Airport to City Centre

The journey into town takes anything from 20 mins to 1 hr depending on the traffic. A taxi rank is stationed outside each airport terminal. Extra charges – which suddenly appear on the meter at the end of the journey – apply for trips to and from the airport as well as for luggage carried in the boot. Expect to pay a total of €15.00 – 25.00 for the ride (receipts are provided on request). If you are charged an excessive price, note the licence number (always visible at the dashboard), registration number and car model of the cab and complain at the Institut Metropolitá del Taxi. Informing the driver of your intention to make an official complaint can often lead to a spectacular reduction of the fee. The blue Aerobús ferries passengers from the airport to Plaça Catalunya in the city centre. Look for the bus stop with a blue and yellow logo outside each terminal. The service operates every 15 min. From the airport to Pl Catalunya: Mon-Fri 0600-2400, weekend and public holidays, 0630-2400. From Plaça Catalunya to the airport: Mon-Fri 0530-2315, weekend and public holidays 0600-2320. Tickets cost €3.30 for the 40-min ride.

Trains run from the airport to Barcelona Sants station and Plaça Catalunya from 0613-2256 all week. The 25-min journey costs €3.00. Trains for the return trip (from the Plaça Catalunya) depart 0608-2211 all week.

Orientation

Present-day Barcelona has its origins in the Ciutat Vella (Old Town), which includes the Ramblas and the 14th century Gothic Quarter. Once the hub of a trading empire extending throughout the Mediterranean, the medieval infrastructure had by the 19th century become hopelessly overpopulated. The solution was civil engineer Ildefons Cerdà’s French-influenced Eixample district, which now sits like a wide-brimmed hat on the northernmost border of the Old Town. Largely skipped by tourists, this district contains a wide selection of beautiful turn-of-the-century facades – including Antoni Gaudí’s masterpieces La Pedrera and Casa Battló – as well as two of the most elegant streets in town, the Passeig de Gràcia and the Rambla Catalunya. Consistent growth of the Eixample swallowed outlying villages, which now form established districts such as the comfortably bohemian Gràcia, or the exclusive and elegant Sarrià.

The 1929 International Exposition and the 1992 Olympic Games added two essential infrastructures to the city: the Montjuïc mountain development, trade fair buildings and art galleries; and the Olympic Village, a residential district close to the Olympic marina (Port Olímpic) with a wide range of restaurants, bars and clubs, as well as several new beaches.

Barcelona’s main thoroughfare is the Diagonal, which bisects the city north-west to south-east. The Gran Via and the Carrer Aragó, running parallel to the coastline, provide the primary horizontal arteries. Flanking the city to the left are the Avinguda Parallel and, to the right, the Avinguda Meridiana, which provide exits to the north-west and north-east of the city, respectively. Three ring roads (the Ronda de Dalt, the Ronda del Mig, and the Ronda Litoral) provide a fast way of skipping the city altogether. The districts which cling to Barcelona’s western and easternmost fringes (Hospitalet, Sant Adrià, Badalona etc) remain administratively autonomous but in reality function as indivisible extensions of Barcelona proper, accounting for around 45% of the Barcelona metropolitan area’s 3.5m population.

If you want to visit somewhere out of town, Bradmans recommends:

• Montserrat monastery, 45 mins by bus. Famous for its black Madonna, its impressive mountain peaks and almost vertical funicular.

• The cava (Catalan champagne) cellars in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia (20 mins by car on the highway A7 to Tarragona).

• The medieval city and the spectacular salt-mine of Cardona, 88 km north of Barcelona. Spend the night in the spectacular Parador of Cardona and ask for the room of the Duke of Alba.

• If you want to escape the noise and pollution without taking a long car journey, the Carretera de las Aigues on the slopes of the Collserola hill offers 12 km of level track as well as spectacular views of the city. To get there, take the underground to Tibidabo Avenue station, change on to the Blue Tram (Tranvia Blau) and get off halfway up the funicular to Tibidabo. On Sundays you can hire a mountain bike.

