What is the best way to get from the Czech Republic to Barcelona?

Spain is part of the European Union, so it is sufficient for Czech citizens to travel beyond its borders valid passport or identity card. You can get directly to Barcelona in the following ways:

• By air
• By bus
• By train
• By car

By air to Barcelona from Prague

Air travel is generally one of the fastest, and in the case of a trip to Barcelona, ​​this is no exception. It usually is flight time on the route Prague – Barcelona 2 hours 20 minutes. Even in terms of price, Barcelona by air is the best of all options: you will pay the same for a flight as for a trip by bus, train or your own car, and you will travel much more comfortably. Air travel though it only takes a fraction of the time, which you would spend on a bus seat.

Where to fly to Barcelona from? 

If you are in the Czech Republic, I recommend the airport in Prague (PRG) or Vienna (VIE) for departure. Vienna is great especially for Moravians or Slovaks – it is closer than Prague and excellently accessible by train or bus. (Unfortunately, there are no direct flights from Slovakia to Barcelona; it used to fly from Bratislava, but this route has already been cancelled). 

Arrival airport on the way to Barcelona

As the arrival airport for a flight to Barcelona, ​​you must enter it in the search engine Josep Tarradellas Barcelona - El Prat (BCN). Before, for example, there were flights from Bratislava to nearby Girona, but these lines have now been cancelled. 

If you find yourself in Girona for some reason, read how to get from Girona Airport to Barcelona

When traveling by plane to Barcelona, ​​you can see the peaks of the Alps

Barcelona is on flights from Prague currently served by the following airlines:

1. Ryanair
2. Iberia (and her low-cost car Vueling)
3. Eurowings (also serves flights from Smart Wings a CSA)

If you know a little about flying, you probably know that Vueling is Iberia's low-cost carrier and that Smartwings and ČSA are part of the group with Eurowings. It therefore happens quite often that in the flight search engine you will come across two different tickets with the same departure time but different companies. Very often both Iberia and Vueling passengers will travel together on the same plane. That's just an aside. 

Does it make sense to fly to Barcelona with transfers? 

Of course, you can fly from Prague to Barcelona with other companies, but you will have to transfer. Transfers do not make much sense on such a short flight and in terms of price, you usually won't be able to get a more interesting price thanks to transfers. Consider a connecting flight more like an emergency option and only take it if there is no other good connection.

Experience: Why avoid agencies like Kiwi when buying a ticket

By air to Barcelona from Vienna or Katowice

If you belong to non-Prague residents, or you don't mind traveling it makes sense to look at airports other than Prague when looking for the best flight ticket to Barcelona. Unfortunately, you cannot get from the Czech Republic to Barcelona directly other than from Prague - there are no flights from the Czech Republic to Barcelona from other airports such as Ostrava or Brno. 

From airports except Prague's Ruzyně I recommend Vienna (VIE) or Katowice (KTW).

Vienna is great especially for Moravians or Slovaks – it is closer than Prague and excellently accessible by train or bus. Katowice, on the other hand, can be an interesting choice for anyone from Northern Moravia or Silesia. 

Flying to Barcelona from Vienna? Read my 5 tips on where to park cheaply around Vienna Airport

If you have time at one of the airports, I recommend going to the local airport lounge. 

How much is a ticket on the route Prague - Barcelona? 

With low-cost airlines (Ryanair, Vueling) you return tickets are the cheapest at around 2 - 000 CZK. The resulting price of course depends on the date and above all on how far in advance you buy. The earlier you book your tickets, of course, the better.

The price of tickets will be different if you look for them half a year before departure or 1 week before departure. It can vary by several thousand. 

Cheap tickets can be picked up, for example, as part of various events at sellers, but you have to monitor them regularly and adapt to the dates that are available. Promotional tickets are mainly offered by low-cost carriers such as Ryanair, Vueling or Smartwings. Tips for finding cheap flights you can also find it in my ebook.

I recommend watching as well my Instagram, where I sometimes point out cheap flights. Sometimes I have catches like a ticket for 600 CZK, etc. 

Search for a ticket to Barcelona on Google Flights >>>

By bus to Barcelona

You can also get to Barcelona by bus. But in terms of the time you will spend on the road, this is the most demanding option: one a journey on the route Prague – Barcelona can normally take at least 25 hours.

Who to go with and what is the price of the bus ticket?

There is only one regular train from Prague to Barcelona Flixbus buses. Or at least I don't know about other companies...

Sample lines from Prague to Barcelona by bus: travel time around 30 hours and price from 2 CZK

You can find it at Flixbus a return bus ticket from about 3 CZK, a one-way ticket costs about a thousand crowns less. 

When buying a ticket, I always recommend looking at the details of the trip, i.e. how long you will travel, where you are going and whether the connection is direct or not. With Flixbus, it is quite common that you will change somewhere, mostly in Germany or France. Direct bus connection from Prague Florence to Barcelona it was only introduced in May 2023.

As for the prices, as with the plane tickets, the earlier you buy, the lower the price you will get. If the basic prices seem high and you want the best deal, it's worth checking the Flixbus offer on the website or signing up to their newsletter, as they often offer various special offers and promos. 

Search for a bus ticket to Barcelona >>>

By train to Barcelona

From the Czech Republic to Barcelona at the main station Barcelona Sants you can also get by train, but it is - at least in my opinion - about the worst option ever.

I would only recommend this adventure to railway fans who have a lot of time and don't know what to do with it. Similar to the bus, i the trip with this means of transport will take you 2 days at ease. And not even in terms of price, it's not a win - you will pay somewhere between 4-000 CZK for a return ticket and there are still several transfers waiting for you. But in order. 

Of course, there is no direct train connection from the Czech Republic to Barcelona. The only option is booking several tickets together. For example, the Czech Railways can help with this (I recommend a personal visit, you can't click on it on the website), the search engine RailEurope or you can try it on your own directly on the websites of individual carriers. Doing it yourself will usually get you the best price. 

A sample connection with few transfers when you go from Prague to Barcelona by train

If you would like to go to Barcelona by train, you can be as creative as possible regarding the journey - it is up to you how you combine the individual transfers and whether you will transfer in Germany, Switzerland or France.

Although the trains are modern, comfortable and you have great service on board, I personally prefer to pay extra and fly. 

Search for a train ticket >>>

By car to Barcelona

The main advantage of traveling by car is that you don't have to rely on anyone or anything. You just go where you want and stop where you need. Public transport will never offer you this. If you also want to bring your own car to Barcelona, however, be prepared for a roughly 20-24 hour journey (depending on the number of stops). 

The entire route from Prague to Barcelona is almost 1 km and count on the whole day you will spend on the road. In terms of price, you will leave somewhere around 4–5 CZK for gasoline. 

The most used route to Barcelona it leads from Prague via Pilsen to Rozvadov and from there to Nuremberg and Strasbourg, Lyon, Valence, Montpellier, Perpignan, Girona and from there to Barcelona.

The road itself is fine - the highways are of good quality, there are many rest stops, hotels, restaurants or pumps along the way. What you must not forget is to include tolls in your holiday budget. You cannot avoid this in Germany, France or Spain. 

Read more about motorways in Spain - what about the toll?

Before the trip, I definitely recommend installing navigation on your phone, such as e.g. Waze. 

However, I must add that you can't drive a car around Barcelona much and having one there is not exactly a win. In the final you will probably leave him parked somewhere in the parking lot a you will mostly use public transport to travel around the city. 

Plan a trip on Google Maps >>>