Holidays in Spain. What do you need to know about the trip to Barcelona?

Going on a trip, I want to provide all the details, so as not to get into a mess because of the annoying little things. Forewarned is forearmed. We go to Barcelona fully armed!

How to get to Barcelona?

Trains to Barcelona

• There are three railway stations in Barcelona. Two of them - Barcelona-Sants
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  and Passeig-de-Gracia - arrive both local trains( from the resorts of Costa Brava and Costa Dorada) and long-haul, including high-speed( from other regions of Spain and countriesEU).The third station - Estacio de Franca - accepts only long haul trains
• Passeig-de-Gracia is in the very center, Barcelona-Sants and Estacio-de-Franca are remote from the center, but connected to it by metro lines, so the road takesnot more than 7-10 minutes

Barcelona Sants railway station, Barcelona

Intercity buses

• Intercity buses of local lines( from Costa Brava, Costa del Maresme, Costa del Garraf and Costa Dorada) arrive to Plaça Catalunya.
• Estacion del Norte Bus Station connects Barcelona with all of Europe( France, Sweden, Switzerland, England and other countries)

Flights to Barcelona

• International flights to Barcelona from El-Prat-de-Llobregat arrive almost anywhere in the world
• Cheap European low-costers often fly to Girona( a town on the Costa Brava, 120 km from Barcelona)- the truth is, you will have to get there with two transfers, but perhaps the ticket price from the loukoster will justify this agony

Barcelona International Airport El-Prat-de-Llobregat, Terminal T1

Maritime communication with Barcelona

• Barcelona is the largest international port inm make stops almost all ships engaged on cruises in the Mediterranean Sea
• There is a regular ferry service to Italy( Genoa, Rome, Sardinia) and France( Marseille).A ferry ticket from Italy costs less than a train or airfare

Barcelona's passenger port

Where to stay in Barcelona

Hotel or apartment rental?

• Pros of living in the hotel : the reception staff are ready to help you on any issue;Do not have to deal with a bunch of household issues: cleaning, laundry, cooking
• Living in the hotel : price( most hotels in Barcelona are very expensive);the presence of neighbors( all hotels in Barcelona have very thin walls and good audibility);the need to follow the general rules( you can not make noise after 23:00, you can not sleep in the restaurant for breakfast, you can not drive guests to the room and the like);You can not save on food( kitchens in the hotel rooms are not)

• Pros of living in a rented apartment : significant savings in price compared to the hotel;you can live on the usual schedule;you can prepare yourself and save on food;there is a great opportunity to see the life of Barcelona "from within", and not from the window of the hotel
• Minuses of rented apartments : with all the issues have to be sorted out independently( how to turn the stove, get to the center where to buy a detergent);all domestic issues need to take over( washing, cleaning, cooking)
• you need to know at least a few phrases in Spanish or Catalan( take a phrase book), otherwise neighbors and landlords may not understand you( not all know English)

Center or outskirtsBarcelona?

• The central part of Barcelona( Rambla, Plaza Catalunya, Eixample district) is very convenient for sightseeing( almost all - within walking distance)
• In the center of the highest prices for housing, products, services;in a season in the center too many people;If you plan to live longer than three days, you will quickly get tired of noise and crush
• . The remote areas are relatively cheap, quiet and comfortable for living, but the need to spend time and money on the road every day can quickly tire out and "eat" a large part of the

• budget.embankment are only good in summer. From November to March, the cold piercing wind often blows from the sea, and the panorama of the beaches in the gray rainy weather looks quite unattractive. In winter time it is worth to stay away from the sea
• In the Raval area, a lot of immigrants from the Arab countries, India and Pakistan traditionally settle. Accommodation there may not be comfortable and unsafe in the dark.
• The Gothic Quarter is also unsafe in places and not attractive in terms of cleanliness and odors.
• The main thing to consider when choosing a hotel not in the center is the proximity to the metro. If the nearest metro station will have to travel by local transport with transplants, you risk undermining your nerves or getting lost
• A good option for an inexpensive stay is the suburbs of Costa del Garraf and the Costa del Maresme.here the hotels and apartments are much cheaper and the electric trains run to the Passeig-de-Gracia station in the heart of Barcelona

Transport in Barcelona

Metropolitan Barcelona

• The Metropolitan of Barcelona is open from 5:00 to midnight, on holidays and weekends, the work time is extended to 2:00 nights. The metro branches are marked with an alphanumeric designation, for example, L2, and in addition each is highlighted in its own color. In addition to the name of the station, the code of the branch contains the code of the branch and is painted in the corresponding color.

