Barcelona

Getting there & around

Local transport

Taxi

Taxis charge €1.75 flagfall (€1.85 from 9pm to 7am weekdays and all day Saturday, Sunday and holidays) plus meter charges of €0.78 per kilometre (€1 at night and on weekends). A further €3 is added for all trips to/from the airport, and €0.90 for luggage bigger than 55cm x 35cm x 35cm. The trip from Estació Sants to Plaça de Catalunya, about 3km, costs about €8 to €10. You can call a taxi (93 225 00 00, 93 300 11 00, 93 303 30 33, 93 322 22 22, 704 101112) or flag them down in the streets. The call-out charge is €3.09 (€3.86 at night and on weekends). In many taxis it is possible to pay with credit card and, if you have a local telephone number, you can join the T033 Ràdio taxi service for booking taxis online (www.radiotaxi033.com, in Spanish). You can also book online at www.catalunyataxi.com. General information is available on 010.

Fono Taxi (93 300 11 00) is one of several taxi companies with taxis adapted for those with disabilities. Taxi Amic (93 420 80 88; www.terra.es/personal/taxiamic, in Spanish) is a special taxi service for people with disabilities or difficult situations (such as transport of big objects). Book at least 24 hours in advance if possible.

Trixis

These three-wheeled cycle taxis (93 310 13 79; www.trixi.info; Plaça dels Traginers 4) operate along the waterfront (11am to 8pm daily) between March and November). They can take two passengers and cost €10/18 per half-hour/hour. Children aged three to 12 pay half-price. You can find them near the Monument a Colom and in front of La Catedral.

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Bus & tram

Barcelona

Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB; 010; www.tmb.cat) buses run along most city routes every few minutes from 5am or 6am to 10pm or 11pm. Many routes pass through Plaça de Catalunya and/or Plaça de la Universitat. After 11pm a reduced network of yellow ­nitbusos (night buses) runs until 3am or 5am. All nitbus routes pass through Plaça de Catalunya and most run every 30 to 45 minutes.

Catalonia

Much of the Pyrenees and the entire Costa Brava are served only by buses, as train services are limited to important railheads such as Girona, Figueres, Lleida, Ripoll and ­Puigcerdà. Various bus companies operate across the region. All of the following operate from Estació del Nord (902 303222; www.barcelonanord.com; Carrer d’Ali Bei 80; Arc de Triomf), except Hispano-Igualadina and TEISA:

Alsina Graells (902 422242; www2.alsa.es) Part of the Continental-Auto group, it runs buses from Barcelona to destinations west and northwest, such as Vielha, La Seu d’Urgell and Lleida.

Barcelona Bus (902 130014; www.sagales.com, in Catalan & Spanish) Runs buses from Barcelona to Girona (and Girona-Costa Brava airport), Figueres, parts of the Costa Brava and northwest Catalonia.

Hispano-Igualadina (902 447726; www.igualadina.net; Estació Sants & Plaça de la Reina Maria Cristina) Serves central Catalonia.

SARFA (902 302025; www.sarfa.com) The main ­operator on and around the Costa Brava.

TEISA (972 20 48 68; www.teisa-bus.com; Carrer de Pau Claris 117; Passeig de Gràcia) Covers a large part of the eastern Catalan Pyrenees from Girona and Figueres. From Barcelona buses head for Camprodon via Ripoll and Olot via Besalú.

Long-distance

Long-distance buses leave from Estació del Nord. A plethora of companies operates to different parts of Spain, although many come under the umbrella of Alsa-Enatcar (902 422242; www.alsa.es). For other companies, ask at the bus station. There are frequent services to Madrid, Valencia and Zaragoza (up to 20 a day) and several daily departures to distant destinations such as Burgos, Santiago de Compostela and Seville.

Eurolines (www.eurolines.com), in conjunction with local carriers all over Europe, is the main international carrier. Its website provides links to national operators; it runs services across Europe and to Morocco from Estació del Nord, and Estació d’Autobusos de Sants (Carrer de Viriat; Sants Estació), next to Estació Sants Barcelona. For information and tickets in Barcelona, contact Alsa-Enatcar. Another carrier is Linebús (www.linebus.com, in Spanish).

Tram

TMB (902 193275; www.trambcn.com) runs three tram lines (T1, T2 and T3) into the suburbs of greater Barcelona from Plaça de Francesc Macià and are of limited interest to visitors. The T4 line runs from behind the zoo (near the Ciutadella Vila Olímpica Metro stop) to Sant Adrià via Glòries and the Fòrum. The T5 line runs from Glòries to Badalona. All standard transport passes are valid.

