Barcelona has an important underground network, which currently operates with eight lines. These are identified both by their number and by their color: L1 (red), L2 (lilac), L3 (green), L4 (yellow), L5 (blue), L9 (orange), L10 (light blue) and L11 ( light green). Virtually the entire city of Barcelona is connected to these subway lines, although if we have to go from one extreme to the other, it is very likely that we will have to make two or three combinations.
Where the subway does not arrive the safe bus will be present! The city of Barcelona has about 80 bus lines, which bring together more than 1,000 units. Most of these buses are low-floor and are adapted for people with reduced mobility.
Another advantage of buses compared to their cousins on rails is their operating hours. Since Barcelona has a night bus service called Nit Bus that covers a large part of the city and its surroundings throughout the night and early morning. As for the tickets, they are the same as the Metro, so they have the same price: 2.40 euros the single and 11.35 euros the bonus of ten trips.
Missing in the 70s, Barcelona has not had tram lines running through its streets for many years. There are currently two tram lines in Barcelona: the Trambaix (T1, T2, T3), which originates from Francesc Macià and reaches towns such as Sant Just Desvern, Sant Joan Despí, Sant Feliu de Llobregat or Cornellà. The Trambesòs (T4, T5, T6), allows you to travel from the Olympic Village to Sant Adrià del Besós, through the Forum, or reach Badalona. They all work with the same tickets as the subway.
In Barcelona there are two railway systems that complete the metro network, reaching the farthest points of the city. One is the urban and metropolitan rail network managed by the Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC), which operates three urban lines: L6, L7 and L8. The other is the RENFE Cercanías network, which connects the city center with neighboring towns to Barcelona.
Both work with the same packages as the subway and its T10 pass (as long as you move within Zone 1), although if you travel to a more remote station you will have to pay an extra and buy tickets for zone 2,3 or 4 .
The pleasant climate of Barcelona is ideal for cycling, the city also has an extensive network of exclusive lanes for this type of transport. There is a public bicycle rental service, BICING, but it is mainly intended for residents, since an annual fee is paid. If you are visiting Barcelona, we recommend you rent a bike for days or weeks and so you can move freely while you lose those extra pounds you got after so many tapas!
The tourist bus is a good option to move around the main points of Barcelona and on the way enjoy its beautiful streets while we listen to the history of each neighborhood and building that we see next to us. These types of buses work with daily passes, which means that we can get on and off as many times as we want within the validity of our ticket.
These panoramic buses operate on three different routes, two of them run year-round and the one that walks along the coast only in the summer months. Tickets can be purchased online and you will get a 10% discount compared to the price of local resellers.
El Prat airportis located about 15 kilometers from the center of Barcelona and there are several options to reach it from the city center by public transport, in addition to taxis and shutter services.
The simplest option is the subway of all in the subway: Line L9 sud and has stops at terminals T1 and T2 of the air station. With this line you can connect directly with 3 other metro lines and from these lines you will easily reach much of the city. Keep in mind that the normal single metro ticket is not valid to reach the airport and you will have to pay a special € 4.5 ticket.
Another option is to do it by train from T2, thanks to Renfe’s R2 line. This line will connect you quickly with three stations very well located in Barcelona: Sants station, Paseo de Gracia and Clot-Aragó. In this case you can use the simple tickets and you can buy a T10 card, of ten trips which costs about € 11.35.
But if you travel with a lot of luggage, public transportation may not be ideal for you. In this case you can choose to use the airport taxis or executive transport services, which you can book online, avoiding the taxi rank and your driver will wait for you even if your flight is delayed!
