The capital of Catalonia is visited annually by about 18 million tourists. Many of them prefer to travel to it by air. In this case, their path lies in Airport of Barcelona, called El Prat , located 14 kilometers from the city. Walking with suitcases or a heavy backpack behind you, you do not want to do this kind of distance, so travelers are wondering how to get from the Barcelona airport to the capital or nearby resorts. In this article you will find information both about the airport itself and about the different types of transfers to Barcelona, its shedules and the fares of transport to the city.
Barcelona Airport – general information
The international airport of Barcelona, called El Prat, has a hundred-year history. It was founded in 1916 and is now the second air station in Spain after the Madrid Barajas. For a long time the airport had one terminal for servicing passengers, but, due to the increasing flow of tourists, the management decided to build a new building for passenger service. So in 2009, at a distance of 4 km from the first was opened the second terminal of the Barcelona airport, which is called T1. Now it is the main terminal and serves about 70% of flights.
The scheme of Terminal 2 in airport of Barcelona
The old terminal, which includes sectors A, B, C, was named Terminal 2 (T2). Here and from here fly mainly low-cost and regional airplanes. Between the two terminals of El Prat airport there is a free shuttle bus. Also at the airport there is a small terminal for private airlines. To date, the air port of Barcelona has three runways. It is the most important transport hub of Europe and serves more than 44 million people a year. There is an air service with 40 world airports.
More information about the flights you get by glancing at the Barcelona airport’s online table . On the first table you will see the flights that leave Catalonia. The table is provided with information on the destination of the aircraft, the name of the carrier company, flight number and time of departure. Here, too, is the number of the terminal from which the aircraft is sent, and the flight status: on the way, it is delayed or has already landed.
Online table of airport of Barcelona El Prat
(Departures and Arrivals)
The second table will introduce you to flights, arriving from other airports. Information about which country or city the plane arrives from, you will find in the first column the table. And the fourth column will provide information on the arrival time of the aircraft. Thanks to the online table, you will always be aware of everything that concerns the flight, you are interested in.
The bus from Barcelona to the airport
Since the most democratic transfer is a bus, many tourists prefer it to all other types of transport. Route Barcelona airport – the city is the main destination for travelers. These 2 points are connected by buses of the city’s TMB network. During the day, bus No. 46 runs along this route. A big plus for budget travelers is the availability of night bus number 17.
The TMB buses travel from the airport to the city center and back. In Barcelona, the final point of the route is Plaza Catalunya. From the city, buses 46 and 17 follow first to terminal T2, then to terminal T1, that is, regardless of whether you leave the country on the low-cost or on the airplane of an expensive airline, you will reach your departure point without a change, sitting in the buses of TMB.
On bus №46 you can easy to go to the Arport of Barcelona
Where can you find a bus stop? In the arrival hall you must find an escalator and descend on it to the first floor of the airport. Then leave the terminal building and turn left. After 100 meters you will see a bus stop. Find a platform on it with the number of your route and wait for the arrival of the transport.
The first bus No. 46 departs from Terminal 2 to Plaza de España in the city at 5.30 am, and ends its traffic at 0.45. From Plaza de España, you can drive to Barcelona Airport, starting at 05.00 am. Last bus goes to the airport at 00.15. If you arrive and depart from the capital of Catalonia in the evening and night, you can take bus number 17. His movement begins at Terminal 2 from 21.55, the last bus leaves the airport in the morning at 04.45. Bus number 17 will help you get to El Prat from Barcelona. He leaves from the Plaza de Catalunya at 23.00. The last bus goes is at 5.00.
Thus, thanks to TMB, you will arrive at the airport at any time of the day and night, and from there to the city. The interval between the movement of buses No. 46 is 20 minutes, transport on route 17 runs 1 time per hour. On the way, buses make a lot of stops, so you’ll spend 30-40 minutes on a 46 bus and 45 to 60 minutes by bus number 17. If you return from your holiday home, put on the way to the airport + 15-20 extra minutes in case of traffic jams.
