Travel in Europe Tip: Should I book tickets in advance for major attractions in Europe?

Answer:
Depends on how busy the attraction is during your planned visit.

If it is a top destination during peak season, almost no doubt you will have to book the tickets ahead of time. You really do not want to go to the attraction and find out:

  • You have to join a long line and wait for a couple of hours.
  • The tickets are sold out for that day.

For every popular destination, search online and ask this question:
   Should I buy ticket in advance for attraction XXX in June?

The search result will lead you to lots of tour discussion forums, people will suggest whether you need to book tickets in advance or not. Read comments and get a general feeling of how busy the attraction is during your visit.

In general, top attractions in large cities and top attractions in that country are always busy during peak season, it is always a good idea to book it in advance. For example:

  •     Royal Palace in Madrid
  •     Sagrada Familla in Barcelona
  •     Alhambra in Granada

Attractions in smaller towns might have smaller queues, even in peak season, for example, I did not book tickets in advance for any attractions in Seville or Cordoba Spain.

  • The queue for  Real Alcazar in Seville Spain was 20 minutes when we got there at 12 PM on June 13, 2019
  • The queue for Mosque of Cordoba was only 12 minutes when we got there at 10 AM) on June 14, 2019

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