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To get from Barcelona El Prat Airport to the city center, you have several transportation options available. Here are the most common ways to make the journey.

Aerobus

The Aerobus is a dedicated shuttle service that connects the airport terminals with key locations in the city center. They are big busses, light blue in colour.

The A1 line runs between the city centre and Terminal 1 while the A2  runs between the city centre and Terminal 2. Both lines pass through Plaça de Catalunya and Plaça de Espanya (plus two other stops).

The buses run 24-hours a day, 365 days per year. They are comfortable and equipped with ample luggage storage. They also have free WiFi and USB charging plugs – although these plugs aren’t always working, so don’t count on them 100%

The journey from the airport to the city center takes between 30 and 40 minutes, depending on traffic conditions.

Tickets

Tickets cost €6.75 one-way or €11.65 return. The return is valid for 90 days. Children under four years old travel free.

Discounts for single parents and big families are also available. To benefit from this you need to be registered as living in Spain, and apply for a single parent or big family discount card. This card entitles you to discounts not only on the Aerobus but for other services in Spain.

You can purchase tickets directly at the bus stops, at the airport terminals or online. They can also be bought on the bus from the driver. You can pay with cash or card, although the driver may not except notes of a particularly high denomination.

For those who need to travel further by metro or bus after they have taken the Aerobus, there is a convenient combi ticket that you can purchase for €7.90. This includes a one-way journey on the Aerobus, followed by a single journey on public transport (ordinarily a single ticket without the combi would cost €2.40).

To buy tickets and to check if there is any planned disruption to the route, you can consult the Aerobus website.

Departure points

At the airport, the Aerobus stop is easy to find; simply follow the bus signs from the arrival hall. Once you get outside the terminal, just look for the big blue bus with 'Aerobus' written across the side.

In Plaça de Catalunya, the Aerobus stop is located in front of the big Corte Inglés shopping centre.

Be very vigilant about your luggage, especially when buying tickets but also on the bus. Thieves frequently target tourists arriving in the city!

Metro

Barcelona's metro connects the airport with Line L9, which runs from the airport until Zona Universitaria, passing from Fira (exibition centre) and Collblanc (connected to Line L5) and Torrassa (connected to Line L1).

There are a few things to think about before deciding to travel by metro:

• You can’t use a regular metro ticket to get to the airport (see link below)
• Unless your final destination is on Line L9, you are going to have to change - and you will not always find lifts to help you with your luggage.
• Unless you take the metro at the first station of the line is unlikely you will get a seat.
• The metro can become very crowed during peak hours.
• You should watch your belongings like a hawk, particularly when the trains are crowded. Pickpockets between the airport and the city centre are common.
• Unlike Aerobus, the metro doesn’t run throughout the night..

To travel from Barcelona El Prat Airport to the city center using the metro, you can follow these steps:

• Terminal Information: Determine which terminal you are arriving at: Terminal 1 (T1) or Terminal 2 (T2).
• Access the Metro: Both terminals have metro stations. If you arrive at T1, you'll find the metro station within the terminal building. If you arrive at T2, follow the signs to the metro station located near the terminal.
• Choose the right line: The L9 Sud metro line connects the airport to the city center. This line has two branches: L9S1 and L9S2. L9S1 goes to Zona Universitària, while L9S2 goes to Can Tries - Gornal. Make sure that you are on the correct branch depending on your destination.
• Buy a ticket: Purchase a single metro ticket at the airport station. Note that a regular metro ticket can’t be used to reach the airport; you need a special ticket that costs €5.15. You can buy it online or at the machines located in metro stations. Many - though not all - of these machines accept cash. They all accept major credit and debit cards, although some machines might not process cards that do not have PIN numbers.

Renfe Train

The R2 Nord line of the Renfe train network connects the airport to the city center. The train stops at major stations, including Sants Estació and Passeig de Gràcia. Trains are generally efficient and provide a direct route to the city.

The main benefit of using the Renfe train system is the cost. You can purchase a book of 10 tickets for €13. This works out as €1.30 per journey, and can take you anywhere on the public transport network.

Unfortunately, only Terminal 2 is served by this train. Therefore, if you arrive at Terminal 1, you may find it more convenient and quicker to take alternative transportation, such as the metro or Aerobus - although there is a free shuttle bus that runs between the two terminals (ever 5-10 minutes, apart from between 8pm and midnight when the buses run every hour).

