A night at the Palau

Where the Palau is

The Palau stands at Carrer del Palau de la Música 4–6, postcode 08003, in the Sant Pere quarter of Ciutat Vella, next to Via Laietana. The Palau's own pages call the setting central and describe the quarter as one of Barcelona's most characterful. The streets around it are narrow, so the building is hard to take in as a whole from the pavement. Its original entrance, on Carrer de Sant Pere Més Alt, was used until 1989, and visitors now generally come in through the foyer, created in the late twentieth-century extension. Wikipedia adds that most of Barcelona's other well-known modernista buildings, such as those by Gaudí, stand in the 19th-century Eixample, while the Palau sits in the old town.

Getting there

The Palau's own page says the walk from Plaça de Catalunya is short, and it names Urquinaona as the nearest metro station, with the Catalunya square stations for the RENFE and FGC trains. It also lists city bus routes, the stops of the Barcelona tourist buses at Plaça de Catalunya, and Plaça Catedral as the nearest taxi stop. Bicing bike stops stand on Carrer de Sant Pere Més Alt and at Plaça Urquinaona. Check live routes for the day before you set out, since the transport pages describe the network, not tonight's service. The tourist buses reserve space for wheelchair users, the Palau says.

If you drive

The Palau suggests public transport, and its own page sets out a car-park arrangement instead. It sells four-hour tickets at its box office that are valid in several Saba car parks around the centre, among them the ones at Plaça Urquinaona, Avinguda de la Catedral and Plaça de Catalunya. You park, buy the ticket at the Palau's box office, then use it to pay for the car park afterwards. Spaces reserved for people with reduced mobility stand on Carrer de Sant Pere Més Alt and Carrer d'Ortigosa, and they require the relevant parking card.

Collecting your ticket

For this concert the tickets come from the organiser's staff, not the Palau's box office. The booking page says tickets are handed out from about an hour before the show until the show ends, that seat numbers are shown then, and that you swap your mobile voucher for a physical ticket before you enter. The product photos on the booking page show the collection point, and the meeting-point note simply tells you to look at them. Save the photos to your phone before you leave. The Palau says programme details for its own concerts reach you through QR codes at the entrance and leaflets inside the hall, so ask whether your show has either.

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Arriving and the doors

The booking page says doors open about 30 minutes before the show. The Palau's guide for first-time concert-goers asks for punctuality: once the first piece has begun, no one is allowed in between movements, and latecomers wait until a work has finished. That guide is written for the Palau's own classical concerts, so the organiser's rules for this show govern, but the safe habit is the same. Aim to reach the collection point early, allow for a queue, and use the facilities before you sit down. Your seat number is already on the ticket once you collect it, so there is nothing to look for inside except your category's entrance.

What to wear

The Palau's own guide to its concerts says there is no dress code, and that you can come casual or a little smarter. It adds that the hall is iconic and a concert a special occasion, so many people choose something comfortable but neat. The booking page says nothing more about clothing. Whatever you choose, you will be seated for a good while, so pick shoes and layers that suit a chair rather than a long walk.

In the hall: the rules

The Palau's guide says you may not eat or drink in the concert hall, which must stay clean and quiet, and suggests the foyer and the Palau terrace for a bite or a drink before, during intervals or after. It also asks you to silence your phone, not to talk during the music and not to leave or enter during a performance except in an emergency. It was written for classical concerts. At a flamenco-flavoured show, take your cue from the stage and from the audience around you before you applaud or call out. At a classical concert, the Palau says, applause belongs at the end of a work, not between its movements.

Children and infants

The booking page says infants under 24 months do not need a ticket. It also lists a passport or ID card for children among the things to bring. It does not state a minimum age for older children, and it does not describe a children's programme. The concert lasts about 1.5 hours in a hall where talking is discouraged, so think about whether a young child can sit still that long. Ask the booking page before you buy if you are unsure, because the answer comes from the organiser, not from the Palau. The Palau lists family concerts in its own programme, which are a separate booking from this show.

Access

The Palau says it is accessible to people with reduced mobility through lifts on all floors, reached from the Petit Palau lobby by the revolving doors on Carrer de Sant Pere Més Alt. Service dogs may enter the whole building, including the concert hall, and a wheelchair rental service is available on request at Reception. Seating for a particular concert is set by the organiser, so ask the booking page about wheelchair places before you travel, and email the Palau's accessibility contact if you need to tell the building about your needs in advance. The Palau also lists a stairlift for wheelchair users to the foyer balconies, a ramp in the Lluís Millet hall and adapted toilets.

Before and after

The foyer holds Cafè Palau, a café-restaurant that the Palau says offers special service before and after concerts and during intervals, and a terrace on Plaça del Palau. The Palau shop sits in the same foyer. Read the opening hours on the Palau's own pages, since they change at Christmas and New Year. The foyer is also where you will see the wide brick arches with green, pink and yellow ceramic flowers, worth a look while you wait for the doors, even though your own ticket is collected elsewhere. The Palau also lists Pizzicato, an oyster bar with terraces, in its pages on gastronomy.

Who this isn't for

A full dinner with a show is not on offer here. If you want to be able to leave and return freely, the hall's rules do not allow it. If a late finish is a problem, look at the calendar's start time before choosing a date, since it varies. And if you want to wander the whole building, remember that a concert ticket is not a visit ticket: the Palau runs visits as a separate booking, and the tour-or-concert guide explains the difference. If you plan to eat in the foyer before the show, remember that your ticket is collected elsewhere, so leave time for both.

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