Barcelona Cruises FAQ
Everything You Need to Know About Visiting Barcelona On A Cruise Ship
Arriving at one of the world’s most beautiful cities is even more special when you arrive by ship. We’ve put together our guest’s most frequently asked questions about arriving or departing Barcelona on a cruise. Find out how to get to the city centre, the airport, the best tourist attractions, where to stay and much more in our Barcelona cruise ship guide.
There are seven main cruise ship terminals in Barcelona, and all of them are close to Las Ramblas, Barcelona’s most famous street. Getting to and from Barcelona’s cruise terminals, on foot or by car or public transport is simple, especially if you are staying in the heart of the city.
Adossat Quay Terminals: You'll find five terminals at Moll Adossat (the Adossat Quay). The five terminals (A, B, C & D and E) stretch along the quay with E being the furthest away from Las Ramblas.
World Trade Centre Terminals: There are also two main terminals at the World Trade Centre, South and North. These are the closest to La Rambla and easy to get to on foot, by public transport or taxi.
Adossat Quay Terminals: If you catch the blue cruise bus it will take you about 10-15 minutes (excluding waiting time) from the furthest terminal to Mirador de Colom at the seaside end of Las Ramblas. If you decide to walk it will take you around 30-minutes (without luggage) to get to the foot of Las Ramblas. A taxi should take around 7-8 minutes.
World Trade Centre Terminals (Moll de Barcelona): it’s just a 10-minute walk (800m) from the North and South terminals to the Mirador de Colom (Columbus Monument). If you decide to take a taxi, it will be under 5 minutes, but will probably not be worth the money for such a short journey. If you do decide to take a taxi, we’d recommend taking it to Plaça de Catalunya which is in the city centre and easy to get from to the rest of the city by public transport.
Adossat Quay Terminals: The nearest bus stop to the Moll Adossat terminals is Moll Ponent on bus route 88.
World Trade Centre Terminals: For Barcelona cruises departing from the World Trade Centre, the V11 bus will take you to the Moll de Barcelona stop right beside the South and North terminals.
It's only a little over 15km (15.3km to be more exact) from Barcelona’s cruise ports to the city’s airport. But depending on your chosen method of transport, the journey can be a little longer, so for the quickest and simplest method pre-book a taxi transfer. If you are arriving at the airport or completing your cruise in Barcelona and flying out from the Catalan capital, we'd recommend spending one night in beautiful Barcelona (at the very least).
A night spent in the city before or after your cruise is a great way to extend your holiday and take out some of the stress of arriving at the terminal on time (especially if you have an early sailing or arrival time). Time spent shopping on La Rambla, tapas tasting in Gràcia or even just soaking up the sun on Barceloneta beach, is definitely better than rushing for travel connections.
Taxi – This will cost you around €40 each way for a pre-booked taxi transfer. Prepare to pay a little extra depending on the terminal you're arriving or departing from. This is a great option for small travel groups or families, both to save time and split costs.
Bus - This is a little more complicated, as there are no direct services between the airport and the cruise terminals - another good reason to stay over in the city, the night after or before your flight or cruise departure. The airport bus Aerobus will cost you €6 from the airport to a central location like Plasa de Catalunya (there are other stops, but this is great for onward connections). If you're staying over at Hotel Continental, it's a 2-minute walk to the hotel from the Plaça.
To get from Plaça de Catalunya to the cruise terminal you can walk directly down La Rambla (which will take around 30 minutes but be aware it can get very busy). You could take the L3 Metro, the D50 Bus or the L2 to Paral·lel and then jump on the 88 bus to the Moll Ponent stop. Alternatively take the V13 bus from Plaça de Catalunya direct to Portal de la Pau (followed by a short walk), or the L3 Metro direct to Drassanes (it leaves every 4 minutes) and then walk from there.
Absolutely. The Barcelona cruise ports are perfectly located for day visitors disembarking, or visitors spending the night's before or after in the city. On foot, by car, by taxi or public transport, you can be in the heart of the city in as little as 20 minutes.