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Car & motorcycle

Hire

Avis, Europcar, National/Atesa and Hertz have desks at El Prat airport, Estació Sants and Estació del Nord. Rental outlets in Barcelona include:

Avis (902 248824, 93 237 56 80; www.avis.com; Carrer de Còrsega 293-295; Diagonal)

Cooltra (93 221 40 70; www.cooltra.com; Passeig de Joan de Borbó 80-84) You can rent scooters here for around €20 a day, or as little as €90 a month in low season, plus add insurance. They also organise scooter tours.

Europcar (93 302 05 43; www.europcar.com; Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes 680; Girona)

Hertz (93 419 61 56; www.hertz.com; Carrer del Viriat 45; Sants)

MotoLoco (93 221 34 52; www.motoloco.es; Passeig de Joan de Borbó 80-84) A similar deal on scooter rental, and virtually next door, to Cooltra.

National/Atesa (902 100101, 93 323 07 01; www.atesa.es; Carrer de Muntaner 45; Universitat)

Pepecar (807 414243; www.pepecar.com; Plaça de Catalunya; Catalunya) Specialises in cheap rentals with a mix of cars (the Smart cars for two people are the cheapest). They have four branches, including one near Sants train station at Carrer de Béjar 68, and another near the airport at the Hotel Tryp Barcelona Aeropuerto. Note that the phone number is expensive to call and customers are encouraged to book on the website.

Vanguard (93 439 38 80; www.vanguardrent.com; Carrer de Viladomat 297; Entença) For motorbikes.

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Boat

Balearic Islands

Passenger and vehicular ferries operated by Acciona Trasmediterránea (902 454645; www.trasmediterranea.es; Drassanes) to/from the Balearic Islands, dock around the Moll de Barcelona wharf in Port Vell. Information and tickets are available at the terminal buildings along Moll de San Beltran along Moll de Barcelona or from travel agents. Standard fares for a ‘Butaca Turista’ (seat) from Barcelona to any of the islands are €46.50 on standard ferries or €75 on high-speed catamaran ferries. Cabins for up to four people are also available on overnight standard ferries.

Another company with links between Barcelona and the Balearic Islands is Baleària (902 160180; www.balearia.net).

Italy

Grandi Navi Veloci (902 410200, 93 443 98 98, in Italy 010 209 4591; www1.gnv.it; Moll de San Beltran; Drassanes) runs daily high-speed, luxury ­ferries between Genoa and Barcelona. The journey takes 18 hours. Ticket prices depend on season and how far in advance you purchase. An economy-class airline-style seat can cost as little as €16 in winter, while a single cabin suite in high season can cost €199. The same company runs weekly (year-round) ferries between Barcelona and Tangiers, in Morocco, too. Grimaldi Ferries (902 531333, in Italy 081 496444; www.grimaldi-ferries.com) operates similar services from Barcelona to Civitavecchia (near Rome, 20 hours) and Livorno (Tuscany, 19½ hours) up to six days a week. An economy-class airline-style seat costs from €29 in low season to €72 in high season on both routes.

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Train

Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (www.tmb.cat) runs a Metro system with seven colour-coded lines. Single tickets, good for one journey no matter how many changes you have to make, cost €1.40 and can be bought at Metro stations. The Metro operates from 5am to midnight Sunday to Thursday, from 5am to 2am on Friday and days immediately before main holidays, and 24 hours on Saturday. The FGC (%93 205 15 15; www.fgc.net) suburban rail network is handy for trips from Plaça de Catalunya to scattered attractions such as Tibidabo and Pedralbes. It operates on a similar schedule to the Metro.

Train is also the most convenient overland option for reaching Barcelona from major Spanish centres like Madrid and Valencia. It can be a long haul from other parts of Europe, where budget flights frequently offer a saving in time and money. For information on travelling from the UK, contact the Rail Europe Travel Centre (in the UK 0844 848 4064; www.raileurope.co.uk; 1 Regent St, London SW1). For travel within Spain, information is available at train stations or travel agents. A network of rodalies/cercanías serves towns around Barcelona (and the airport). Contact Renfe (902 240202; www.renfe.es) for information on these services.

The high-speed Tren de Alta Velocidad Española (AVE) between Madrid and Barcelona began operating in 2008 (four years late!). Seventeen trains per day run in each direction, seven of them non-stop (two hours, 40 minutes). One-way prices range from around €40 (on the condition that they are purchased online at least 15 days before travel) to €163 (for an open ticket valid for a year). The line will eventually (perhaps by 2012) extend to Perpignan, in southern France, to connect with the French high-speed TGV network.

