RollieUK

This photo shows the two types of taxi in Barcelona.The one furthest from the camera is a 6 passenger taxi.

Remember - most but not all of these larger vehicle taxis are licensed to carry 6 passengers.

There is no way of predicting whether a larger taxi will be available at any given time. They are most common at places like railway stations and airports.

If you call a radio taxi you will pay around €4 extra for the journey. Add to this the extra charge of €3.10 for carrying 6 passengers and, for short journeys, you may find it just as cheap to get 2 taxis if a larger one is not available.

There is a company called DW Consigna who will take your luggage at the cruise port and deliver it later at the airport for €10 a bag.

You can book it online in advance here

Without luggage you can spend the day in Barcelona. The main attraction is Sagrada Familia or you could take a HoHo bus.

There are many options depending on what you like to do.

After reading your above post, I checked the BCN.travel web site and the lowest fare they quote for 2 people is 48 E.

 

Was your rate a promotion of some type or perhaps an error?

To explain the difference - BCN Travel charge €48 for a private transfer (dedicated vehicle just for your party of up to 4 people) and €28 for 2 people to share a vehicle with others.

I have used BCN travel many times and have always been happy with them.

Be sure to book a Private Transfer rather than a shuttle. That way it will only be your group on the mini-bus. With a 'shuttle' you will be sharing with others and may have to wait for the vehicle to fill up.

Bear in mind what MADflyer says and ask them if the rumour is true before finally booking.

There is now a fixed price of €39 for a taxi from the cruise port to the airport

How far is the port to the airport? Trying to book flights. Most leave around 10:30 am. Will this cut it close or should I try to find something later? TIA for any information. It is very appreciated.

The taxi takes about 25-30 minutes to the airport depending on traffic. Although there are lots of taxis at the cruise port there are a lot of people wanting them. For a 10.30 flight you will need to be at the airport by 8.30.

I would recommend pre-booking a private transfer so that you will not have to wait for a taxi. The new fixed rate for a taxi is €39. A private transfer is about €45-50. For me, it is worth the extra few euros.

If you can do early self disembarkation theoretically you should be ok. Lots of people do it and have plenty of time to spare. Just bear in mind that delays can and do happen. Ask yourself how much of a problem it would be if you missed your flight.

How are you planning on travelling from Barcelona to Oporto? If you haven't made any plans for this yet then why not hire a car and drive across Spain and Portugal staying at the Paradores in Spain and the Pousadas in Portugal.

These are government owned hotels, designed for travellers, and many are in very interesting buildings like converted castles.

There are several routes you could take seeing some of the less well known cities in central Spain. This would give you a feel of what the country is really like.

I had a look at their web page. It seemed to me that whichever location you put in it comes up with either no hotels in the area or the same 2 hotels. These 2 hotels are not only not in Barcelona, they are not even in Spain - they are in Perpignan which is in France about 100 miles from Barcelona :confused:

I would not recommend staying near the airport as there is not much there and you will be spending a lot of your time travelling to and from the places of interest in the city.

edited to say that in fact these 2 hotels are really just one hotel. It says 2 hotels but they are at the same address - "Comfort Hotel Centre Del Mon" and "Quality Hotel Centre Del Mon" - Perpignan, 35 boulevard Saint Assiscle

I have used them lots of times for transfers from airport to hotel or cruise port and vice versa.

I have always been very happy with their service.

I have never used them for trips or excursions.

Just one thing. To help with your searches it is actually BilbAO not Bilboa

I think this should be on the Italian board. This is Spain

If you ask the mods (click on red triangle) I am sure they will move it for you

My advice would be to forget Madrid this trip and spend the time in and around Lisbon. It is not worth the long journey.

Although I have no problem with people asking questions about a particular hotel they are considering, I don't see the point when the hotel is already booked.

There was another thread recently about flight times and after several people had gone to the trouble of giving their opinions and advice we were told the OP has booked the flight and could not change it. Why bother to ask when the deed is done :confused:

Rant over :)

For those of you who said taxis were waiting and could pick up early do you know what day of the week it was? Were there any other ships in port too? We arrive back at 5am on a Tuesday. Our flight is at 930am. We didn't have many time options because all of the airlines were either around that time or like 6pm.