• On the other side of Tibidabo, 3 km downhill from Vallvidrera, is the Collserola information centre. Here you can find out which parts of the natural park to explore and where you can see the likes of wild boars.

Getting Around

The black and yellow taxis are comfortable and reasonably priced: a standard charge of €1.10, increasing to €1.25 from 2200-0600 weekdays and all day weekends and bank holidays. After this the fare increases at varying rates according to the time of day (night fares are the priciest). They show a green light on top and a window sign saying ‘Lliure/Libre’ – ‘Free’, and the Institut Metropolità del Taxi monitors the meters regularly. A standard city-centre trip should cost between €4 and €7. Credit cards and large denomination bills tend not to be accepted and tipping is on a ‘round up to the nearest neat quantity’ basis. Most hotels and major venues are known to cabbies, but other addresses should be given by indicating the nearest intersection between two streets (eg Passeig de Gràcia/Provença).

What is Intersting

Picasso Museum: A fascinating selection of Picasso’s work, in a museum which has recently been enlarged to allow 3,000 m2 more floorspace, concentrating on the earlier and later periods, combined with large temporary exhibitions. Carrer de Montcada 15-19, open 1000-2000 Tues-Sat, 1000-1500 Sun, closed Mon.

The President Nuñez-museum of Football Club Barcelona: Last year, this was the most popular museum in Barcelona with more than 1.1 million visitors. The much-prized 1992 European Cup is the star of the several trophies on display, plus plenty of football paraphernalia, such as the Pope’s membership card. Camp Nou, Avinguda Aristides Maillol, access 9. Open 1000-1300, 1500-1800, closed Sun.

The Miró Foundation: Located on Montjuïc mountain, just off the Avinguda Miramar, and a stone’s throw from the funicular railway exit (catch the train from Parallel metro station), this beautiful modern museum and arts centre was jointly designed by architect Josep-Lluís Sert and Miró himself in 1975. Includes work from every period of Miró’s life plus major temporary exhibitions. Highly recommended. Open 1000-1900 Tues-Sat, 1000-2130 Thurs, 1030-1430 Sun and public holidays.

Antoni Gaudí: Two masterpieces by this architectural visionary should not be missed. The unfinished Sagrada Família Cathedral is right by the metro stop of the same name. The Parc Güell (Carrer d’Olot) is probably the finest example of all Gaudí’s work fully restored: best reached by taxi, this sprawling collection of surreal structures blends perfectly into the surrounding vegetation. Also recommended is the Espai Gaudí, an exhibition space devoted to the man and his work, located in the attic area of one of his most famous buildings, La Pedrera, with access to the roof and a stunning view.

Gothic Cathedral: Built between 1298 and 1451, this three-nave Cathedral is home to the crypt of the city’s patron saint, Santa Eulàlia, as well as an in-house flock of live geese. Plaça de la Catederal, open daily 0800-1330, 1600-1930.

Pedralbes Museum: Following its recent restoration, the Monastery of Pedralbes accommodates part of the famous art collection of Baron von Thyssen-Bornemisza, displaying paintings by Titian, Zurbarán and Canaletto. Baixada del Monestir 9. Open Tues-Sun 1000-1400.

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To escape urban claustrophobia, head off from the Arc de Triomf, down the Passeig Lluís Companys and into the Parc de la Ciutadella. If you’re looking for something more lively, start from the top of the Rambla de Catalunya, where it meets the Diagonal, and saunter all the way down to the Columbus Column near the port. The first part of the walk is in the smarter part of town and takes in a series of pleasant but expensive terraces where you won’t be bothered by street vendors, amateur jugglers etc. Once you cross the Plaça Catalunya – the halfway point – you will then be on the Rambla proper, with more people and a livelier atmosphere but more chance of theft. End your journey in suitably exploratory mood by the Columbus Column, to the left of which there is a sunny terrace served by some of the rudest waiters in town.

Beware of pickpockets, however – especially someone who inexplicably offers to clean some dirt off your previously immaculate clothing. If you are a victim of crime, the police department on Las Ramblas has English-speaking officers.