Car Hire in Barcelona - Getting to Barcelona

Barcelona’s international airport is 14km southwest of the city centre, receiving flights from all over Europe and several North American cities. It also acts as a stopover for flights to Asia. Flights are numerous and connections to other Spanish cities depart regularly, particularly the Balearic islands.

Hired car is the most popular way of getting around Spain. The countryside is lovely, there’s plenty to stop and admire and the roads are safe. Well developed highways run along the coast exiting Barcelona to the north and south, and rewarding drivers with excellent coastal views. There is also a busy highway inland to Madrid.

The main train station, Estació Sants, is west of La Rambla (a taxi ride at least), but some local trains stop at Catalunya station on Plaça de Catalunya, north. Only a few trains use Estació França, east of La Rambla. Rail in Spain is reliable, fast and reasonably good value. From Barcelona it’s easy to follow the coast south to the Costa Del Sol, Seville and Andalusian destinations. Inland there are regular services to Madrid, and at least two trains a day to Nice, but involving a border change. Local trains run to coastal towns.

Bus is also a popular means of getting around in Spain but distances are large and journey’s can be arduous. The well established bus network and routes depart from the main intercity bus station, Estació del Nord, 1.5km northeast of La Rambla, close to Arc de Triomf metro.

Ferry services connect Barcelona to the Balearic Islands.