The Renfe train also only runs every 30 minutes from the airport, which is not as frequently as other modes of public transport. Trains are not 24 hours; they run from 5.20am to 11pm.

Taxi

Taxis are a convenient and widely used mode of transportation in Barcelona. They offer a flexible way to get around the city, especially when traveling with luggage or in groups.

The exact fare will obviously depend on your final destination and traffic conditions. Most rides from the airport into Barcelona will cost between €20 and €40. There is a fixed supplement from the airport of €4.30, on top of the regular meter cost. There are also some additional costs that you may incur, as highlighted below.

Taxis are readily available throughout the city, and you can easily find them at taxi stands, major transportation hubs, hotels and in popular tourist areas. Look for licensed taxis with an official taxi sign on the roof. These taxis are metered and regulated by the city. Taxis in Barcelona are typically black and yellow, making them easy to spot.

Taxis in Barcelona are equipped with meters that calculate fares based on distance traveled and time spent in the taxi. The starting fare and subsequent per-kilometer rate are regulated by the city.

Taxi-hailing apps such Free Now are available in Barcelona, allowing you to book and track taxis using your smartphone.

Most taxis in Barcelona accept both cash and credit or debit cards for payment. However, it is a good idea to carry some cash on you in case card payment is not possible - or ask before you get in.

Tipping is optional, but it is fairly common to round up the fare or add a little extra for good service.

The most popular ride-sharing service in Barcelona is Cabify. Uber is not operational in the city at the moment.

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In all of fairness, we were expecting to be disappointed. The tickets aren’t cheap. The place is slap bang in the middle of Barcelona’s number one tourist district. And the place has the audacity to call itself “Big Fun Museum”.

But actually the place is a lot better than we had expected. Still a little pricey, as of course might be expected for the area, but really rather fun. Kids will certainly enjoy it, and most adults will find it quite interesting too.

So what is the place all about?

The Big Fun Museum actually consists of eight separate attractions spread across three floors. There’s the Sweet Museum, for example, or the somewhat disturbing Museum of Madness. Each area consists of a series of well-designed displays, according to the theme, as well as some very interesting explanations. Learn, for example, all about the legend of the Moth-Man or the smallest woman that ever lift.

From what age can I take my kids?

Much of the museum is suitable for children from the around the age of four. However, you should bare in mind that parts of the museum are quite scary for very young kids.

Giant’s House, Topsy-Turvy House, the Sweet Museum and Alice Through the Looking Glass can all be enjoyed by the younger members of your family.

Parts of Records and Wonders and the Madness Museum are quite scary and only recommended for older children from the age of seven or eight. The Madness Museum has an age recommendation of 12. Some of the animations in the Magic Room – such as the dancing skeletons – could be a little frightening, too.

How much does it cost?

Tickets aren’t cheap: €25 for a single ticket, or €30 if you want to also include a visit to the Big Fun Museums of Illusions, which is just round the corner.

However, you can get a fairly significant discount by purchasing online: €15 for a single ticket or €18.75 for a combo ticket.

How do you get there?

The museum is a 10-minute walk from Plaça de Catalunya down La Rambla: very easy to find!

How long do you need?

The woman on the ticket desk said that we’d probably need around 45 minutes to see all the museum, but in actual fact we stayed for twice this amount of time. We could easily have stayed for longer, too, had our stomachs not got the better of us – there’s quite a lot to take in!

The different zones

Records and Wonders

This is where you’ll learn about some record-breaking phenomenons (the shortest woman that ever lived, the tallest man or the longest finger nails that have ever been grown) and other astonishing wonders (such as the Moth-Man; a legend, presumably, for no evidence of it was ever produced).

Giant’s House

This is where everything is extra-large. Have fun sitting on a chair that is waaaay too large, or trying on a Mexican sombrero that just isn’t the right fit.

Topsy-Turvy House

Everything is upside-down! It’s totally disorientating as you enter on the ceiling and look upwards to the floor. Take some great trick photos… like the shot of a motorbike where you appear to be hanging off the handlebars.

Sweet Museum

Say no more, say no more! A kid’s paradise where all the sweets are super-sized. Unfortunately none of them are real.

