Highly recommend a multi-day transport pass instead of the official bus tour (although you can do that as well!). You get unlimited access to the whole Zone 1 network, (trains; to and from the airport, metro, trams, buses, funicular railways) for a cheaper cash outlay with a greater reach. For the real explorers out there, this is a great option.

From the tourist office at Barcelona Airport or at any metro station.

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You want to experience Barcelona in a completely different way? Then participate at one of Cooltra's City tours on a scooter. I have done that on my last trip in this beautiful city and it was crazy! It is like being a local person, driving to places you couldn't reach normally and a great alternative to the tourist bus. You should live this experience, I recommend it!

Have a look at www.cooltra.com
You can find the Cooltra Motos Shop right in front of the Barceloneta Beach.
Pg. Joan de Borbó, 80-84
08039 Barcelona
Tel.: (+34) 93 221 40 70
Fax: (+34) 93 221 62 39
Móvil: (+34) 687641 388
Email: info@cooltra.com
Open daily from 10am to 8pm

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I had to arrange a 20-person minibus to take my group from Girona airport to our Barcelona hotel, and after looking around to find the best deal, I called an airport transfers company called Suntransfers - and I'm glad I did. The price was the cheapest I could find, and the British guy I dealt with (Bob, I think) couldn't have been more helpful. The minibus was modern and arrived on time, with the child seats I had asked for already installed. Recommended!

www.suntransfers.com

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I went with wife and teenage son by train to Barcelona.

We drove to Lille via Eurotunnel and stayed at a budget hotel, leaving the car there the next morning when we took the nearby metro to Lille Flandres station.

This was because Eurostar and the train from home in Gloucestershire would together have been the most expensive part of the trip, and we could also bring back a decent quantity of wine!

Lille to Paris by TGV then Paris to Perpignan by TGV and a night there in a hotel near the station.

Lovely, intriguing chat with fellow travellers and a chance to explore a French Catalan city that evening.

Train next morning to Barcelona, which I think had come from Switzerland.

After a week's stay we reversed the trip and didn't feel the slightest bit travel-weary when we got home. We had to juggle around with train times on the SNCF web site to get best fares, but being accompanied by our young son seemed to give us cheaper fares than if we had only been a couple.

Roll on St Pancras to Barcelona without a change!

www.voyagessncf.fr

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This cable car - the Transbordador Aeri - takes you from Montjuic Park to the beach at Barceloneta. It travels over the harbour, suspended across two 400m-high towers. Not advisable if you are in any way scared of heights, but the views across the city are amazing, particularly around sunset.

Leaves from Montjuic, Barcelona's World Trade Centre and the Torre de San Sebastián. Usually open 10.30am-5.30pm and later in summer. Single journey €7.50 or €9 return.

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The company Cruisin' Barcelona is run by a young couple who also cruise the streets as bike messengers. They offer personalised tours on ultra cool beach cruisers. Mahrou knows the city from A to Z and can tell you about the weirdest little ins and outs. They rent their bikes as well but it's just nice to hang out with them while cruising through the city...

tel: +34 605948469;
www.cruisingbarcelona.com

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Mastering the transport system early in a stay is a necessity to avoid too much foot-slogging. The Metro here appears, from the map, to have nearly as many lines and stations as the London underground. As with most cities a Tourist Card can be bought. Five days, about £15 and well worth it as it entitles you to free travel on all transport and discounts for museums etc.

But the Metro here is an aggressive one. Not the smoothness of Paris, nor the quaintness of Prague or Budapest, but instead, a hostile machine that only seconds before the doors close, sounds a peremptory signal. If by chance the safety device is triggered by a late-comer, the doors jerk open again with an angry hiss of hydraulics. There are no straps to hang onto and these trains stop and start violently.

It’s bad enough being in a crowded Metro in temperatures of 30 plus, but it’s your very worst nightmare come true when it grinds to a halt in the tunnel. Not an experience to be repeated. But it could happen in any Metro, London, Glasgow, Paris…

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Many of the buses in Barcelona are wheelchair-friendly. The driver sees you and sends out an electric ramp to access the bus. These run on the two 'tourist' routes which link many sites of interest. Beware the steep hill up to Parc Guell!

Many of the buses in Barcelona are wheelchair-friendly. The driver sees you and sends out an electric ramp to access the bus. These run on the two 'tourist' routes that link many sites of interest. Beware the steep hill up to Parc Guell!

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The open top bus tours are the best way of getting around Barcelona. There are three interlinked routes, the main two of which set off from the Placa de Catalunya. They take you to all the major attractions like Casa Battllo, La Pedrera, Sagrada Famillia, Park Guell (the main Gaudi buildings), the palaces, the Camp Nou, the Olympic park etc. And it's dead cheap. If the weather's good, use these buses if you can because it'll be too hot on the metro.

Several ticket offices on La Rambla

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For easy and rapid access to all of the sights of Barcelona take the metro. Trains are frequent, safe and clean. Fares are cheap with a carnet.

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