Barcelona Hop-On Hop-Off Bus: Explore 11 Great Attractions

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Barcelona is the capital of the Catalunya region and the most visited city in Spain. This stunning city sits in a picturesque location between the Mediterranean Sea and the mountains.

The Catalan capital is a big city with many attractions to visit. The easiest way to see the best things is on the Barcelona sightseeing bus.

The hop on hop off bus in Barcelona offers tourists a convenient and flexible way to explore the city’s famous landmarks and attractions at your own pace.

Which is the best hop on hop off bus in Barcelona?

In Barcelona, one of the best ways to see the sights is with a hop-on hop-off bus tour. A lot of people ask if the Barcelona hop-on hop-off is worth it, and which Barcelona Hop-on hop-off bus is best.

Just to make it easy, two different companies are running Barcelona city hop on hop off tours. These companies are City Sightseeing and Barcelona Bus Touristic.

What you will get is a double-decker bus to show you this delightful city. You can explore Barcelona at your own pace around the city. The double-decker usually has an open top depending on the season. In case of bad weather, the double-decker buses have electric roofs that close allowing you to stay dry and see the top attractions.

Which is the best Barcelona hop-on hop-off bus?

You might ask is there any difference in these tours ????

To be honest, the answer is no, the buses are exactly the same. Both City sightseeing and Barcelona Bus Turistic have at least two different routes they run with over 30 stops at the best Barcelona attractions.

Regardless of which company you’re using, you should expect to see the same sights and have the same time with both of them. The best place to buy a hop-on hop-off Barcelona bus ticket is off the bus driver at any stop or online before arriving !!!!

The Barcelona tourist map you get when boarding will help you plan the best stops for you to discover Barcelona, while the headphones inform you of the sights and history. You can’t miss the Barcelona city tour bus as they are red in colour.

The Hop on hop off the bus is much easier than using the notorious Barcelona subway which is known for its pickpockets. The best place to catch the hop-on hop-off city sightseeing bus is at Plaza Catalunya. The best hop on hop off in Barcelona is up to you.

Highlights of the Barcelona hop on hop off bus.

Barcelonetta:

Barcelonetta is an amazing area that was reshaped for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. No visit to Barcelona is complete without a visit to the Barcelona beach. The beach area of Barcelonetta has a number of bay-like swimming areas that have been developed with kilometres of white sand.

people enjoying the sun at barcelonetta beach
Barcelona bus tourists stop at the popular beach

A wide boulevard for walking and bike riding allows you to stroll along the Mediterranean Coast enjoying the Barcelona sunshine. For many, the sun and beach are big Barcelona attractions. The Barcelona sightseeing bus even stops at the beach for you.

Passeig Colomb with the Barcelona sightseeing bus

This stop on the Barcelona sightseeing bus is located at the port end of the famous La Rambla. La Rambla Barcelona is the main tourist thorofare running starting at Plaza Cataluyna. From here you will see the statue of Christopher Columbus with him pointing to the New World.

Spain and Columbus were instrumental in discovering new world lands (for those touring Spain, Seville Cathedral contains the Columbus Tomb). This stop allows you access to the port where you can take a cruise and see the sights of Barcelona from the water.

You can also visit the Maritime Museum Barcelona to learn about seafaring history. We visited the Barcelona Maritime Museum and were extremely impressed with the exhibition on display.

 The star of the show is a 60-meter-long royal galley Admirals of Juan de Austria. This ship was involved in the Battle of Lepanto on 7 October 1571, in which the Turkish Armada was defeated on a victorious day for the Spanish.

Port Vell:

The Barcelona cable car
The cable car is one of the popular Barcelona tourist attractions

Another area at the Port of Barcelona. From here you will get a good view of the Barcelona Cable car as it glides across the skies of Barcelona. You can’t board the Barcelona cable car from here but we will let you know later when we reach that stop.

This hop on hop off Barcelona stop gives you access to the Port Vell shopping centre and the world-famous Barcelona Aquarium. Kids in Barcelona will love this stop.

Facts about Barcelona

  • Barcelona had no beaches till 1992
  • Portal de l’Àngel in Barcelona’s old town is the busiest street in Spain, 150,000 people a day walk down it
  • One theory suggests Barcelona was founded by Hercules 400 years before Rome
  • Over 8.2 million people visited Barcelona in 2016 (including Wyld Family Travel)
  • Barcelona rejected Gustav Eiffel’s initial plan for a tower that now stands in Paris “Huge Mistake”
  • Home to the busiest cruise port in Europe
  • Barcelona is home to 68 parks, over 55 museums, and 20 restaurants with Michelin stars.
  • Home to 9 UNESCO-protected monuments.