The bus №17 – is perfect oportunity to get to Barcelona Airport
What is the cost of taking a bus in Barcelona? Single trip will cost you 2 euros and 15 cents. The ticket can be purchased in a specialty machine (card payment) or tobacco stall (cash). If you want to save even more, buy a T10 card. It is designed for 10 trips and costs 9.95 euros. Having this ticket with you, you can travel around the city by TMB buses and get to / from the airport. On the map T10 you can go by the whole family or by the company. Remember that children under 4 years of age are provided with free transportation on public transport.
The disadvantage of traveling on TMB buses is the fact that they do not go very often (especially the 17th route), so you will need to spend time waiting for them. In the salons of these buses there are no places for luggage, and if you have with you not a small backpack, but several suitcases, it will be problematic to place them in this transport, given its congestion. You may also be required to pay extra for the luggage.
Airbus from Barcelona Airport
All the disadvantages of regular buses are easily solved by Aerobus bus express. There are 2 airbus routes: A1 Aerobus and A2 Aerobus. The first express runs along the route Terminal 1 – Plaza de Catalunya, the second one goes from Terminal 2 to the same square. None of the buses go directly to 2 terminals. Pay attention to this, if you decide to go to Barcelona airport at the end of the holiday from the city. On the Plaza Catalunya, there is only one stop for these two buses. Do not confuse the routes, otherwise risk being late for your aircraft, especially if there is not much time to left before it leaves.
Aerobuses T1 and T2 on one of bus stopes of Barcelona
The main advantage of airbuses in comparison with buses is the frequency of traffic. They leave from the airport or from the Plaza Catalunya with an interval of 5-20 minutes (depending on the route and time of day), so you will not have to wait for them for a long time. The second plus of expresses is their speed. The journey takes about 35 minutes. In the course of the traffic the airbuses stop 3 times: in the Plaza de España , on the Gran Via and at the metro station Urgell, on the Plaça Universitat. The fourth stop (the final) is the Square of Catalonia.
Express A1 begins its traffic at 5.35 am, the last bus departs from Terminal 1 at 1.05 after midnight. Express A2 runs from 6.00 to 23.10 on its route. From Plaza Catalunya you can leave to Terminal 1 from 5 am, and to Terminal 2 from 5.30. Both expresses make their last evening flight to Barcelona airport at 00.30. At night, buses do not go. Thus, if your plane leaves early in the morning, but you do not want to spend the night in the waiting room, you better get to El Prat on the night bus number 17 or by taxi.
Shedule and interval of movement of airbuses T1 and T2 in airport of Barcelona
Airbuses stop opposite the exit from each terminal, so you can easily find them. The ticket for travel in any express costs 5.90. You can buy it directly from the bus driver. In the cabin of the airbus there is a place for transportation of large-sized luggage, and it is included in the ticket price. If you want to leave the city not at the final stop, but on one of the three above, click on the special button and the driver will stop the transport (usually it is done when there are few passengers in the cabin, and there are no passengers on the way at all, in other cases the bus itself stops at the stops provided for by the route). Details on the intervals of movement of both express trains can be found from the clickable schedule below.
Train from Barcelona Airport
Another budgetary mode of transport that takes you from Barcelona airport to the city is the RENFE train. Its final stop (Aeropuerto) is located in Terminal 2 building. If you arrive at Terminal 1, but want to get to the city by train, use the free shuttle-bas between the two terminals. The ticket for the trip to RENFE costs 3.80 euros, you can buy it at the ticket office at the station or in a special automate. If you want to save on travel, but to get to the city by rail, and not along the highway, you can buy a T10 ticket that operates not only on the bus, but on the train and the metro. On this ticket you can drive during 1 hour and 15 minutes on several types of transport, and you will be charged as a one trip only.
