What to Know Before You Travel to Barcelona

 Some of the below tips are more important and others are just curious. Use the links below to quickly hop to a section or read the post end to end.

• Airbnbs are strictly regulated
• Uber does not operate in Barcelona
• How to get to the city from the airport
• Tap water is safe
• Barcelona has a great public transportation system
• Contactless payments abound
• Pickpocketing is rampant
• Tipping is not common
• Tax is included in prices
• Supermakets are closed on Sundays
• You cannot order tap water at a restaurant
• Do not count on things being open between 2 pm and 6 pm
• The red bikes are not for you
• You will be shoulder to shoulder on the beach
• In high season, book tickets in advance
• Do not cross the street when the green person is flashing
• Include Costa Brava or the Balearic Islands in your trip
• Quick fire stereotype busting

Airbnbs Are Strictly Regulated

 Since January 26th, 2022 the government of Barcelona enacted the Plan Especial Urbanístico de Alojamientos Turísticos (PEUAT) that strictly regulates Airbnb among other things.

 What does that mean for you? Airbnb prices might be higher than you expect. Since they are cracking down on tourist accommodations without a permit, availability has declined. This has pushed prices on average 2-3x higher over the past year. For example, an airbnb I stayed at in Barceloneta during January 2021 was around 30€ a night. That same flat is now 160€ per night.

 In Barcelona, I recommend opting for a hotel. They will likely be cheaper than Airbnbs. My go-to platform for searching hotels here and elsewhere in Europe is Booking. But if you do end up booking an Airbnb, make sure the place you chose is legal. Look for a permit number in their Airbnb listing or check the official website.

Uber Does Not Operate in Barcelona

 Especially for people coming from the US, Uber is a common transportation preference. Though Uber exists in other cities in Spain, you will not find any in Barcelona. Fear not! The taxi system in Barcelona is one of the best I have ever seen. They are fair, friendly, and abundant. (the public transportation system is great too! See here for more on that)

 Taxis are strictly regulated and all have the same prices. No one will be trying to scam you. The official fare charts are displayed on a sticker on the passenger window. It will have the same prices as you see on the official government website.

 There are taxis passing by constantly, especially in downtown, touristy, or restaurant areas. You do not have to worry about not finding one. You will likely wait only 30 seconds before seeing one. If you do want to have download an app just incase you will ever be on the outskirts of the city, you can download FreeNow - the most popular taxi hailing app in Barcelona.

How to Get to the City from the Airport

Taxi

 There is a well marked taxi stand at the airport, you just need to follow the signs. You can expect a trip from the airport to the center of Barcelona to be around 35€, and around 20-30 mins but both could be more or less depending on where you are going.

Bus

 There are official airport buses that leaves from both terminal 1 and 2 and go to Plaza Cataluña with 3 stops in the city between the two locations. The trip takes about 30-35 minutes and buses leave every 5 mins during the day and every 10-20 mins at night. The service is called Aerobús and fares as of February 2023 are 6.75€ one way or 11.65€ round trip. Find the bus by following the signs in the airport - you will definitely find the right bus as they are they only ones there and bright blue plastered with the Aerobús logo.

Metro

 The metro that services the airport is the orange line (L9S). It is not particularly useful unless you plan to stay in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, around Camp Nou, or near Fira Barcelona. To get from the airport to the Camp Nou it takes 30 minutes. That metro stop is called Zona Universitaria and is the final stop for the orange line. From there you can transfer to other metro lines that take you to the center, but if you're heading downtown you are better off taking the Aerobús. There is an airport fee that makes the ticket price of getting on the metro at that stop more expensive than the others - the ticket totals 5,15€.

Train

 Terminal 2 has a train that goes to the city center, the light green R2 Nord. If you are in terminal 1 you will need to take a quick shuttle over to terminal 2 to catch it. It only comes once every 30 mins, but it is a very comfortable way to get into the city. The trip is again around 30 mins and this line has several central stops: Barcelona Sants, Paseo de Gracia, and Clot d'Aragó.  If you go to any of these stops the ticket price will be 4,60€.

Tap Water is Safe

 One of the first questions many people have when they go to a new country is "can I drink the water?" According to the Ministerio de Sanidad, the government agency that looks after the tap water in Spain, the tap water here is potable in line with all international standards, namely those set by the World Health Organization. so, in Barcelona - yes, it is drinkable - but it does not taste the best.

 Due to high mineral content and chlorine treatment, the water does taste a bit different. You quickly get used to it, but if you are sensitive to water taste you might want to buy a jug of water at the supermarket.

Barcelona Has a Great Public Transportation System

 If you are coming from North America and do not live in one of a handful of cities, you might not be used to considering public transport as a viable option for getting around. Barcelona has extensive metro, train and bus lines. You can even take a train all the way to Montserrat (a monastery in the mountains behind Barcelona).