Cathedral-Barri Gòtic with Barcelona tourist bus

The Bari Gothic area dates back to the Roman times.

The Bari Gotic area in Barcelona is my absolute favourite place in the city. It is the Barcelona old town area and this area dates back to Roman times. It is the only original part left from the redesign before the 1992 Olympics.

The Barcelona old town district stretches from La Rambla to Via Laietana, and from the Mediterranean seafront to Ronda de Sant Pere.

The cathedral is dedicated to Eulalia of Barcelona, co-patron saint of Barcelona.

Eulalia was a young virgin who, according to Catholic tradition, suffered martyrdom during Roman times in the city.  A legend says the Romans stripped Eulalia naked in the public square.  A sort of miracle happened when the snow started falling in mid-spring and covered her nudity. This miracle completely enraged the Romans. The Romans put the poor girl into a barrel with knives stuck into it and rolled it down a street.


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Plaça Catalunya

This hop on hop off Barcelona stop is the starting and ending point for the two tours of the city. Plaça Catalunya marks the start/end of La Rambla. This is one of the focal points of the city.

At this stop, you will find street artists working in the square. Kids in Barcelona will love to feed the pigeons that land here. Stalls around the square sell bags of bird food.

EL Court Englis

On one of the corners of Placa Catalunya is the El Court Englis shopping centre. On one of the top floors is one of the best free Barcelona attractions. The El Court Englis cafeteria has some of the best views of Barcelona anywhere in the city.

If you manage to get a window seat by yourself grab a drink and take in the city skyline for free. If you are looking for things to do at night in Barcelona this is a great place to start with many restaurants in the near vicinity.

Eating in Barcelona:

Being by the sea fresh seafood is on the menu at many places throughout Barcelona. One of my favourite dishes is seafood Paella. To find one of the best Paella in Barcelona head to O’Toxo Tres Hermanos. It is located a few hundred meters off La Rambla.

O’Toxo is a traditional Barcelona restaurant and it is where you will find, without a doubt, some of the best Tapas and Paella in the city. We can recommend this restaurant as we ate here 4 times when visiting Barcelona. The seafood and chicken/seafood paella is a must. Do not buy the Paella on La Rambla you will only get the mass-produced version that comes frozen in a box.

O’Toxo offers the real deal cooked from scratch while you wait. Nothing better than some cod cake tapas and paella washed down with some Sangria!

Camp Nou with Spain hop on hop off tours

The FC Barcelona stadium or Camp Nou as it is known locally is home to one of the world’s most popular football teams, the mighty Barcelona Football Club

Camp Nou offers fan experiences with access to the ground, museum, and gift shop. a stop at FC Barcelona stadium is a true highlight.

Many different tour options at Barcelona FC Museum include an area dedicated to one of the world’s best football players Leo Messi.

The trophies from La Liga and the European Championships are in full view. You can sit in the stands, and view the ground from many different angles. If you are a full-on tragic and full of Euros you can walk on the hallowed turf of Camp Nou.

You can see the player’s dressing rooms and lockers. This is one of the great Barcelona attractions for kids and adults alike.

Search all Nou Camp tours available

Anella Olimpica

The 1992 Olympic Stadium is on many people’s Barcelona tourist map. Sitting high up on the hill above the downtown region is the Olympic precinct. 

I can remember images of divers with the city as their backdrop. These sorts of images supercharged Barcelona into the tourist mega you see today.

You can explore the Olympic area of Barcelona, you can visit the Olympic Stadium or you can just sit in the stands.  For many sports fans visiting the Olympic Stadiums are amazing attraction and piece of sporting history.

You can book a tour of the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Company and learn about its history from construction in 1927 to the Olympics and beyond.

Jardins de Miramar with the hop on hop off bus tour Barcelona

This stop on the hop-on-hop-off Bus route gives you access to the amazing garden terraces of Jardins de Miramar. It’s a great place to sit and relax. It allows you to get away and have a rest from the hustle and bustle of the Barcelona attractions.

There is a great photo opportunity spot here. You can get the city in the background from this point. It’s well worth getting off just for the picture. The before-mentioned Port Cable Car Barcelona/Port Vell aerial tramway has one of its 2 stations located at this stop.

The Cable Car Barcelona can be boarded here as it glides across the harbour until it reaches the Barcelona beach station.