The train RENFE in Barcelona Airport
The RENFE trains leave from the airport building from 5.42 am, the following trains leave for the city 2 times per hour: every 8 and 38 minutes (6.08, 6.38, 7.08, 7.38, etc. to 23.38). In the course of traffic, the train makes stops at various stations, but some of them are combined with the largest metro stations in Barcelona. This is Passeig de Grasia, Clot, the ultimate Sants Estacio. The last of these stations is called Barselona Sants and is the largest in the city. Trains from the suburbs come here: the resorts of Lloret de Mar, Tossa del Mar, etc.). From the city center you can also easily reach the airport by train. The first departure is at 5.00, the last at 23.00. Plus RENFE is a convenient and fast journey without traffic jams (journey time about 20 minutes), as well as the fare.
Metro from Barcelona Airport
In February 2016, the metro line from the city to the airport was inaugurated. Now anyone can reach the capital of Catalonia on this type of transport. The subway line is called L9 Sud. It carries out the movement of the train without the machinists working on automation. The metro stations are located at the airport at two terminals and are called Aeroport T1 and Aeroport T1. Below is a diagram of this line along with the names of the stations. As you can see, the L9 Sud line does not pass, unlike the RENFE transport, through the largest subway stations. To get from this line on the Plaza of Spain or Catalonia, you have to make a transfer.
Trains run to the subway with interruptions in 7 minutes. During peak hours, the time may slightly increase. The working time of this line is from 5 am to midnight on working days, from 5 am to 2 am on weekends and holidays. There are 2 types of trains: regular and express. The first stops at each station of the route, the second is not at each station . The inscription “Express” on the station information board will tell you that a faster train is approaching.
The sheme of the line L9 Sud to the airport of Barcelona
To travel by this branch to the airport and back you will not be able to use a standard ticket for the metro or T10. For this, there are special tickets under the name “Aeroport ticket”, which you can buy in the vending machine or the ticket office of the subway. The fixed fare for the L9 Sud branch is 4.50 euros. The ticket must be saved until the end of the trip, since it will need to be passed through the control device at the exit from the station. If you are in a hurry to get from the city to the airport by metro, you will ready to spend on it 1 hour of time, especially if you need to make 1-2 transplants on the road.
Taxi Transfer to Barcelona
If you do not want to stand in lines for a taxi or negotiate in broken English or Spanish about a trip, if you like comfort and do not consider every penny, you can get to the city with the help of the international service of taxi-transfer. It is used in many countries of the world and in a short time managed to prove itself well. This service has a number of advantages. The main advantages are the possibility to book a car on the Internet in advance (before the trip) and even choose its class, and also to calculate the cost of the trip to the destination. You do not have to worry about carrying large-sized luggage, as this service is free of charge. If you come to rest with young children, the service will provide you with special children’s seats for carrying children.
Arriving at El Prat airport in Barcelona, you can not get lost in its corridors, and you will not need to waste time searching for the ordered transfer. Already in the arrival zone you will be met by the driver, holding a sign with your name in his hands. He takes you to the chosen car and quickly delivers it to the hotel. If you travel with relatives or friends, you can book a minibus with a capacity for up to 7 people, and the fare will pleasantly surprise you.
Taxi from Barcelona Airport
The most convenient and fastest type of transfer to Barcelona from El Prat airport is a taxi. You can find taxi cabs in Catalonia on the special parking for them on the territory of Terminal 1 and Terminal 2. In each of the terminals for taxi cars there are several parking lots. Find them easily: you need to focus on pointers in the arrivals area, and they will lead you to the goal. If you arrive at the busiest hours of the airport (in the afternoon), then there will be a lot of people wishing to leave from here on a convenient type of transport. In order not to queue for too long, follow not after a crowd of tourists, but by the signs “Taxi”, where there are fewer passengers.
Leaving the Barcelona airport, you will immediately see the taxi cars, recognizing them the yellow-black color. If you first arrived in Spain, you should know that in this country it is not accepted to “catch” a taxi, urging the driver of a free car to drive up to you or to approach the empty car by yourself. Here you need to go to a special area with a fence (next to the parking lot) and contact the service technician (you will recognize it by a bright jacket with reflective elements). This person will direct you to the right car (sometimes you will have to wait a few minutes, and if there is a queue – even longer).
