Getting Around Barcelona: Guide to Bus, Tram, Train and Metro august 19, 2024 – Posted in: Spain, Travel – Tags: Barcelona, Busses, Holiday, Metro, Public Transport, Spain, Trains, Transportation, Vacation

Getting Around Barcelona with Public Transport

When it comes to getting around Barcelona, the best way is on foot! Although Barcelona is a large city, it’s not so big that you can’t walk from La Sagrada Familia to Plaça de Catalunya and La Rambla in just half an hour. Otherwise, you can easily and affordably navigate the city using public transport. Here, you can learn how to travel from one attraction to another in Barcelona by bus, train, and metro.

NB! Prices and information mentioned in the article were correct at the time of writing. Use the links provided to check if the information is still up to date.

How to Get To and From the Airport

Barcelona-El Prat Airport is just a 7-minute metro ride from the city center. At the airport, you can take metro line L9, which ends at Zona Universitària, close to Camp Nou but still a bit away from the city center. However, you can transfer to several other metro lines here and at previous stations. See a metro map of Barcelona here.

From the airport, you can also opt for the train, line R2, which runs directly to Passeig de Gràcia, where there are many options to transfer to other lines.

Finally, you can choose the airport bus, Aerobús Barcelona, which operates 24/7 between Terminal 1 and 2 and Plaça de Catalunya. Click on “Trip” on their website to see schedules.

You can also take a taxi. The fare from Barcelona to the airport can vary. During the day, expect to pay around 35-40 euros. It’s a good idea to agree on the price with the driver before you get in. When we had to return home and took a taxi to the airport, it was likely at the most expensive time of the week, i.e., the night between Sunday and Monday. We paid 55 euros (2023).

Getting Around Barcelona – How to Plan Your Trip

If you’re planning to visit the sights in Barcelona, the best tip is to leave the stiletto shoes at home and pack an extra pair of walking shoes. There are so many beautiful buildings in Barcelona, and you see them best on foot.

When you need to get from A to B in Barcelona, it’s helpful to use Google Maps to plan your trip. The map shows both bus and metro lines, gives you the fastest route, and also provides a map.

The metro runs from 5:00 AM until midnight, until 2:00 AM on Fridays, and all night on Saturdays. Buses run from 6:00 AM until 11:00 PM, after which you can take a night bus. The airport bus operates 24/7.

And this cannot be said often enough: Barcelona is known for having many pickpockets, so take good care of your belongings. Take off your backpack in the metro and place it in front of you. And keep your wallet in your chest pocket, not in your back pocket.

How to Buy Tickets for Bus, Train, and Metro in Barcelona

At all metro stations, there are machines where you can buy all the types of tickets mentioned here. You can pay with both cash and card. If you only need to get from A to B, you can buy a single ticket for 2.40 euros. Once validated, it’s valid for two hours. You can also buy a day ticket, valid for 24 hours, which costs 10.50 euros. On TMB, you can see the different ticket types.

If you’re staying in Barcelona for several days and plan to use both the metro and bus, the easiest option is to buy a Hola Barcelona Travel Card. This is valid for buses, the metro, and also the Funicular (cable car) that goes up to Montjuïc. Additionally, you avoid paying the extra surcharge for taking the metro all the way to the airport.

You can buy travel cards for 2-5 days, with prices starting from 16.30 euros. The Hola BCN card is valid for all public transport in zone 1. Since most of the major attractions are in this zone, it’s not something you need to worry about further.

Metro in Barcelona

Barcelona has 11 metro lines that can take you all around the city and to the airport. Besides walking, it’s the easiest way to get around the city. There’s usually never more than a five-minute wait for the next train.

If you’re heading to the airport by metro, you need to purchase a supplement ticket in addition to your regular ticket. The total cost is 5.15 euros.

Bus in Barcelona

Barcelona’s bus system has over 100 routes. Click here to see a map of Barcelona’s bus routes.

If you’re going by bus, it’s smart to buy your ticket in advance. If you have a Hola BCN card, you can validate it on the scanner at the front of the bus. You can’t pay with cash on the bus, but you can use a credit card on the scanner. Learn more here: Validation with bank card

If you’ve purchased a ticket through the TMB app, you can validate your ticket by holding your phone to the scanner so the QR code can be read.

Train in Barcelona

We’ve grouped regional trains, trams, and the Funicular in this section. For tourists, it’s all just trains, but Barcelona actually has six tram lines, marked on the metro map as T1-T6. If you have a Hola BCN card, it also covers travel on these.

The same applies to the Funicular line that runs from Paral·lel station up to the cable car at Montjuïc. However, you need to buy a separate ticket for the cable car. Book online here to save 10%.

If you’re planning a trip outside of Barcelona, such as to the Roman city of Tarragona, regional trains operated by Renfe can take you out into the country. The regional trains depart from Barcelona Sants, the main train station in Barcelona. On the metro map, you’ll find Sants Estació in the center, slightly to the left. Metro lines L3 and L5 run to this station.

Please note that when you click the link to Renfe, you’ll go directly to the search engine where you can plan your trip. You can also purchase a ticket here, as a Hola BCN card does not cover travel outside zone 1.

More Tips for Your Trip to Barcelona

Find a Great Hotel in Barcelona

Barcelona is a big city, and it can be a bit overwhelming to figure out which hotel to choose. Most tourists opt to stay in the old quarter near all the major attractions. If you click on the hotel we stayed at, B&B Boutique Ca La Maria, and then click on “Show on map,” it’s easy to see. Look for the area between Avinguda Diagonal, Avinguda del Paral·lel, and Arc de Triomf. This is the most popular area for a vacation in Barcelona.

As you can see, the hotel we stayed at is in the Eixample district, right next to the Provença metro station. From here, it was easy to reach all parts of the city and attractions, and since we stayed at the end of La Rambla, it was also easy to find our way back home. It’s a newer neighborhood that’s nice and relatively quiet, where you’re just a bit away from the busiest areas.

About B&B Boutique Ca La Maria

B&B Boutique Ca La Maria was the perfect hotel for our family vacation with a teenager. This small boutique hotel is located in an old mansion apartment with stucco and incredibly high ceilings. Our apartment had a small entrance with access to the large bathroom. The entrance also led to our private living room and further into two huge bedrooms, each with its own really good bed. We had the largest apartment in the hotel, but we also met several couples on romantic getaways – so the hotel suits them as well.

In addition to our own living room, the hotel also has a common lounge area, as you can see in the picture above. A lovely breakfast was served here, and for the rest of the day, there were free drinks, fruit, and cake. All in all, we can’t recommend the hotel enough!

Read more about the hotel here B&B Boutique Ca La Maria and see all the other hotels in Barcelona by clicking here. However, Barcelona is an extremely expensive city to live in, with high costs for housing, dining, and daily expenses. If you’re looking for more affordable hotels, we’ve written an article about living cheaply in Castelldefels, a charming seaside town just outside Barcelona.You can also conduct your own search for hotels in Barcelona right here:

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