The trip takes around 10 minutes and provides you with amazing views of the city. Alternatively, the Montjuic cable car takes you to the top of Montjuic.

The Montjuic Castle awaits a visit from you. The Montjuïc Castle is an old military fortress, with roots dating back to 1640. It is built on top of Montjuïc Hill in Barcelona as a strategic position to see enemies arriving from the ocean.

Tickets for both the Montjuic cable car and the Cable car Barcelona can be purchased onsite.

Gaudi sights with city sightseeing in Barcelona

The Barcelona city tour would not be complete unless it paid homage to Barcelona’s favourite architect.

The hop on hop off your stops at 3 of the most famous Gaudi sights. Antoni Gaudi is the best-known architect of Catalan Modernism.  

His masterpiece, the still-incomplete Sagrada Família, is the most-visited monument in Spain. Between 1984 and 2005, seven of his works were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. All the best Barcelona sightseeing tours have Gaudi at the forefront of your Barcelona visit.

Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Família now slated to be finished by 2025 will have taken over 100 years to build. The slow progress of Sagrada Familiar is due to the overwhelming costs of the project and the lack of skilled craftsmen.

I often say to people you have not been to a church till you have been to Sagrada Familia. You will be amazed by the exterior and memorized by the interior. You will look in amazement and ask yourself how is this possible.

Park Güell

The Park Güell is a public park system composed of gardens and architectonic elements located on Carmel Hill, in Barcelona. Designed by Gaudi in 1900 it combines modernist traditional elements to form truly amazing designs. Park Guell is high on many people’s lists of things to do in Barcelona.

The Barcelona bus tourist drops off a few hundred meters away from the park. You need to walk a steep hill but there is an escalator part of the way. The Park Guell can be viewed from the surrounding park or you can pay to get inside for a better view.

Casa Mila with the Barcelona city tour hop on hop off bus.

Located in Passeig de Gracia this was the last private residence that Gaudi built in Barcelona. The stone quarry as it is known was built between 1906 and 1912. Its undulating stone facade, and twisting wrought iron balconies make it a truly unique design.

A visit can be one of the coolest things to do in Barcelona but be warned it comes with a heavy price on your wallet. By all accounts, the inside is just as amazing as its facade.

Discover Barcelona hop on hop off price

The Hop On Hop Off Bus offers two different ticket options. You can buy hop on hop off Barcelona tickets for a 1-day or a 2-day duration. There are always at least 2 different routes with each city tour on the double-decker buses with an audio guide system included.

Ticket Prices as of November 2023:

Know before you go Barcelona City Tour bus companies operate daily between 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM. There should be and I say should be a double-decker bus every 30 minutes coming past each bus stop to help you discover Barcelona. Barcelona city tour operates all year round.

If you know your travel date the purchase process online is straightforward for the 24 or 48-hour bus tickets. The hop-on hop-off Barcelona starting point is at Plaça de Catalunya.

Get ready for a great experience as see Park güell, The National Museum, The Gothic Quarter, Sagrada Familia, Plaça Catalunya, Port Olímpic, Casa Batlló, Plaça d’espanya, Estació de Sants and many more emblematic buildings with a single ticket.

Plan your stops with the Barcelona hop on hop off map, which you can get online or onboard.

Where to stay in Barcelona

Great vacations with teens start with some great vacation planning. When you are planning a trip to Europe you’ll never be short of options for accommodation in Barcelona. You find a diverse range of hotels, apartments, and hostels in Barcelona.

You will be sure to be able to find something to fit singles, couples, families, and groups on every budget in Barcelona.

If you’re not keen on any of our picks below or have specific needs for your teen travel holidays, we recommend using Hotellook and Booking.com to find the best prices for your family holiday in Barcelona.

Luxury: Located on the beachfront along the famous Barceloneta boardwalk is the W Barcelona Hotel. The 473 fabulous guest rooms & suites boast panoramic views over the Mediterranean and the city of Barcelona. Featuring amazing architecture rooftop bars and a swimming pool, this is the best luxury hotel for families in Barcelona

Mid Range: This hotel features rooms with satellite TV and a continental buffet breakfast included in all rates. Rooms are spacious and air-conditioned and can accommodate families of up to 4 in one room. Holiday Inn Express Barcelona City offers free WiFi and easy access to the Barcelona attractions.

