Barcelona – Big Fun Museum & Museum of Illusions Experience

Barcelona has a playful side. This two-museum ticket gives you nine fantasy rooms at the Big Fun Museum, followed by hands-on perspective tricks at the Museum of Illusions. I like the clever photo setups, especially the upside-down rooms and giant objects, and I like that the two sites are close enough to visit in one outing. The main drawback is that this is more about pictures and laughter than serious museum displays, and a few items may need repair.

At $35 per person, the ticket makes the most sense for families, couples, birthday groups, and adults who enjoy a good visual joke. Allow plenty of time for both buildings, since the illusion pictures work best when you wait your turn and stand on the marked spots. If your Barcelona plans already include grand art museums, treat this as a light, cheerful change of pace rather than a cultural substitute.

Key points before you go

• Nine different rooms at Big Fun: Expect giant objects, upside-down rooms, sweets, fantasy scenes, food-based art, unusual records, a psychiatric-treatment display, and a digital Magic Room.
• Best photo opportunities: The Giant’s House, Upside Down House, Alice Through the Looking Glass, and Topsy-Turvy style scenes invite you to become part of the display.
• A second museum nearby: The Museum of Illusions focuses on perspective, 3D-effect paintings, and visual tricks that work best from marked floor positions.
• Good for mixed ages: Children usually get the most from the playful rooms, but adults and older teenagers can have just as much fun with the photo challenges.
• One-day flexibility: You can visit both museums on the same day, and cancellation is allowed up to 24 hours before the experience for a full refund.
• Useful practical touch: Lockers are available, and photographs are permitted inside the museums.

Starting on Rambla de Sant Josep

Your visit begins at the museum entrance on Rambla de Sant Josep. Show your voucher at the door, then prepare for a self-guided visit with no transportation or guide included.

The two museums are in separate buildings, but they are close together. That makes the combination ticket easy to fit between other central Barcelona plans. You do not need to arrange a transfer, and you can walk from one site to the other.

The ticket is valid for one day, with available starting times shown when you check availability. I would avoid squeezing both museums into a narrow gap between timed attractions. The Big Fun Museum has nine sections, and the Museum of Illusions works better when you can pause for photos instead of rushing through.

Lockers are available, which is handy if you are carrying shopping bags, day packs, or extra layers. You can also take pictures throughout the museums, so keep your phone charged. The displays are made for photographs, and many scenes need another person behind the camera.

Giant rooms and an upside-down world

The Big Fun Museum is the more playful half of the experience. Its rooms change theme quickly, so you never spend too long with one idea. That variety is useful for families, since one room may appeal to a small child while the next entertains teenagers or adults.

The Giant’s House turns ordinary objects into oversized props. Standing among giant furniture and household items changes your sense of scale and gives you the chance to pose as a tiny person in a huge room. It is simple, but the visual joke reads clearly in a photograph.

The Upside Down House takes the same idea in another direction. Rooms are arranged so the ceiling appears to become the floor, letting you pose as if you are standing on the roof. These scenes are easy to understand, but you may need a few attempts to find a pose that looks natural in the final picture.

The museum also includes a Topsy-Turvy style section, where the challenge is to navigate an upside-down world. This is less about reading labels and more about working out how your body fits into an impossible-looking setting.

If your group enjoys taking turns with the camera, these rooms can fill a surprising amount of time. If you prefer quiet exhibitions, the staged setups may feel thin. The fun comes from participating, not from studying the objects.

Sweet Museum and Alice Through the Looking Glass

The Sweet Museum aims straight at your inner child. Expect a colorful fantasy setting built around sweets and sugary imagery. It is another photo-first room, with visual scenes that work especially well for birthdays, family pictures, and playful couple shots.

You do not need to be a child to enjoy it, but the appeal is deliberately light. Adults who dislike staged photo activities may move through this part quickly. For everyone else, it provides a bright change after the larger-scale rooms.

Alice Through the Looking Glass continues the fantasy theme. The name signals the style: expect a strange, storybook-like world where familiar proportions and settings become less reliable. The room encourages you to pose rather than simply walk through.

This is one reason the Big Fun Museum works well for groups. One person can take pictures while the others try different positions. The displays give you a ready-made setting, so you do not need to invent a complicated photo concept.

Believe It or Not and Food Art

The Believe It or Not room shifts from fantasy toward unusual real-world records and oddities. The subject matter gives the visit a little more variety, since you are no longer only posing in rooms designed to distort scale.

The available information does not promise a formal explanation of every record, so keep your expectations modest. Think of this as an entertaining stop inside a larger attraction, not a full museum of world records. It helps break up the photo rooms, but it may not hold your attention for long if you want detailed background.

Food Art brings another visual change. Here, familiar works of art are recreated using food of different kinds. The result is amusing and may make you hungry, especially after seeing recognizable images built from edible materials.

This room is strongest as a quick visual surprise. You can look closely at how the food is arranged, then move on to the next display. It is a nice choice for families because the subject is instantly understandable and does not require specialist art knowledge.

The Museum of Madness and the Magic Room

The Museum of Madness is the most serious and potentially unsettling section at Big Fun. It presents a frightening exhibition about brutal psychiatric treatments from history. The tone is very different from the sweets, giant rooms, and fantasy scenes.

I would pause before entering this section if you are visiting with young children or anyone sensitive to disturbing medical themes. The description identifies it as terrifying, so it is not simply another silly photo room. Its value is in showing a darker side of past medical practice, but it may not suit every group.

The final Big Fun stop is the Magic Room, a digital experience built around changing visual scenes. You can explore a magical forest, look up at stars, and enjoy views of Barcelona through the digital presentation.