Very easy. Arriving at the foot of La Rambla puts you near some of the city's most famous attractions. From the Gothic Quarter to the famous La Boqueria market (20-minutes on foot from World Trade Centre terminals), Barceloneta beach (30-minutes on foot from World Trade Centre terminals) and the Gothic Quarter (22-minutes on foot from the World Trade Centre terminals). You'll want to jump on public transport to discover Gaudi’s best works including Casa Batlló (20-minutes on the L3 Metro) and Parc Güell (30 - 40 minutes on the L3 Metro).
A MUST for any cruise ship arrival is to visit Sagrada Familia. The quickest way to get from cruise ship to the Sagrada Familia is to take a taxi directly from the cruise terminal (there are taxi depots located near all the main cruise ship terminals. Taxi will take about 15 minutes and should cost between €15 and €20.
Alternatively, a cheaper option is to take the cruise bus from your cruise terminal to Mirador de Colom (Columbus Monument) where you’ll have a number of public transport options to get to the doors of Gaudi's masterwork. You could walk (4 minutes) to Drassanes Metro stop (L3 route) and ride it for 4 stops to Diagonal, then swap onto the L5 line and two stops later you'll be at the Sagrada Familia. Or take a slightly longer walk to Paral·lel and jump on the L2 metro to take you to the Sagrada Familia metro stop.
If you're feeling very energetic you can walk from the Barcelona cruise terminals (if you arrive at Moll de Barcelona/World Trade Centre Terminals) all the way to Sagrada Familia in under an hour. Head up La Rambla, through the Gothic Quarter, past the Arc de Triomf and then continue through some of Barcelona's Eixample city blocks with their famous missing corners and onwards to Sagrada Familia.
While the walk itself might take an hour or less, with so much to see en-route, it’s only an option for those with time and energy. And if your cruise ship is docking at the Adossat Terminals then we’d strongly recommend other options like a taxi or public transport to get you to Sagrada Familia.
Plenty. As one of Europe's largest cruise ports and welcoming more than 2 million cruise ship visitors a year, you can be sure that Barcelona is well equipped to get you from your cruise ship to the city centre. Taxis in the city are metered and will often be able to give you a good estimate of cost when you ask. There's little if any point in haggling for a better price or trying different taxis to see if their prices differ. If they are official Barcelona city taxis, your metered tariffs will remain the same. Expect to pay around €15 to get from the cruise terminal to the city centre.
Yes, and if you're arriving at the North or South World Trade Centre terminals, you're just a short walk to the Mirador de Colom (Columbus Monument) that marks the beginning of La Rambla. And while you can walk from Adossat terminals, the quay itself is long and it's a 30-minute walk (at least depending on luggage) from the closest terminals just to get to the Columbus Monument. Don’t forget if you’re taking the cruise in summer, Barcelona can be very hot, so factor that into any walking you plan.
If you do decide to walk to one of the cruise terminals, make use of the blue ‘cruise bus’ that regularly ferries visitors from the Columbus Monument to all the terminals. It costs €3 one way and you can pay onboard or in advance. Just remember your 'T' ticket that you might have been using elsewhere in the city, won't be valid on the cruise bus and neither will your Hola BCN card. So, make sure you have some small change when you jump on.
Companies like Bags & Go operate from the Barcelona cruise terminals and offer baggage storage services to allow you to explore the city without having to worry about your luggage. If you're staying at a hotel such as Hotel Continental, they'll look after your bags even before check-in or after check-out, and with a location 2-minutes from Plaça de Catalunya it’s the easiest way to see the city without dragging your bags through the crowds.
With its tourist appeal, Barcelona has no shortage of hotel options for all budgets and tastes. To experience the best the city has to offer, there's arguably nowhere better to stay than near Plaça de Catalunya. You'll enjoy the convenience of great public transport connections to get to and from the airport, the cruise terminals and all of Barcelona's major tourist attractions and be situated in the hub of the city.
For cruise visitors looking to experience the best of Barcelona in a heritage hotel destination, then Hotel Continental has a long history of hosting cruise ship visitors to the city. Just two minutes from Plaça de Catalunya and a direct route down La Rambla to the Columbus Monument, getting from the hotel to your cruise ship destination couldn't be simpler no matter what form of transport you take.