Traveling to and from a new city isn’t always easy. This weekend I decided to venture to Porto for the first time to try some good wine. Although my trip was certainly memorable, the stress of having figure out how I was going to make it to my flight on time after a long day of classes was not something that I was looking forward to. In fact, I made a common tourist mistake: paying for an overpriced cab because I did not feel like dealing with the burden of transportation. So if you want to save money with the Aerobús just read below!
Looking back on my decision, I wish someone had told me how much more efficient the Barcelona Aerobús would have been. Instead of paying 50 euros for a cab, (which definitely put a strain on my bank account), I could have taken a 5 euro bus ride, and spent my cash on something better…like more wine!
The truth is, a lot of tourists like myself just don’t want to be bothered with taking the Barcelona Aerobús, even though it will save them loads of cash. Thankfully, on my way back to Barcelona, I came to my senses and took the Aerobús. My experience with the bus was quite easy, and by the end of this post, I promise you that you’ll think twice before paying for an expensive cab to the airport.
How To Navigate the Aerobús in BCN
Navigating where to find the bus was actually more simple than I thought. When exiting your flight, all you really need to do is read the signs above you! The signs are in English and Spanish, so the directions are pretty easy to follow.
Step 1: Customs
If you’re not a Barcelona native (which we can assume is the case for most of our readers), then you will probably have to make a stop at customs before you do anything else. To get to customs, all you need to do it follow the signs above you that says “Equipatges” (baggage). Once you make it through customs, which can take a whiiiiile, you will see additional signs for the baggage claim area.
These are the signs for customs. If you have a non-European passport, move to the left side. If you have a European passport, move to the right side.
Step 2: Baggage Claim
If you checked a bag… now’s your chance to grab it! At baggage claim, you will see this green sign, which tells you where the exit is.
Step 3: Currency Exchange
The currency exchange is a good marker of where to go next. Once you follow that little green sign above, you should come across the currency exchange. After walking past the currency exchange, you should make a right turn.
Step 4: Exiting the Airport
Once you make that right, you should see the exit sign above. Once you walk past that sign, you will see another that says “nothing to declare.” Walk through there.
The next thing you will see is a sign for car rentals, taxis and most importantly….buses! Follow this sign, and it will lead you two other signs that are located directly across from each other.
If you follow the sign on the right you will end up at the terminal 1 buses. If you follow the left, you will be at the terminal 2 buses. Both buses have the exact same stops. I happened to end up on the right side, with the terminal 1 buses.
The last sign that you will see is this one. Underneath this sign is an escalator that will take you outside and to the Barcelona Aerobúses.
Step 5: Purchase your Ticket (Save Money with the Aerobús)
The buses should on your right, but first you should purchase a ticket on the machines (which will be on your left). A single ride is 5,90€ and a roundtrip purchase is only 10,20€. Note: If you want to pay with cash euros, you can purchase your ticket inside of the bus.
You can even purchase your tickets online.
Your ticket should look like this. Once you get on the bus, the driver will punch a hole in it.
These buses are super clean, and include free wifi. There should be a list of stops above the seats, and announcements are made before each stop so that you know where you are getting off at. The last stop should be Plaça Catalunya.
These are all the stops on the bus.
And that’s just it! As you can see, taxis are definitely NOT worth the expense, especially when the Aerobús is so convenient. So save your money for something worth your while and take a chance on the Aerobús!
Will is so happy that he decided to take the Aerobús 🙂
If you want to enjoy the peace to don’t think about how to take a train, a metropolitan bus or a taxi just buy the tickets from here!
Thank you to read us 🙂