Another high-speed AVE train, known as Euromed, runs on standard, wide-gauge Spanish tracks, and connects Barcelona with Valencia and Alicante.

Most long-distance (largo recorrido or Grandes Línias) trains have 1st and 2nd classes (known as preferente and turista). After the AVE, Euromed and several other similarly modern trains, the most common long-distance trains are the Tren Articulado Ligero Goicoechea Oriol (Talgos). They are cheaper, slower and tend to stop at all stations en route.

A trenhotel is a sleeping-car train with up to three classes: turista (for those sitting or in a couchette), preferente (sleeping car) and gran clase (for those who prefer to sleep in sheer luxury!).

The main international and domestic train station in Barcelona is Estació Sants (Plaça dels Països Catalans; Sants Estació), located 2.5km west of La Rambla. Direct overnight trains from Paris, Geneva, Lisbon and Milan arrive here, as do services from a number of other cities across Spain and France.

Estació Sants is equipped with a tourist office, a telephone and fax office, currency exchange booths open between 8am and 10pm, ATMs and a consigna (left-luggage lockers; small/big locker for 24hr €3/4.50; 5.30am-11pm).

A second train station is being constructed at the other end of the city in La Sagrera.

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Bicycle

Bike lanes have been laid out along quite a few main roads (including Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, Avinguda Diagonal, Carrer d’Aragó, Avinguda de la Meridiana and Carrer de la Marina) and a growing, if ad hoc, network of secondary streets, so it is possible to get around on two environmentally friendly wheels. A waterfront path runs northeast from Port Olímpic towards Riu Besòs. Scenic itineraries are mapped for cyclists in the Collserola parkland, and the ronda verde, a 72km cycling path that extends right around the city’s outskirts, is about 60% complete.

City laws make it illegal for cyclists to use bus lanes and footpaths, meaning that, where bike lanes are not present, the cyclist is condemned to a fair amount of traffic-dodging. Barcelona has a long way to go before becoming a seriously bike-friendly town.

You can transport your bicycle on the Metro on weekdays (except between 6.30am and 9.30am or 4.30pm and 8.30pm). On weekends and holidays, and during July and August, there are no restrictions. You can use FGC trains to carry your bike at any time and Renfe’s rodalies trains from 10am to 3pm on weekdays and all day on weekends and holidays.

Bicing (www.bicing.com, in Catalan/Spanish) is a resident-only public bicycle system. Folks pay an annual fee and ride these red and white bikes from one stop (scattered all over town, including near many Metro stations) to another – effectively an alternative system of public transport.

Hire

A growing array of companies have bicycles for hire. They include:

BarcelonaBiking.com (656 356300; www.barcelonabiking.com; Baixada de Sant Miquel 6) City and mountain bikes.

Barnabike (93 269 02 04; www.barnabike.com; Carrer del Pas de Sota la Muralla 3; per hr/24 hrs €4/18; 10am-9.30pm) rents out an assortment of bikes (including kick bikes) and karts, Trikkes (odd three-wheel contraptions), electric bikes and bikes for kids.

BEB (93 451 15 53; www.beb.com.es; Carrer d’Enric Granados 61; rental per day €20; 9am-9pm) offers more relaxed cyclists the option of renting motorised bikes. You are provided with bike, battery and charger. Discounts are available for longer periods. Bookings must be made a day in advance.

Biciclot (93 221 97 78; www.biciclot.net; Passeig Marítim 33; per hr/day €5.50/€18; 10am-3pm & 4-8pm Apr-Sep, 4-6pm Oct-Nov, 10am-3pm Sat & Sun & holidays Dec-Mar; Ciutadella Vila Olímpica) Handy seaside location.

Ciclo Bus Barcelona (93 285 38 32; per hr/half-day/full day/two days/week €4.50/11/15/21/56) Barcelona Town Hall lays on this bicycle hire service in three locations: Plaça de Catalunya (Easter to October only), Passeig de Joan de Borbó (Easter-Oct only) and Plaça del Portal de la Pau (Monument a Colom). You can also buy a card for 10 hours (€15), to be used when you want.

Barcelona Rent-A-Bike (93 317 19 70; www.barcelonarentabike.com; Carrer dels Tallers 45; per 2 hr/day €6/12; 9.30am-8pm) You can book a bike online, and they have foldable bikes.

Un Cotxe Menys (93 268 21 05; www.bicicletabarcelona.com; Carrer de l’Esparteria 3; per hr/half-day/full day/week €5/11/15/70; 10am-2pm & 4-6pm Mon-Fri; Jaume I) This business also organises bike tours.

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