BARCELONA CRUISE TERMINAL

With seven cruise ship terminals in Barcelona, it is very important to know which terminal your cruise ship will be using or you might try to drop your luggage off at the wrong one!

ADOSSAT QUAY TERMINALS

Terminals A, B, C, and D are located on the Adossat Quay and are furthest from the city centre. Terminal D is also called Palacruceros.

WORLD TRADE CENTRE TERMINALS

There are three terminals at the WTC pier called North, South, and East.

View a map of the cruise terminals from the Port of Barcelona.

PORTS OF CALL FOR SHIPS DEPARTING BARCELONA

CROATIA – Dubrovnik, Split, Zadar  |  DENMARK – Copenhagen  |  FRANCE – Ajaccio, Cannes, Cherbourg,  Le Havre, Marseille, Nice,  Sete   |  GIBRALTAR  |  GREECE – Corfu, Heraklion, Piraeus (Athens), Mykonos,  Rhodes, Santorini  |  ITALY –  Amalfi Coast (Salerno), Cagliari (Sardinia), Catania, Civitavecchia (Rome), Genoa, La Spezia, Livorno (Florence/Pisa), Messina, Naples/Pompeii, Palermo, Savona, Sorrento,  Venice  |  MALTA – Valletta  |  MONACO – Monte Carlo  |  MONTENEGRO – Kotor  |  MOROCCO – Casablanca, Tangier  |  NETHERLANDS – Amsterdam  |  PORTUGAL – Funchal, Lisbon  |  SPAIN – Alicante, Cadiz,  Cartagena, Ibiza,  Las Palmas, Malaga (Granada),  Palma De Mallorca, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tarragona, Valencia, Vigo  |  UNITED KINGDOM – Dover, Southampton  CARIBBEAN – Cococay (Bahamas), Dominican Republic,  King S Wharf (Bermuda), Nassau,  Philipsburg, Puerto Rico,  St. Thomas, Turks and Caicos  | CANADA/UNITED STATES – Fort Lauderdale, Halifax, Key West,  Miami, New York City,  Port Canaveral, Tampa  |  SOUTH AMERICA – Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo

*Please Note: These scheduled ports of call are not guaranteed as the cruise line may make changes to their itineraries due to weather or other reasons. 

MONEY MATTERS

CURRENCY

The currency of Barcelona is the euro (EUR) which is divided into 100 cents (sometimes called euro cents). It is printed on paper bills in the following denominations: €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200, and €500. It also includes the following coins: €2, €1, 50c, 20c, 10c, 5c, 2c, and 1c. 

TIPPING

While relatively high tipping is customary in the United States, tipping in European countries is generally not as much. Many countries, like Spain, will include a “service charge” which is essentially the price of being served and that is already included in the overall price of the meal.

RESTAURANTS: Tipping etiquette in Barcelona says that a tip is considered a reward for good service so if the food or waiter isn’t up to par then no tip is expected. If you are happy with the service, then a tip would range between 7-10% with a little more at a fine restaurant. While you may leave 10-20 cents for a quick sandwich/coffee shop, if you don’t want to carry many coins, a tip for a meal like this wouldn’t be expected.

It is preferable to leave the tip in cash, even if you paid for your meal with a credit card.

TAXIS: Within the city, most locals would consider a tip of 10-20 cents (or round up to the next 50 cents or euro) sufficient. If you are going to or from the airport, one or two euros would be good, especially if the driver helps you with your bags.

BANKS & ATMS

Finding an ATM (Automated Teller Machine) will not be too difficult in Barcelona.  We’ve pinned several ATMs that are near the terminals on the map below. The most common ones are Santander Bank and Deutsche Bank.

If you are visiting from out of the country it almost always best to choose to be charged in the local currency of the country you’re in. Many ATMs (and hotels) will offer to do the conversion for you but this will, more often than not, result in a worse exchange rate than your own bank, or credit card company will offer. Your own bank will calculate the exchange rate for your debit card withdrawals and credit card purchases and you will see the amount reflected in both the foreign currency and your home currency on your statement.

GETTING AROUND BARCELONA

The nearest cruise terminal to La Rambla is about a 15-minute walk, however, a much easier option (especially in the heat or with luggage) is to use the T3 Portbus, or also known as the “Blue Bus”. This shuttle bus service runs from all the cruise terminals to the monument of Christopher Columbus and back and is equipped with wheelchair access. You can purchase tickets on the bus using coins or small bills (€10.00 or less). A single ticket is €3.00 and a return ticket is €4.00.

