Barcelona check in process Celebrity Ascent

[bella c]

We are arriving for the June 8th cruise on the Acsent. Barcelona to Rome.  We are 6 arriving at 9:00am.  I understand Celebrity will pick us up at the airport and take us to the cruise terminal.  Check in starts at 11:30 .   We want to go into town to see the La Sagrada.  Will we be able to go to terminal leave our bags and take a taxi or the shuttle bus to the town center. We would need 2 hours total to go and get back I spoke to a rep at cel. But he was not clear on exactly what the process was.  Any help would be greatly appreciated 

[Liao]

15 minutes ago, bella c said:

We are arriving for the June 8th cruise on the Acsent. Barcelona to Rome.  We are 6 arriving at 9:00am.  I understand Celebrity will pick us up at the airport and take us to the cruise terminal.  Check in starts at 11:30 .   We want to go into town to see the La Sagrada.  Will we be able to go to terminal leave our bags and take a taxi or the shuttle bus to the town center. We would need 2 hours total to go and get back I spoke to a rep at cel. But he was not clear on exactly what the process was.  Any help would be greatly appreciated 

Honestly with a total time of 2 hours, I don’t think you’d be able to tour the Segrada and factor in the travel time.  Maybe if you’re only interested in just seeing it from the outside, maybe?

[Jim_Iain]

After your arrival at the Terminal it is up to you if you wish to check in immediately or leave the terminal and come back and checkin later.     While the first check-in is 11:30 they often open up around 11:00 for checkIn so you could check in and instead of waiting around to board just grab an Uber to Sagrada de Familia .      It is about a 20 minute Uber each way.    Make sure you book tickets far in advance to allow plenty of time.   With a 5PM departure I would plan on being back to the ship by 3:30

[jelayne]

I agree with @Jim_Iain if you want to go into the La Sagrada Familia 2 hours is not enough.  Just exploring the outside can eat up the better part of a hour.  Each side has so much to see.  
Here is a enlarged photo of the detail that takes some time to see.

 

[Arizona Wildcat]

Arrange to leave your bags at the hotel.  Not likely to be able to do a pier drop off at 9am.

Uber or subway to La Sagrada - get timed tickets well ahead.  Return to your hotel and Uber to the pier by about 1:30 or 2pm.

I note the subway is easy and there are two stops by the church.  Find a hotel or BnB near a subway stop - faster as no traffic.

DW and I spent 4 hours at the church.  Takes an hour to just walk around the outside.

[hrhdhd]

3 hours ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

Arrange to leave your bags at the hotel. 

Sounds like there is no hotel; they arrive at the airport for a transfer to the port at 9:00 a.m.

[steamboats]

The check-in might be at the airport already. If not, you can still drop your bags at the port and then leave. Nobody will force you to check-in.

 

When you land at 9 am, you might be outside with your bags by 10 am. So with a waiting time for the transfer bus (and maybe a check-in at the airport) and a 30 min bus ride you might arrive at port by 11 am.

 

There are plenty of taxis available at the port. No problem to get one.

 

As for the Sagrada Family you need an online appointment for a certain time. Otherwise you may end up in a long line and never get inside.

 

steamboats

[hawkesbaynz]

Contact a local taxi/tour company to pick you up in a minibus and take you to the cathedral. The driver Could stay with the bags and you can then transfer to the port later. Perhaps have a mini tour of Barcelona. Will cost more but… 

 

When we were last in Barcelona we had a couple on our Barcelona tour who were picked up at a hotel, we dropped the bags of at the port, did the tour then dropped them back in time for departures. Tad annoying for the rest of us within extra travel but worked for them. 

[Tierun]

Arrive at least a day before your cruise to really see the city. We loved our time in Barcelona.

[rotoal]

Just now, Tierun said:

Arrive at least a day before your cruise to really see the city. We loved our time in Barcelona.

I agree.  Also, flying in the same day is risky at best.  And if this is an overnight flight, you may feel tired.

 

Have you arranged the transportation with Celebrity?  For 6 people it would be better to arrange for a private driver in a van to pick you up at the airport, and take you directly to Sagrada Familia, and then to the port.

 

Remember to factor in flight delays, lines at passport control, retrieving luggage, etc.

[SbbquilterUT]

Also consider buying skip the line tickets online if you think you want to see the Cathedral.  Since time is important to you I would suggest arranging a pick up at the airport with a van (for baggage) rather than waiting for a Celebrity transfer.  Have the driver let you drop your bags and then head out, being very aware of the time as touring is amazing and I could easily lose track of time.

[bella c]

Thanks for all the feedback.  We decided to book our own transfer and go directly to the Sagrada/ our driver will wail for us with our bags .  We reserved a time for entry and expect to do a hour an 1/2.  It will be after a long flight but its seems like the only way it will work.   Transfer for 6 turns out to be very reasonable too. 

[Overlandandsea]

I would just add that clearing immigration at BCN is not always super-fast for non-EU citizens. Don't be surprised if it's an hour between landing and leaving the terminal with your suitcases!