 If where you are going is too far to walk to, I highly recommend using the metro system as a cheaper and often faster way to get around the city than taxis. The bus is also great, but does suffer from traffic on occasion.

 The train system is great for longer distance travel to surrounding cities like Sitges, Girona or Tarragona. You can even take a high speed train and be in Madrid in only 2.5 hours!

 Barcelona's public transportation tickets are usable on all forms of transport within the city. So the same ticket will get you on a bus, metro, or train. If you plan to take a train outside of the city, you will need a different ticket.

 The city offers special tickets for people coming to visit called the "Hola Barcelona" card. These cards let you use unlimited public transport for 1-5 days. In my opinion, they are not worth it. Barcelona is very walkable. It is nice to walk between points of interest to see more of the city. If you do not plan on taking more than 5 rides a day every day, you are better off buying a T-casual card that offers 10 trips that you can use over the course of your stay with no daily expiry. Both of the cards mentioned are personal, you cannot use them for multiple people back to back. You can see all the ticket options here.

Contactless Payments Abound

 You might be wondering if you need to bring a lot of cash to Barcelona. The answer is: not necessarily! Most places in Barcelona take contactless payments like apple pay, or contactless cards, as well as regular credit/debit cards. Of course it is not a bad idea to have some cash, but you will not be making the majority of your transactions in cash unless you choose to.

 If you do want to withdraw cash while in Barcelona, there are plenty of ATMs around the city. Most will just charge you a 1-3€ fee on top of what your bank charges you for foreign withdrawals. Otherwise, you can probably get euros from your home bank before traveling. Be careful with currency exchange businesses, especially in touristy areas, they will likely quote you an extortive exchange rate.

Pickpocketing is Rampant

 It is a fact. You are likely to be singled out for pickpocketing, especially if you are in touristy areas, or look or sound foreign. Think tall, very white, blonde.. basically not resembling the average Spaniard. The good news is that 99.99% of the time it is not violent. You likely will not notice it has happened until much later, but there are some things you can do to protect yourself. Best case scenario: do not walk around with a bag or anything valuable in your pockets. Since this is not a likely scenario - check out the tips below:

• keep your bag in front of your body and/or a hand on it at all times
• be extra wary in metros, when looking up at monuments, and in crowded places
• do not leave your phone or wallet on restaurant tables while eating
• do not put your bag on the back of your chair while seated at a restaurant
• do not use open style bags like tote bags, use ones with zippers
• do not wear flashy accessories like expensive watches and rings
• do not keep your wallet in your back pocket, put it in the front in a coat pocket if possible
• if a stranger is distracting you (giving you directions, asking to take your photo, whistling at you, etc.) be keenly aware of your belongings

 If you do get pickpocketed, you can report it to the police, but do not expect them to do much about it. Pickpocketing is rampant in the city and it is difficult for police to catch perpetrators. All they will do is write you a police report so that you can take it to your embassy in case of losing your passport or id.

Tipping is Not Common

 Coming from North America, where tipping is now at a rate of sometimes 20 to 30%, you will find the culture quite different in Barcelona. Waitstaff are paid wages and do not rely on tips as much as in the USA. In most situations, people will not tip. On occasion you might leave 1-3€ if you felt the service was particularly nice. If you are a large group, you might consider leaving more. Depending on the situation somewhere between 5-20€. Lately, some fancier or more popular restaurants might automatically add a 10% charge to the bill for large parties.  

Tax is Included in the Prices

 Another money-related surprise is that the prices you see on clothes tags, menu items, or anywhere else a price is shown already include any applicable tax. So do not expect your total to be anymore than what you see displayed.

Supermarkets are Closed on Sundays

 Many stores, including supermarkets are completely closed on Sundays. Keep this in mind if you arrive to Barcelona on a Sunday. You will have a harder time getting ahold of basic necessities if you have forgotten to pack something.

 There are some smaller corner stores that usually stay open on Sundays. Look up "alimentacion" on google maps and they will pop up. Some small Condis and Caprabo store locations stay open as well.

You Cannot Order Tap Water at a Restaurant

 You may be used to saying "I'll just have a glass of water," at a restaurant and receiving a free glass of tap water. In Spain this is very uncommon. If you say you would like a water, they will bring you a bottle. If many of you would like to order water, you can order a big water for the table and they will usually bring you a liter of water or a big pitcher (paid).

Do Not Count on Things Between 2pm and 6pm

 You have probably heard of the Spanish siesta - this idea applies to businesses as well because siestas are for (almost) everybody!  This doesn't mean that everyone is at home sleeping. People generally use this time to go home and cook a family lunch together (and maybe sneak in a nap). Nowadays, many office and other workers do not get this break, but this shuttering of local businesses in the early afternoon has remained engrained in Spanish society.