From the Christopher Columbus monument, it is about a 5-10 minute walk to the nearest Metro station (Drassanes, Green Line, L3) which will then allow you onward public transportation around the city. If you will be exploring a lot of the city, the “Hola Barcelona” transport pass might be a good option to give you flexibility and save money. This will work on the Metro, Bus, and Tram systems.

For more information about each system, including maps and fares click one of these links: Metro  |  Tram  |  Bus

Barcelona has fully integrated cycle lanes that you could also take advantage of to see the city sights. There are several companies that offer bike rentals. For more information click here.

Another option to get a good overview of the city’s main attractions is the Hop On Hop Off bus. There are two stops near the cruise terminals (World Trade Centre and Christopher Columbus monument) that make it easy for cruise passengers to get around and then return to their ships. For more information click for a route map and or to book tickets in advance.

BARCELONA WEATHER

In general, you’ll find the summers are short, warm, humid, and mostly clear while the winters are long, cold, and partly cloudy. The best time to visit Barcelona for hot-weather activities is from late June to late August.

The hottest part of the year is late June to mid-September with average daily high temperatures above 78°F (26°C). The cooler part of the year is late November to late March with average daily high temperatures below 61°F (16°C).

BARCELONA VISITOR’S CENTER

Barcelona Tourist Information Points are great places for even more, in-depth, information about many treasures (like all their UNESCO World Heritage sites) found in Barcelona. There are several located around the city (click here for a map, addresses, and opening hours) and you will also find information booths in cruise terminals A, B, C, and D in Moll Adosat and in the World Trade Centre North and South terminals.

For the Official Barcelona Visitor’s Guide click here to download their PDF version or you can purchase one at a tourism information point.

You can also download the Visit Barcelona official app (iOS | Android) for a guide to the city.

FESTIVALS & EVENTS

You are not likely to be in want of a fiesta in Barcelona, especially in the summer where neighbourhoods in the city each celebrate their own patron saint days with traditional street parties. Other festivals and celebrations during the year that you might want to partake in before or after your cruise are:

Epiphany (5th/6th January) – Includes a parade of floats with acrobats, clowns, elves, from which the kings hand out sweets to local children.

Carnival (February/March) – The last chance for Catholics to go wild before Lent, this party is growing in popularity in Barcelona and includes fancy dress, floats, and fireworks.

Summer Music Festivals – Three big festivals – Primavera Sound Festival, Sonar Festival, and Cruilla Festival –  come to Barcelona each year so there is something to please almost everyone.

DINING

Those who love food are bound to love dining in Barcelona with its Catalan cuisine. Described by Visit Barcelona as ” … a mouthwatering blend of heritage, produce, terroir, tradition, creativity, innovation…” it almost makes one hungry just reading about it.

Going back to medieval times they still source ingredients locally and seasonally to produce their delicious signature cuisine … so good, in fact, that it was named European Region of Gastronomy in 2016.

In addition to restaurants serving dishes such as tapas and tasting platters, visitors may also like to learn more about the wine with tastings and tours of wineries or venture where the locals go and wander the markets for fresh produce. All this with views of the Mediterranean while you dine or drink.

SHOPPING

With a great fashion scene, delicious foodstuffs like wine and olive oil, arts, and antiques, Barcelona is a great place to be if you would like to do some shopping before your cruise.

The main shopping districts are the Passeig de Gràcia, Rambla de Catalunya, Plaça de Catalunya, Portal de l’Angel, and Avinguda Diagonal up to Carrer Ganduxer. For fashion browse along the Passeig de Gràcia and the Avinguda Diagonal. For antiques check out the Gothic Quarter, and the Bulevard dels Antiquaris. Old-fashioned Spanish shops can also be found in the Gothic Quarter, especially on Carrer Ferran. And for art galleries the area around the church, Santa Maria del Mar, is that place to go as it has been an artisan’s quarter since medieval times. 

Shopping lovers should also check out Visit Barcelona’s shopping card for dozens of stores. 

Tourists who are not residents of the European Union can also obtain a VAT refund on qualifying purchases at the Tourist Information offices. Please click here for more information about this service.  

MAP

The map below shows the points of interest mentioned above in relation to the cruise terminal.