• Tickets can be purchased at stations in vending machines( accepting cash and bank cards) or at the cashier( he can also give a free meta map - "mapa" if necessary).Tickets are of several types, the most convenient option is a T-10 ticket( that is, a ticket that entitles you to 10 trips, while several people can pass for one ticket - for each one will write off one trip).

• The ticket should be worn carefully, as the turnstilesDo not read crumpled and damaged tickets. If the machine does not accept your ticket, you can ask the station employee to replace it with the

• . At the entrance to the metro, you usually see a diagram showing the station you're on and the direction of traffic from that station. To pass through the turnstile, the ticket must be inserted into the side frontal slot and wait for the machine to give it out through the hole in the top cover of the

turnstile. The metro map of Barcelona can be downloaded here

Taxi in Barcelona

• Taxi in Barcelona is relatively inexpensive, but convenient only for moving to remote areas. In the center there are often traffic jams, so a much more convenient mode of transportation is the subway
• . Official Barcelona taxis are painted yellow-black. If the green light burns on the roof or the windshield, then the car is free. Payment is charged strictly on the meter, the tip is not required and remain at the discretion of the passenger
• . At the airport and at the train stations, the car can be found at special parking lots. On the streets of the city you can stop a free taxi by hand, call by phone or order via the Internet

. You can order a taxi by calling 933-993-737, 932-783-000, 934-331-020 or send an application on the website of Taxi Barcelona

.Card

• The card provides free travel on all types of public transport, as well as discount on entrance tickets to the most popular museums in Barcelona, ​​a discount when buying tickets to the philharmonic and opera, small discounts to cardholders are provided in some souvenir shops and restaurants
• Vmesthose with a map will give you a free subway map, a map with the sights of Barcelona and a detailed list of services available to the cardholder. Cards are issued on 2,3,4 and 5 days.
• Cards can not be transferred to third parties, because they have the name of the owner. The number of days is automatically counted from the activation date of the card indicated on the back, regardless of whether you used it or not.

Get more information about the card and make an online purchase here

Do you rent a car in Barcelona?

• In Barcelona, ​​a rented car is the most expensive and uncomfortable mode of transport, because the
  does not have free parking here, and the cost of a paid guarded parking lot is quite high.
• In the center of Barcelona( especially during periods of influx of tourists) it is simply unrealistic to find a free place,to solve the problem
• Leave the car outside the parking lot - guaranteed penalty for parking in the wrong place, in the worst case, payment of a penalty parking( from 200 euros and above)
• Car driven by foreigners -bull for car thieves. The car will not be stolen from you, but you'll get rid of it thoroughly

Barcelona buses

• In Barcelona, ​​there are 3 popular sightseeing routes that tourist buses run around, stopping near the main attractions of the
• . Each route is marked with its color: red, blue, green. In the same color painted buses.
  Tickets are sold for 1 and 2 days.
• The ticket entitles you to free travel throughout the route during the dates indicated on it. You can go in and out of the bus at any stop an unlimited number of times. The price includes the use of an audio guide, the tourist can listen to the reference information about the tourist site, which is located at the next stop
• . In good weather, there are seats on the upper tier of the
• bus. Routes are valid all year round except for two days a year - Christmas and New Year. Buses run from 9 am to 7 pm. The interval of traffic is about half an hour

Detailed scheme of tourist routes can be found here

Barcelona city buses

• Regular day buses have quite complicated routes and for transportation in the center they can be successfully replaced with the subway
• Bus stops look like in Russia( roof, bench, a signboard and a flock of waiting passengers).To stop the bus you need, you must give the driver a sign with the hand
• The fare is paid when boarding the bus directly to the driver, so you should always go into the bus through the front door

• You should not linger at the entrance, because the landing is usually formed by a small impatient queue
• To get off the bus, before stopping you need to click on one of the bright red STOP buttons located in the middle and end of the cabin on the turnstiles before the exit
• In Barcelona there is night buses , which is very convenient, as the rest of the city bus stops at night. All night routes start from Plaza Catalunya in the center of the city

Detailed scheme of Barcelona's night bus routes can be viewed here

Dining in Barcelona

In Barcelona there are several online restaurant brands where meals are organized by self-service type, food is much more useful than fast food, and prices are roughlyat the same level. So for those who want to save such restaurants - an ideal option.

The price of lunch in the restaurant is fixed - around 8-12 euros. This price includes a salad, soup, a second, a drink and a dessert. Each type is offered a choice of several dishes that are exhibited in a transparent display case. Visitors move along the storefront and choose their own meals. At the end of the showcase, a settlement is made with the cashier.