 

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Even though your ship arrives at 5am that does not mean the ship or port authorities will be ready for you to disembark that early. Check with your cruise line what is the earliest you will be able to disembark.

09:30 flight is very early. You will need to be at the airport before 07:30. What will you do if there is any delay in arriving in port?

If you do decide to take the chance and go for that flight I would recommend pre-booking a private car transfer to the airport.

It is not just the distance but it is not a very pleasant walk over the bridge.

You can take the port shuttle bus from Columbus monument to the ship for €2 per person one way (€3 return)

Don't forget that the weather in that part of northern Spain is not like further south. It is generally much cooler and can be very wet - that is why it is called 'Green Spain'.

Personally, I quite like it a bit cooler but I don't want people to think that just because it is Spain you will be guaranteed hot sunshine.

The Casa Camper is the ONLY place we'll stay in Barcelona! Check it out on TripAdvisor.

IMO that hotel is overpriced for what it is and where it is. It is even more expensive than Hotel 1898 and the 5 star Grand Marina Hotel.

I think your only option is to fly to Barcelona and store the bags you do not need on your travels.

I would not recommend sending the bags from Bilbao to Barcelona - IMHO that is too risky - Spain is notorious for unreliable post and couriers - believe me I have experiences :eek:

How long will you need to store them for? Are you staying in Barcelona before the cruise? If so, which hotel?

The centre of Barcelona is generally considered to be Plaça de Catalunya, the large square at the top of Las Ramblas.

From here Hotel Rialto is about half a mile. The middle of Las Ramblas and Liceu metro station is about 2-3 minutes walk. There is another metro station, Jaume I, about the same distance away.

The Hotel Renaissance is also about half a mile from Plaça de Catalunya but is slightly further from Las Ramblas – about 15 minutes walk. The nearest metro to the Renaissance is Passeig de Gràcia about 6 minutes walk.

Another place you will probably want to go to is Sagrada Familia.

From Hotel Rialto this is about 1 ¾ miles. You can get there by metro, with one change of trains, in about 25 minutes.

The Renaissance is nearer Sagrada Familia – about 1 mile and can be reached by metro in about 10 minutes without changing trains.

The main difference between the locations of these two hotels is that the Rialto is in the Gothic Quarter which is the old part of the city with its narrow streets and interesting buildings. The Renaissance is in the Passeig de Gràcia area with wider avenues and fashionable shops. Both are good situations. It just depends what style you prefer.

I hope this information is helpful.

The approximate taxi fare from the ship to Plaça Espanya would be about €15 for a weekday after 8am. It would be slightly more before 8am or at weekends.

For whatever it's worth, I had to make a special request to be picked up prior to 7am. It was explained to me that 7am was the standard time and in their protocol, passengers weren't usually able to disembark before then (we arrived the day before, so they accepted my request for early transportation).

A special request to whom? whose 'protocol'? a taxi company or the cruise line?

What I am saying is that, if you do disembark before 7am, there should be taxis available. KirkNC is saying taxis will not pick you up earlier than this.

Our last time disembarking in Barcelona, the taxis would not take on passengers before 7:00 am. They told us it was a union rule. There were literally 100's of taxis lined up (as well as quite a few passengers). If I was doing what the OP is, I would have a private transfer.

When did you experience this 7am rule?. I was in Barcelona a few weeks ago and was not aware of this.

One possibility is El Corte Inglés department store in La Plaça de Catalunya. They sell just about everything, including food. They also have a rooftop restaurant where you can get lunch or a cup of coffee with wonderful views over the city.

To get to Plaça Catalunya take the port shuttle bus to Columbus monument and walk up Las Ramblas until you get to a large square. Corte Inglés is on the right hand side.

I don't see any problem with saying which country you are in.

Sometimes posters ask questions about travel to Europe and it would be so much easier if we could see whether they are American, Canadian, Australian, European etc.

Surely nobody could trace you by saying you are in the USA :confused:

You do not need a tour guide in Barcelona. It is very easy to see everything by yourself. In fact, I would say it is better to DIY as you can set your own itinerary and pace.

Just a little research before you go - just reading these boards on CC will probably be enough. You will not see everything in 2 days but if you make a list of your preferences you will then see that transport from one place to another is very easy and relatively cheap.

CC member English_in_Spain, who no longer posts here, has an excellent web page that would help you but we are not allowed to post the details here.