The choice between the two ascents is mostly about nerves and timing. The Aeri cable car covers 1,350 m (4,430 ft) of cable on gradients up to 45 percent in five minutes and lands you a short walk below the basilica; it is quicker but small, and it stops in high wind. The Cremallera climbs 5 km (3.1 mi) and more than 600 m (2,000 ft) in fifteen minutes and is the only route that arrives in the center of the monastery complex; it is the better choice with a wheelchair, a stroller, or a group. Both have free parking at the valley stations.
Tickets: single train and ascent fares can be bought at Plaça Espanya; the combined Trans Montserrat ticket bundles the R5 train, your choice of Cremallera or cable car, the Metro connection, and the Sant Joan and Santa Cova funiculars, and Tot Montserrat adds lunch and the museum. Buy them at the FGC ticket office or machines on the Llobregat-Anoia line, or online at tickets.montserratvisita.com, which requires JavaScript and did not display prices when read for this page; the cable car's own site lists its 2026 fares and operating calendar.
Allow about an hour on the R5 and plan the return before 6:00 p.m., since the last ascents and descents finish earlier in winter. The basilica, the Virgin's throne, and the boys' choir timings are on the existing page about Montserrat as a day trip from Barcelona, and monastery ticket questions are on the page about whether you need tickets to visit Montserrat.