Self-service restaurants in Barcelona

• Restaurant chain Fresco .The nearest restaurant to the center of the Fresco network is located in the Maremagnum shopping complex in the port of Barcelona. Addresses of all Fresco restaurants in Barcelona can be viewed here

• Lactuca restaurant chain .The nearest Latuca restaurant is located opposite the Sagrada Familia in Carrer de Prevenca, 427

• La Paradeta restaurant chain ( seafood dishes).Here, visitors choose not ready meals, but raw freshly caught seafood and the way of cooking( there are not many options - to fry, put out and eat raw)
• While the visitor chooses drinks, dessert and pays the order, cooks prepare the dish. At the checkout a check is issued with the order number, which the chefs shout out as soon as the dish is ready. The cost of lunch ranges around 20-25 euros per person
• The nearest restaurant is located near the Leo Morera House in Passeig de Gracia, a full list of restaurants can be found here.

• Another kind of relatively inexpensive restaurants are the local "tapas " snack bars. There are a lot of them in Barcelona, ​​it's better to choose ones that are not located on the central streets, but slightly aside

• In fast food restaurants a lunch of hamburger, French fries and a drink will cost 10-12 euros.

• In small restaurants of Mediterranean cuisineand on food courts of large shopping centers a hot and a drink will cost around 15-20 euros per person.

• Dinner or lunch in a restaurant of the classical type in the center will cost 40-50 euros per person( salad, hot, water and wine).

Shoppingin Barcelona

• Season of salesBarcelona is 2 times per year: from January to mid-February and from mid-July to late August
• Discounts on goods at the beginning of the sales season will start with 10-15% by the end of the sales reach their peak at 70-80%.However, the choice in February and August is already small, but an experienced shopaholic will always find the right thing for such ridiculous money.
• The most fashionable and expensive brands of European clothing are on sale at Passeig de Gracia. This is the most pathos street in Barcelona with the most pathos boutiques

• In the Gothic quarter, many fashion shops can be found in the Placa de Sant Josep Oriol area and the adjacent streets
• In the sale season from Plaza Catalunya, a special bus Tomb bus departs every hour,wanting at the most soup shopping outlets in Barcelona
• There are quite a few branded stores of famous European clothing brands on Diagonal Avenue: Armani, Versace, Zara and other

Malls and outlets of Barcelona

• El Corte Inglés - the most famous shopping center in Barcelona, ​​located on Plaça Catalunya

• Maremagnum - shopping and entertainment complex near the Aquarium in the old port of Barcelona

• Glories( Les Glories) - shopping center on Diagonal Avenue near the Sagrada Familia.

• Arena de Barcelona( Arenas de Barcelona) is a former bullfighting stadium that was converted to a shopping center after the introduction of a ban on bullfighting in the country. Located on the Plaza of Spain near the singing fountains

• Diagonal - a large shopping center at the beginning of Diagonal Avenue near El Maresme and Forum

metro stations. Barcelona beaches

• Despite the fact that Barcelona is a huge metropolis, its beaches can be considered ideal for cleanliness. The beach strip starts from the district of Barceloneta and stretches north for several kilometers.
• There are 11 beaches in this region. Most of the equipped beaches are located near the metro stations Barceloneta, Ciutadella, Bogatell, Llacuna and Pable-nou
• Wild beaches are located closer to the outskirts of the city next to the metro Selva de Mar, El Maresme and Forum

Safety rules in Barcelona

• In crowded tourist places in the centercities are many pocket thieves. Often steal bags and gadgets left unattended
• Also often tourists become victims of thieves in the subway and commuter trains during rush hour
• Be especially careful if someone from the local people suddenly shows an unexpected interest to you or offers unselfish help( shake off the stained back,ask about some nonsense): pickpockets often work in pairs, and while one distracts, the second cleans out pockets and bags from money.
• Wear bags and backpacks so that they can not be pulled off your shoulder on the run: thesem sometimes rides motorcyclists on sidewalks along roads

• Do not open bags and pockets with a large crowd of people. Often, tourists begin to fumble through the pockets in search of travel, trivia for payment, phone and so on. At this point they become very easy prey for scammers
• Do not leave things unattended on the beach
• Avoid visiting the gothic quarter( especially the part closer to the sea) and the Raval district
• in the dark. Always rent a car in rented cars if you are traveling totraffic jam. Do not keep valuables in the back seat of the car, do not leave things in the cabin when you leave the car, even if it is in a guarded parking lot.

• Emergency telephone numbers of Barcelona: ambulance - 112, 061, police - 092, 091
• The Consulate General of Russia in Catalonia: 933-938-146( 24-hour free Russian-speaking phone)

Video: How to choose accommodation in Barcelona?

Video: How to save money in Barcelona?