Taxi in airport Barcelona El Prat
Any tourist who wants to use the taxi service from Barcelona airport, need to know about all rates and fees for this type of transport, in advance to calculate the cost of travel to the destination. So the minimum travel in a taxi can not cost less than 20 euros in Spain. For a smaller amount you will not be drive. When boarding a car, you will always be charged 4.2 euros (landing fee at the airport), regardless of whether you are going to go alone or you are a whole company. Thus, the minimum travel in a taxi will cost you almost 25 euros. Next, the driver will turn on the meter, which will take into account not only the mileage traveled. The cost of 1 km of travel will depend on the fare. There are 4 tariffs, and they are denoted by the following signs: T1, T2, T3, T4. Their cost depends on the day of the week, as well as the time of landing in a taxi.
The most democratic tariff is T1. You can use it on working days of the week from 8.00 am to 20.00 pm. For 1 km you pay 1 euro and 3 cents. The second tariff T2 operates on evening and night hours on weekdays (from 20.00 pm to 8.00 am), on Mondays from 24.00 to 8.00, on holidays and weekends from 6 am to 20.00 pm. There is a large percentage of the likelihood that you will have to use this tariff. The cost of it is 1.30 euros.
If you arrive in Catalonia at night hours of public holidays or holidays from 20.00 to 06.00, you will have to give the taxi driver at a tariff of T3 for 1 km 1.40 euros. The fourth tariff you can use if you rent a house in the immediate vicinity of the port of Barcelona. In this case, you will be brought to the port of the city to the beginning of the Rambla street (next to the monument to Christopher Columbus). This tariff is fixed and costs 38 euros.
If you decide to meet Christmas or New Year in Spain and flew to Barcelona in the evening / night on December 24, 25 or 31, then to the total amount of the counter you will add 3.1 euros. Such an allowance will be valid from 20.00 to 08.00 am on the night of 24 to 25, from 25 to 26 December and from 31 December to 1 January.
Thus, the minimum travel in a taxi from Barcelona airport to the city will cost within 35 euros. If you travel the four of you (that’s the maximum number of passengers can take to the car salon), then each of you will pay 9 euros, but with comfort will reach the hotel in 25-30 minutes. Accommodation in the capital you can book with the help of the company and get a discount on accommodation. If you have large luggage over 55x35x35 cm its delivery (1 suitcase) will cost you 1 euro. If the size of the travel bags is smaller, you can carry them for free.
If your plane arrives at Terminal 1, located at a distance farther from the city than the second terminal, you will pay 5 euro more for traveling to Barcelona. If you want to save this amount, board a free shuttle bus that will take you to Terminal 2 where you can take a taxi and drive to the center of Barcelona at a bargain price.
If you flew to Catalonia big company (5-6 people), instead of a taxi you can take a taxi minivan. All the above tariffs apply to this transport, and at the end of the trip, 3 euros 10 cents are added to the sum. In this case, the expenses are spread over more passengers, and the amount of the trip is less than in a conventional taxi, which can not but please the funs to save money.
Many tourists arrive at Barcelona airport, but plan to spend their vacation in one of the nearby towns that are resorts. If a taxi is chosen as a transport, be prepared to pay 4,20 euros for 1 km of travel. In the presence of paid sections of roads outside of Barcelona, they are also paid for by taxi passengers. The road between the airport and the capital is free.
All people who like to travel by taxi, you need to carry small banknote (up to 20 euros) or coins for payment of travel. Some taxi counters allow you to pay with a plastic card. Most taxi drivers in Barcelona work honestly on the counter, but if you are afraid of cheating, you can ask for a receipt when you arrival. In this case, you will be sure that you will not be charged more than the required amount. In case of doubt, having this receipt in hand, you can contact her in the taxi company and file a claim or complain about the driver.
Choose the most suitable transfer for you from Barcelona Airport. Let your trip to the capital of Catalonia be fascinating and enjoyable!
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