 This all depends on where you are and what types of stores are around. Big chains and businesses in tourist areas are more likely to stay open, but smaller gift shops, food stores, and other businesses usually close for the afternoon. They might close somewhere between 1 and 3pm and open back up for the evening usually between 4 and 7pm staying open until 9 or 10pm. For example the opening hours of this random botique are from 10:30–13:30 and 17:00–20:00 as of February 2023.

 This means that the streets are more empty (they can be totally dead) during these hours. Most of the stores being closed means there are not many people walking around.While this time of day is not great for going shopping, it is a good time to go to a museum, somewhere touristy, a park, or the beach!

The Red Bikes Are Not for You

 When you get to Barcelona you will see a lot of red bike stations branded "Bicing." You may be tempted to rent one to explore the city, but save yourself the effort of trying to figure out how to unlock one because the answer is - you can't! These bikes are for residents only and serve as part of the public transportation offering of Barcelona. Tourists are not allowed to use them so that they do not all end up piled up at touristy locations.

 The good news is - there are plenty of other bike options for everyone to use! My my favorite bike rental shops are Bikelona in Poblenou and Happy Rental Bike near Born, or if you prefer an app Barcelona has Donkey Republic.

You Will Be Shoulder to Shoulder on the Beach

 If you come to Barcelona in the summer, be ready to stake your claim on whatever square meter of beach is not in use. You will have to zigzag through people picnicking, family compounds, and lovers rolling in the sand until you find an area that someone has just happened to vacate. Don't be shy! Push your way forward and you are bound to find a spot, so do not be disillusioned. In the winter, you will likely have the beach to yourself. During the shoulder seasons you will find the beach packed on weekends and sparser on weekdays.

 If you are staying downtown, the closest beach is Barceloneta. This is, for obvious reasons, the most touristy beach. It will be more packed, more dirty and more rocky than the other beaches. I recommend you walk north up the corniche, pass Port Olimpic, and head to Bogatell, Mar Bella or Platja Llevant for nicer beaches.

 Keep in mind that the pickpocketing recommendations also apply to the beach! Do not bring anything valuable if you plan on ditching your bag and jumping in the water. I usually take everything out of my bag and display it on my towel so that no one is tempted to take my bag. It would be a disappointment for them when they would only find my used clothes, but a tragedy for me lose my keys and to have to walk home through the city in my bikini.

In High Season, Book Tickets in Advance

 Most people probably assume this, but I am a procrastinator and spontaneous and once I walked all the way up the hill to Parc Güell just to end up sweaty and out of breath at the gate to find out that the tickets were sold out for the day. I am here to warn others like me. "In advance" here does not mean months in advance (though if you want to  - by all means do), but even just a day or two in advance should be sufficient (a few days more in high season).

Do Not Cross the Street When the Green Person is Flashing

 When you are at a crosswalk in Barcelona and the green person starts to flash - do not cross! Or do so very very quickly. In Barcelona, the indicator only flashes three times before turning red. In North America, the flashing is designed to last long enough for a pedestrian to cross the entire street at an average pace. That might end up being 10-15 seconds vs. the 3 you get in Barcelona. I didn't realize how much this was engrained into my subconsious until I got to Barcelona and in my first 6 months found myself multiple times in the middle of the street looking up and seeing the person was red when I could have sworn it was green when I started crossing.  

Include Costa Brava or the Balearic Islands in your Trip

 Barcelona is incredible in and of itself, but it is also very close to some amazing places that would make a great add-on to your trip! My top two recommendations are Costa Brava and the Balearic Islands. Both are so close they can almost be day trips, but it will be more comfortable to spend at least one night there.

 The Costa Brava is Catalonia's beautiful, cliffy coast with sweet smelling pines and turquoise waters. Depending on what town you want to go to, it is just a 1-3 hour drive north of the city. My recommendations would be going to Tossa de Mar for the old fortress on the sea, hiking part of the camino de ronda from Sant Feliu de Guixols or Platja d'Aro, or visiting the home of Dali in Cadaqúes.

 The Balearic islands - Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera - are a mere 20 minutes and 20 euros flight from Barcelona. Hike the north coast of Mallorca staying in refuges along the way, beach hop in the smaller island of Menorca, or go see what Ibiza is all about. You really cannot go wrong with a stint on any of these beautiful islands.

Quick Fire Stereotype Busting

• People in Catalonia speak Catalan and not necessarily Castilian (Spanish) (most speak both though)
• Barcelona is not for paella - that is Valencia (though "paella" is actually a Catalan word for the pan it's cooked in, so paella actually encompasses many dishes, but that is a different story)
• Barcelona is not known for flamenco - that is southern Spain
• Spanish food is not spicy - that stereotype comes from some Latin American foods
• There is no bullfighting in Catalonia - it was banned in 2012 then subsequently overturned but no further fights have taken place there since then
• There are generally no free tapas in Catalonia - this more common in Madrid and many other areas of Spain
• Tortilla in Spain is eggs and potatoes (and onions!) - not something you wrap a burrito with