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Comment by loloquwowndueo | Hacker News Reader

Don't forget casa Batlló - visits are by appointment only (I think) but even just seeing the building’s exterior is pretty awesome.

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No you can just book a ticket like with all the others. Always buy a ticket online. Otherwise you'll be stuck in a queue. The Sagrada stopped doing on the spot visits because the queue was getting too long and Battló did as well. Only at la pedrera (or casa Milà as it's really called) can you still buy a ticket on site. But I wouldn't. You're just wasting your time waiting while all the prebooks go ahead of you.

Battló is the best one for me by far. I love the organic shapes and the light well and the soft wood etc. Wow

This business about having to book tickets online in Europe is pretty much new to me. I never used to have to do this with rare exceptions.

There are a lot more tourists then there used to be in the past. When I moved to Vienna in 2005 I used to take weekend trips to nearby cities (anything up to a couple hours by train, like Budapest or Brno). I would just go on a train and when I’d arrive I’d find some hostel and get a room on the spot.

Today you really have to reserve, sometimes months in advance if it’s during the high season.

20 years ago I could just walk up to the Eiffel tower ticket office, buy a ticket, and go up after a couple of minutes. On a beautiful summer weekend.

Today I wouldn't even dream of that. You really have to plan ahead for all the major sights that include an entrance.

We almost missed Louvre on a recent visit to Paris. You need to book online and depending on the season weeks in advance.

I didn't even try the Louvre last time I was in Paris--which was OK. But, although I had timed tickets to the Musee D'Orsay, it was really sort of too crowded to be enjoyable. You couldn't get near the cafe behind the clock.

They also do some cool projections on the façade in December.

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