Welcome to my new series of posts about cruising and cruise ports! Let me be your virtual guide to this beautiful city.
First up: the beautiful city of Barcelona
A lot of cruises start from Barcelona. And from my own experience, it is a great place to start your cruise. You dock in the actual city, so you don't lose a lot of time with transport!
Getting Around
Cruise ships normally dock at Moll Adossat.
- A taxi from the city center to the cruise port (or vice versa) should be around 25 euros (30.5 dollars),
- A taxi from the airport to the cruise port (or vice versa) should cost no more than 39 euros (47.5 dollars)
- From the airport you can also take the Aerobus A1 or A2 to the city centre
- You can use the T3 Portbus, see bottom of page to go from the Columbus Monument at the bottom of Las Ramblas.
With all cruises, I highly recommend traveling to the city your cruise starts from at least one day in advance.
Why? You will have the time to actually explore this city at your leisure, instead of dealing with possible delays and the fear of missing your ship. Most ships depart in the afternoon/evening, so that does not give you a lot of time to actually go exploring.
Barcelona has a great subway system, but expect long walks in certain subways when switching directions. As in all large touristic sites, be aware of pickpockets in the subway, along las ramblas (for example at the 'cup' game) and in crowded places. Don't let anyone distract you, just say 'no' very firmly and move along. A 10 ticket card is useful if you are planning to take the subway a lot.
See and do
Some ideas about things to see and do:
Sagrada Familia. The top pick. If you can only visit one sight, it will probably be this one. Make sure to Buy a ticket beforehand, so you won't have to stand in the long line with people that still need to buy a ticket. IIRC, the line for people with tickets is on the other side of the Cathedral and a lot shorter
Other Gaudi sights: Casa Battlo and Casa Mila/La Pedrera
Barrio Gótico ("The Gothic district"), a beautiful part of town with narrow streets. Don't miss the Cathedral when you are walking there
Park Guell is a ways traveling but it's very beautiful. Used to be free, now there is an entrance fee. If you take the subway to get there, it's still a long and steep walk up there. Offical Site
La Boqueria is a big marketplace in Barcelona where you can find a snack to eat and a drink. And for you photographers: lots of colors and patterns
Shopping: around Plaza de Catalunya, Mare Magnum and I guess also the Barrio Gotico
Eat: tapas or paella are typical dishes of Barcelona. Restaurants along Las Ramblas are hit and miss, you might have more luck outside of this area.
There are many, many other sights. This is just a sample of what you can see and do!
Hotels
- hotels near the centre (Plaza de Catalunya) area easier if you want to get from the airport to your hotel the fastest. Also, this is a good base of operations for visiting several sights
- a hotel near the cruise port might allow you to skip getting a taxi or taking the subway, so you can walk right to the T3 buses at the Columbus monument
Questions? Feel free to ask
If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments.