the Passeig del Born have steps and present accessibility problems.

Last update: 21/07/2023

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