Why go

Pablo Picasso spent his formative years in Barcelona, arriving as a teenager in 1895 and leaving for Paris in 1904, and the city never stopped mattering to him. The Museu Picasso opened in 1963, the first museum devoted to him and the only one he helped to create in his lifetime. It now holds more than 4,000 works and is the best place in the world to see how a precociously gifted boy became the artist who changed modern art.

The setting is part of the pleasure. The collection fills five linked medieval palaces on Carrer de Montcada, the street where the merchants of El Born built their mansions, and the stone courtyards and staircases are a quiet contrast to the crowds outside.

What to see

  • The early years. Sketchbooks, academic studies and portraits from his time in A Coruña, Barcelona and Madrid, showing how fast he mastered traditional painting. Science and Charity, painted at 15, is a highlight.
  • The Blue Period. Works from the early 1900s, when grief and poverty pushed his palette towards blue and his subjects towards the poor and outcast.
  • Las Meninas. In 1957 Picasso painted 58 variations on Velázquez’s masterpiece, and gave the whole series to the museum. It is the single most memorable room.
  • Ceramics and prints. Later work donated by his widow Jacqueline, including playful ceramics.
  • The palaces. Gothic courtyards, painted ceilings and stone stairs from the 13th to 15th centuries.

Plan your visit

Tickets. Entry to the collection costs €12 online or €13 at the ticket office, and €14 online with the temporary exhibitions. A reduced ticket of €7 covers 18 to 25 year olds, university students and over 65s, and under 18s go free. Tickets are for a set day and time and cannot be changed. The museum asks visitors to buy only through its website, ticket office or machines.

Free entry. From late September to late March, entry is free on Thursdays from 4pm to 7pm. It is also free on the first Sunday of each month and on three open days a year. You must reserve a free slot online; they are released at 10am four days before and go fast.

Opening hours. In winter the museum opens Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 7pm. It is closed every Monday and on 1 January, 1 May, 24 June and 25 December, and closes at 2pm on 24 and 31 December. The ticket office shuts 30 minutes before closing. Summer hours, from late March, run longer.

Getting there. Jaume I station on metro line L4 is about five minutes’ walk away. Arc de Triomf, on L1, is about 10 minutes.

Good to know. Allow an hour and a half to two hours. Once you leave you cannot go back in on the same ticket. The shop and the ground-floor hall are open without a ticket. Pair the visit with Santa Maria del Mar and the bars of El Born, all within a few minutes’ walk. If you plan to see several art museums, the Articket BCN pass covers six of them, including this one and the MNAC.