Museum of Madness

This is a rather disturbing part of the overall, where you learn about people that have gone insane… and the rather dubious treatments that were once meted out to them. Screeching models of deranged men and women, which come to live when buttons are pressed, make the experience somewhat sinister. There is an notice at the start of the museum, suggesting that this zone might not be suitable for children younger than 12… and for good reason.

Food Art

A fairly small area where famous paintings – Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers – are recreated using plastic food models.

Alice Through The Looking Glass

A particularly fun part of the museum where visitors are guided through a hall of mirrors, full of colourful models taken from Lewis Carol’s magical book.

Magic Room

One of my personal favourite zones, and great as a last stop after visiting all the other areas. Come here to chill out on the comfy beanbags, listening to music and watching the animated video all around you. The video playing changes every few minutes: the bottom of the sea, the cosmos, a wildlife safari park, dancing skeletons. It’s magical. And thoroughly relaxing!

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When it comes to thrills-and-spills, Barcelona’s only amusement park may not be able to compete with the top theme parks that you find elsewhere in Europe. However, it is certainly one of the most visually-stunning parks on the continent.

You can spot Tibidabo from miles away, identified by a grandiose church – The Church of the Sacred Heart – that was built in the early 20th Century. A smattering of traditional fairground rides – a ferris wheel, a merry-go-round and a couple of others – cluster around the church.

From afar, the church seems to be calling out to the traveler, inviting them up to the mountain. It is a call that is difficult to ignore, and most visitors eventually ask themselves the question, “What is that building – and how do I get there?”

The name ‘Tibidabo’ actually comes from the Latin ‘I will give you’. According to the Bible, these were the words that the Devil said to Jesus as they looked down from an exceedingly high mountain upon the kingdoms of the world.

The Tibidabo mountain is the highest peak of the Collserola national park. From here you can enjoy spectacular views over the whole of Barcelona, spread out before you like an inviting Persian rug stretching all the way to the sea.

The panoramic area has completely free access, and so you can enjoy these amazing views even if you don’t want to enter the park.

The amusement park itself is spread across five floors, with most of the rides being located outdoors. The uppermost floor, which sports half a dozen rides, is open most of the time, while the other floors are usually only open at weekends and during school holidays.

There are a total of 32 rides and activities in the park. Children who are taller than 120 centimetres will be allowed on most of the dies, although there are some that restrict unaccompanied access for children shorter than 130 or 140 centimetres.

Tibidabo is relatively easy to get to and you can reach the park with a single metro ticket from the centre of Barcelona.

How much does it cost?

Standard entrance price is €35 per person. This includes access to all rides and activities apart from the fairground games where you can win prices. Children who are between 90 and 120 centimetres enjoy a reduced price of €14. Those who are shorter than €90 can enter for free.

If you just want to enjoy the handful of rides that are in the upper part of the park, you can buy a ticket for €19 – or pay €4 per go. It is not possible to pay per-ride on the other floors of the park.

If you live in Barcelona, you might want to consider buying an annual membership pass for the park. Since an annual membership pass costs €60, plus registration fee, you only have to visit the park with the annual pass to save money.

However, there are a few things you should think about before buying the annual pass:

1. The whole of the park is usually only open at weekends, during the peak summer season and during school holidays. Outside of these periods, only the handful of rides on the upper floor will be running. So the pass will not allow you to escape the queues by visiting the park during off-peak times.
2. The park is fairly small with a limited variety of rides, so visiting regularly can get a little repettitive.
3. You are entitled to a 30% discount when buying tickets for guests (limited to six tickets per year). At certain periods, such as the summer months, the park even gives away free guest tickets for those that have the annual pass.

How to get to the park

The simplest and cheapest way to get the park by public is to take the S1 or S2 trains that run northwards from Place Catalunya. Look for the sign that says 'FGC'. Get off at Peu de Funicular, and then change on to the funicular railway that takes you up to Vallvidrera, which is the last stop. Exit the funicular and take Bus 111 from just outside all the way until the last stop. The bus ride will take around 10 minutes.

The theme park also has its own private funicular (called Funicular del Tibidabo. This is red in colour and has a more modern design than the funicular mentioned above. This funicular isn't as convenient, however, both in terms of cost and access. This funicular runs from Plaça Doctor Andreu; you will need to take bus from the metro station Avenida Tibidabo or TibiBus T2C from Plaça Kennedy. The Tibidabo funicular runs from 10.15 am until the amusement park closes. It only runs on on days when the Tibidabo is open.

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