Budget: Perfectly located in the heart of Barcelona is the Urbany BCN Hostel. The hostel has a rooftop terrace and mini pool to keep you cool in the hot Barcelona summer. You will find private family rooms fitting 4 with ensuite bathrooms which is brilliant if you travel with teenagers on a budget.

Barcelona apartment alternative for your stay

If you prefer a home away from home-style accommodation when on your Europe trip with teenagers in Barcelona then an apartment is the best choice for you on your family vacation in Spain. There are so many options for singles, families, and budget-friendly options in Barcelona as well. Search VRBO for amazing apartments in Barcelona.

How to get to Barcelona

Barcelona is the capital of Catalunya and one of the most popular tourist destinations in Spain. Barcelona is one of the best family destinations in Europe for family travel with teens. Barcelona is connected to Madrid via the A2 Highway. Long-distance buses, trains, and planes all bring people daily to the city. This makes Barcelona Spain one of the best family travel destinations in Europe.

  • There are three airports in and around Barcelona. The 3 airports are El Prat de Llobregat Aeropuerto, Reus International Airport and Girona-Costa Brava Airport. El Prat is the main airport, just 14 kilometres from the heart of the city. The airport is serviced by National carriers and a handful of budget airlines.
    • Book an airport transfer from the airport to your city hotel
      • If your flights have a long stopover, or you just want to relax before your family trip you should consider getting a lounge pass with a Priority Pass. Priority Pass has access to airport lounges all over the world. Search now for your lounge pass
  • Barcelona is connected to both Madrid and Paris by high-speed rail. This makes accessing Barcelona by train straightforward. This makes adding day trips from Barcelona with teenagers so easy too. Book your tickets to Barcelona today with Omio.
  • Barcelona can be reached directly from 40 cities through its 3 main bus stops. Flixbus tickets are available at great prices. Bus travel with teens in Europe can add so many wonderful experiences for teens on vacation. Book your bus ticket to Barcelona with Flixbus.
  • If you plan to road trip with teenagers to Barcelona you can hire a car at any International airport and dealership across Spain. Book with RentalCars for the largest options.
  • Maybe you want to make a multi-country trip? An RV is a great way to travel around Barcelona with teens.
Things to see in Barcelona on the hop-on hop-off bus

How to get around Barcelona

Travelling as a family in Spain is easy. There are several excellent public transport options in Barcelona, including the metro, trams, buses, and even suburban trains, which makes getting around the city so easy for families travelling with teenagers.

Single tickets are €2.40 per ride (2021), and you can purchase them at vending machines at metro stations and aboard buses.

One of our best family travel tips is to use the Hop on Hop off the bus on your Europe trip with family. The Barcelona Hop hop-off bus offers multiway tickets that take you to the best sights in Barcelona for families.

What currency do I need for my trip to Spain with my family?

The official currency you need to use in Barcelona is the Euro. We recommend that you get a Revolut travel money card, that can be loaded with multiple currencies and has nearly non-existent withdrawal fees to save you money on your family trip to Europe.

Travel Insurance for your Barcelona with teen vacation

Spain has a high quality of healthcare but in saying that travel insurance is still recommended for all travellers entering the country. The last thing you want is a huge bill for medical expenses should you require care on your family holiday in Barcelona.

We recommend using Travel Insurance Master, their website will compare the best deals from several providers and present you with the best value for money policy on the market. Click through to Insurance Masters to get a free quote.

Elevated view of the city of Barcelona at night
Barcelona at night is a great city to explore

Using your phone in Barcelona for family travel

Relying on Wi-Fi when you are travelling and sightseeing in Barcelona with family can be hard. Making calls and staying in contact when you travel with teenagers is a top priority when you are travelling with family in Europe. Plan your family trip to Spain and order your sim before you leave home to stop any stress about travelling, data, and calls on your family vacation in Barcelona.

Pocket Wi-Fi for Barcelona for teenagers

You will be able to access free Wi-Fi at certain spots in Spain. The best solution for travelling teens to stay connected to the internet is to rent a 4G Pocket Wi-Fi hotspot. These small devices can be ordered and delivered to your hotel.

Alternatively, you can purchase a mobile hotspot device to keep and use on all your travel with teens holidays. You can choose the length of time you want and the amount of daily data you will need. Order your pocket Wi-Fi today for your Barcelona Spain trip

We hope this article from us here at Wyld Family Travel has you inspired to visit Barcelona in Spain. There are so many things to do and see in Spain. For more amazing ideas on where to holiday in Spain click through to our Spain Destination Guide page for more brilliant inspiration.


More travel inspiration for your trip to Spain

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