The Rough Guide to Barcelona 8 (Rough Guide Travel Guides)

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There’s a second gateway to the city at
Girona, 90km north of Barcelona, which is
used almost exclusively by no-frills airline
Ryanair (W ), which flies
there from around fifty British, Irish and
European airports, including smaller UK
airports like Bournemouth, Durham Tees
Valley and Doncaster. The other regional
airport is at Reus, 110km south of Barcelona,
near Tarragona, served by Ryanair from half
a dozen UK airports and from Dublin. You’ve
over an hour’s journey from either airport to
the centre of Barcelona, but there are reliable
connecting bus services.
Other European budget airlines fly into
Barcelona airport from across the continent,
including Air Berlin (W
from Germany and Austria), Spanair (Wwww
from Scandinavia, Germany
and Spain), Vueling ( W
from Spain, the Balearics, Italy, Paris,
Brussels and Amsterdam) and Transvia
( W from Amsterdam,
Berlin, Brussels and elsewhere).
Three-night city breaks to Barcelona start
from as little as £200 (€260) per person flying
from London, Manchester or Dublin.
For this price, accommodation is most
likely in a two-star hotel, and sometimes on
a room-only basis. For three nights bed-
and-breakfast in a three- or four-star hotel
you can usually expect to pay more like
£300–400 (€390–520). A few operators offer
rather more specialist holidays in and
around Barcelona, concentrating on things
like art and architecture, cooking classes,
wine tours or rural Catalunya.
General flight and travel agents
North South Travel T01245/608 291, Wwww
. Competitive travel agency,
offering discounted fares worldwide – profits are used
to support projects in the developing world, especially
the promotion of sustainable tourism.
STA Travel Australia T134 782, W www.statravel
; US T800/781 4040, W www.statravel
.com; UK T 0871/230 0040,W www.statravel
Worldwide specialists in low-cost flights and
tours for students and under-26s, though other
customers welcome. Also student IDs, travel
insurance, car rental and rail passes etc.
Trailfinders Australia T 1300/780 212,
W ; Republic of Ireland
T 01/677 7888, W UK
T 0845/058 5858, W . One of
the best-informed and most efficient agents for
independent travellers.
Specialist tour operators and agencies
Martin Randall Travel T 0208/742 3355,
W Experts lead small
groups on annual, all-inclusive quality tours to Spain,
concentrating on “Gastronomic Catalonia” (six nights,
£1980) – though tours and themes change each year.
Mundi Color T0207/828 6021. Spanish specialists
for flights, accommodation, tours and city breaks.
Ramblers Holidays T01707/331133, W www
. The walking specialists
offer a one-week Barcelona holiday with guided
walks, sightseeing and trips out of the city; flights
and most meals included, from around £700.
Secret Destinations T0845/612 9000, W www
. Tailor-made holidays and
city breaks can combine Barcelona with Sitges or
the Costa Brava, or cycling in the wine region.
A Taste of Spain T 856 079 626 or 934 170
716, W . Interesting food-
based tours from a company with offices in
Barcelona and Madrid – from lunch and olive-oil
tasting in Barcelona (€220) to a five-day culinary
Catalan tour (land-only, €2550).
Flights and tours from
the USA and Canada
Most direct scheduled services to Spain
from North America are to Madrid, but the
Spanish national airline Iberia ( W www.iberia
.com), and Continental (W www.continental
.com) and American Airlines (W
.com), have year-round nonstop Barcelona
services, daily from New York; meanwhile
Delta (W ) flies direct from
both New York and Atlanta. European-based
airlines (like Air France, British Airways,
Lufthansa, KLM and TAP) can also get you
to Barcelona, though you’ll be routed
through their respective European hubs.
Flying time from New York is around seven
hours to Madrid, eight to Barcelona direct,
though with an onward connection it can
take up to eleven hours to reach Barcelona.
Return fares are as much as US$1000 in
summer, though outside peak periods you
should be able to fly for under US$600.
Special promotional deals sometimes
undercut these prices, or it might even pay
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