Getting around Barcelona

The Catalan city boasts the presence of an integrated public transport network, one of the most efficient in all of Europe. The rubber and iron offer is really top notch. Metro, bus, funicular, cable cars and trains. The ATM consortium (Autoritat del Transport Metropolità) manages public transport in and around the city. A single fare system for getting around Barcelona.

GETTING AROUND BARCELONA BY METRO

Twelve lines, 203 stations and a network over 170 kilometers long in the 2022. In all of Spain, only Madrid can boast a more extensive metropolitan network. Like the Capital, the metropolitan network is highly efficient and able to connect the center and the periphery in a capillary way.

The metro is managed by two different companies. TMB (Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona), manages 8 lines: L1, L2, L3, L4, L5, L9, L10, L11. FGC (Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya) manages 4 lines: L6, L7, L8, L12. Here is the complete list of 12 Lines:

• L1 Hospital de Bellvitge – Fund
• L2 Paral·lel – Badalona Pompeu Fabra
• L3 University Area – Trinitat Nova
• L4 Trinitat Nova – La Pau
• L5 Cornellà Center – Vall d’Hebron
• L6 Plaça de Catalunya – Sarrià
• L7 Plaça de Catalunya – Avinguda Tibidabo
• L8 Espanya – Molí Nou / Ciutat Cooperative
• L9N La Sagrera – Can Zam
• L9S Aeroport T1 – University Area
• L10N La Sagrera – Gorg
• L10S ZAL/Riu vell – Collblanc
• L11 Trinitat Nova – Can Cuiàs
• L12 Sarrià – Reina Elisenda

The latest modernization works have allowed the metropolitan network to reach the Barcelona El Prat airport in the 2016, with the 9 Line. The underground stops are signaled, on the outside, by specific indications as in the picture (above the TMB meter signal and at the bottom, the blue logo on a white background indicates the line managed by FGC).

The main metro lines, managed by TMB, operate every day, with the following times:

• From Monday to Thursday, from 05:00 to 00:00.
• Friday, from 05:00 to 02:00
• Weekend with TIMETABLE CONTINUED by 05 00 on Saturday until midnight on Sunday.

In almost all the stations, there are billboards with the map of the metro lines. Trains travel at peak times, with frequencies of even 3 minutes. On Sundays and public holidays, the frequency is approximately 8 minutes.

GETTING AROUND BARCELONA BY BUS

The road network is managed entirely by TMB. The system is rather efficient and timely. The buses cover the center and the outskirts of Barcelona in a capillary manner over the 24 hours. From 05:00 up to 23:00 around, they are active over 140 Linee Diurnes; after 22:00, during the whole night, around 20 Nitbus lines are active.

The buses are extremely efficient and modern. Most of the means, is accessible to disabled people and people with reduced mobility. The bus, compared to the metro, allows you to have an overview of the city. The subway, however, remains the fastest and most convenient way for getting around Barcelona.

FUNICULAR

The funicular connects directly the Paral·lel Station, to the Parc de Montjuic, from which the Telefèric starts. The Paral·lel stop is connected to the L2 and L3 metro lines.

The Tibidabo funicular, however, is one of the attractions of great appeal in the city. Like the centenary blue tram, that is, the Tramvia Blau. For all the info on the latter, our special is available through this link.

BARCELONA CABLE CAR

Photo ©, Paula Funnell

Barcelona boasts the presence of two cable cars. There Telefèric de Montjuic, connects the Funicular station to the top of the Montjuic mountain, at 750m in height. It is a really beautiful and evocative way to admire an absolutely unique city skyline. Look at the Sagrada Familia and Torre Agbar.

The Teleferica observes the following times:

• From 1 January to 28 February, from 10:00 to 18:00.
• From March 1 to May 31, from 10:00 to 19:00.
• From the 1 June to the September 30, from the 10:00 to the 21:00.
• October, from 10:00 to 19:00.
• From November 1 to December 31, from 10:00 to 18:00.

Tickets: Adult, one way, 10.50€; return ticket, 16€. Children from 4 to 12 years pay 8.50€ (one way) and 11.50€ (round trip). Free for children under the age of 4. Info and updates on the official website, from this link.