This gives the museum a calmer finish after the more active rooms. It also broadens the attraction beyond physical props. Still, the exact technology and length of the experience are not specified, so I would see it as a short atmospheric finale rather than a major standalone attraction.

Finding the best photos at both museums

Photography is allowed in both museums, and that permission is central to the experience. At Big Fun, the room designs do much of the work. At the Museum of Illusions, your position matters more.

The Museum of Illusions features 3D-effect paintings and perspective scenes that make you appear to be part of the artwork. Look for the marked spots on the floor. Standing in the correct place is not a minor detail. It is often the difference between a convincing image and a flat picture of a painting.

You may need to wait while another person finishes a scene. That is normal for this type of attraction, especially when several people in a group want different photographs. Patience pays off, since the illusion depends on the camera angle and the subject standing in the intended position.

The Museum of Illusions is smaller in concept than the Big Fun Museum, but its activities can feel more interactive because you actively test perspective. It is especially appealing to older children, teenagers, couples, and adults who enjoy figuring out how the visual trick works.

One practical point: the two museums do not offer exactly the same experience. Big Fun is built around themed rooms and props, while the Museum of Illusions is more focused on wall art, optical effects, and camera-friendly perspective. Doing both gives you variety. If time is limited, the Big Fun Museum may be the stronger choice for families who want more room-to-room action.

Who gets the most for $35?

The $35 price is reasonable when you plan to visit both museums and make use of the photo setups. A family can share the fun across several themed rooms, while a couple can turn the visit into a playful photo session. The ticket also avoids the need to buy separate admission for each attraction.

The value drops if you only have a short amount of time. One visitor enjoyed the Big Fun Museum but could not properly enjoy both museums because of limited time. That is a useful warning: the combination is not automatically good value if you must hurry.

The ticket is also less appealing to someone looking for Barcelona’s art, architecture, or history. You will not find the depth of a traditional museum here. Instead, you pay for participation, visual jokes, and the chance to create unusual photographs.

For families, the practical value is stronger. The rooms offer activity rather than long text panels, and the experience can give children a break from more formal sightseeing. Adults can join in, though one assessment found the attraction mainly aimed at children, with the Museum of Illusions offering the stronger adult appeal.

The overall rating is 4.2 from 733 ratings, which fits the experience’s strengths and limits: broadly enjoyable, but not equally compelling for every age or interest.

Maintenance, crowds, and the small frustrations

The Big Fun Museum is generally well kept, but some items may need repair. That matters because the attraction depends on props looking convincing and remaining usable. A damaged feature does not ruin the whole visit, but it can reduce the quality of a planned photograph.

A few sections at the Museum of Illusions have also been closed for maintenance at times. Since the experience is based on a collection of separate scenes, a closure can affect how much you feel you received for the ticket. Check current conditions if a particular illusion is the main reason you want to go.

The photo format creates its own form of crowding. You may need to wait at each artwork while someone finishes posing. This is not the same as being packed into a large gallery, but it can slow your progress during busy periods.

The attraction has lockers, which makes the visit easier, and the museums are accessible for people with reduced mobility. Staff experiences can vary between the two buildings. Help was described as friendly at Big Fun, while service at the Museum of Illusions felt less warm, though not rude.

The best plan for your day

Start with the Big Fun Museum, since it has the larger number of themed areas. Move at a relaxed pace and let each person in your group take a turn behind the camera. The birthday setup described by one family, with a person pretending to bite a cake on a ceiling table and open a giant bottle of wine, shows how much the fun depends on creative posing.

Then walk to the Museum of Illusions. Use the floor markings, check the camera frame before posing, and allow time for other groups to finish. If you are with children, this second visit may feel calmer but still gives them plenty to test and photograph.

The opening hours change during the Christmas holiday period. From December 19, 2025, through January 10, 2026, the hours are 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., except December 24 and December 31, when the museums close at 7:00 p.m. On December 25 and January 1, opening begins at 1:00 p.m. Check the stated hours for your date before setting your schedule.

Free cancellation is available up to 24 hours in advance, and you can reserve while paying later. That flexibility helps if your Barcelona plans are still shifting.

Should you book the Big Fun and Illusions combination?

Book it if you want an easy, camera-friendly activity near the center of Barcelona. I especially recommend it for families, couples, birthdays, teenagers, and adults who enjoy joining the joke instead of only looking at displays.

Choose the combination when you have enough time for both buildings. The Big Fun Museum provides the wider range, from giant rooms to food art and digital scenes, while the Museum of Illusions adds perspective games and 3D-effect paintings.

Skip it if your ideal museum visit means original art, long historical explanations, or quiet galleries. Also think twice if you only have a brief opening in your schedule, since rushing through both sites weakens the value.

For the right audience, $35 buys a cheerful break from Barcelona’s grand sights and a set of photographs you cannot get anywhere else in the city.

FAQ

Where does the experience begin?

Enter at the museum entrance on Rambla de Sant Josep and show your voucher at the door.

What does the combination ticket include?

It includes general admission to the Big Fun Museum and general admission to the Museum of Illusions.

How many rooms are at the Big Fun Museum?

The Big Fun Museum includes nine different rooms.

What can I see at the Big Fun Museum?

The rooms include the Giant’s House, Upside Down House, Sweet Museum, Alice Through the Looking Glass, Believe It or Not, Food Art, Museum of Madness, Magic Room, and an upside-down or Topsy-Turvy style experience.

Is photography allowed?

Yes. You can take pictures inside both museums.

Is transportation included?

No. Transportation is not included.

Is a guide included?

No. This is a general admission experience without a guide.

Can people with reduced mobility visit?

Yes. The museums are accessible for people with reduced mobility.

How long is the ticket valid?

The ticket is valid for one day. Check availability for the starting times offered on your date.

Can I cancel for a refund?

Yes. You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.