Barcelona city pass

Looking for the best city pass in Barcelona? Wondering if the city’s tourist cards are any good? Below, we set out several city pass options in Barcelona so you can find out how much each costs, which activities are included, how long it’s valid for, and more.

At the end of the article, we’ll give you some advice and review the passes available in Barcelona so you can easily decide which is most suitable for your trip and offers the best value for money.

Quick comparison of Barcelona passes

Before we get down to the nitty-gritty, let’s compare the various tourist cards you can get in Barcelona. Below, we’ll explain what each of the three city cards gives you.

GO Barcelona Explorer Pass: pricing, what’s included & how it works

With the Barcelona Explorer Pass, you can tailor your trip to include your choice of activities, with lots available. Let’s look at what you need to know.

What the Go Barcelona Explorer Pass costs

The cost of the Go Barcelona Explorer Pass depends on how many activities you want to do and your age. You choose 2 to 7 activities from those available.

Age	2 act.	3 act.	5 act.	7 act.
13 - 99	74 €	104 €	144 €	184 €
4 - 12	54 €	74 €	99 €	124 €

How it works

When you buy your Explorer card, you have to choose how many activities you want to do. If you select an attraction where there’s no need to book, all you have to do is turn up with your city pass.

Once you’ve bought your pass, you receive all the booking information by email. Attractions that ask you to book a date and time slot will be mentioned.

Sites included with the Go Barcelona Explorer city pass

You can choose where to visit at any time during your trip, as long as the attraction doesn’t ask you to pre-book.

The main sites available with this city pass are:

• Casa Batlló
• La Boqueria
• La Pedrera
• Picasso Museum
• Parc Güell
• Quartier gothique
• La Sagrada Familia
• Aquarium
• Hop-on-hop-off bus tour
• Montjuic
• Musée d'Art Contemporain
• Musée de cire
• Musée MOCO
• Poble Espagnyol
• Téléphérique de Montjuïc
• Camp Nou tour
• Zoo
• Musée d'histoire de la Catalogne
• Barcelona Aquarium
• Las Golondrinas boat tour
• Barcelona Bus Turistíc (hop-on-hop-off bus)
• Zoo
• Casa Vicens
• Montserrat (including bus transfer)
• Poble Espanyol open-air museum
• Sant Pau modernist complex
• City bike tours
• Gaudi 4D Experience
• Barcelona Egyptian Museum
• Tour of the old town and gothic quarter
• MACBA Museum of Contemporary Art
• CosmoCaixa Science Museum
• Olympic and Sports Museum
• Museum of the History of Catalonia
• Escape Hunt Barcelona

How long the tourist card is valid for

The card is valid for 60 days after it’s first used. The countdown starts when you first use it to enter an attraction. This means you can spread your visits out during your time in Barcelona. Also, with your city pass only activating once you enter your first site, you can buy it well before you arrive in the city.

Choose this pass and you don’t have to visit attractions one after another. N.B. Although it’s valid for 60 days, you can only use it for the number of attractions you originally chose. So, choose carefully when you buy the pass online.

Where do I get the Go Explorer city pass

With this tourist card, you don’t need to pick anything up in situ. Once you’ve bought it, you have everything you need on your phone as you’re emailed the documents. For each activity, you need to show a QR code on your phone, or printed off.

Barcelona Card: pricing, what’s included & how it works

This second card gives you access to various museums. And these are the main places to visit with this card: it doesn’t offer as much variety as the pass above.

You can also use the city’s public transport free of charge and get 50% off other activities in Barcelona.

How much is the Barcelona Card

With this city pass, you choose how long you want it for: 3, 4, or 5 days. The cost depends on the length chosen and your age.

Age	3 days	4 days	5 days
13+	55 €	65 €	77 €
4 - 12	32 €	42 €	47 €

How it works

This card works differently from the one above. You just have to choose how long you want it to be valid for when you buy: 3, 4 or 5 days (72, 96 or 120 hours). For example, say you activate your card at 2pm on the first day. It will then be valid until 1:59pm on the final day. During this period, you can do all the activities available with the Barcelona Card, remembering you can only complete each activity once.

The risk with this city pass is that your trip might feel quite busy. For it to make financial sense, you need to visit at least one museum each day. This is because the pass is mostly for museums and only valid for a limited period.

Sites included with the Barcelona Card

This tourist card gets you free access to the city’s public transport and 50% off other activities in Barcelona.

You can visit the following attractions:

• National Art Museum of Catalonia
• Picasso Museum
• Palais de la musique catalane
• Fondation Miró
• Musée MOCO
• Château de Montjuïc
• Jardin Botanique
• Museum of Catalan Modernism
• Antoni Tàpies Foundation (fast-track ticket)
• MACBA Museum of Contemporary Art (fast-track ticket)
• Archaeology Museum
• Egyptian Museum
• Ethnology Museum and Parc de Montjuïc
• Contemporary Culture Centre (fast-track ticket)
• El Born Centre for Culture and Memory
• Barcelona History Museum (4 buildings: Refugi 307, Via Sepulcral Romana, El Call, Plaça del Rei)
• Joan Miró Foundation
• Botanic Gardens
• Juan Antonio Samaranch Olympic and Sports Museum (fast-track ticket)
• Royal Monastery of St Mary of Pedralbes
• And other museums: music, design, natural sciences, CosmoCaixa Science Museum, Frederic Marès and more...

How long the Barcelona Card is valid for?

The card is valid for the number of days you choose when you buy it. It activates when you do your first activity rather than when you buy the card.

N.B. The days are consecutive and counted in hours. For example, if you activate it at 10am on the first day, it will be valid until 9:59am on day 3, 4, or 5. This can be useful when you’re planning your trip: if you arrive in the city at lunchtime, you can visit a museum using the city pass straight away without losing out on a whole day of validity.

Where do I get the Barcelona Card

This tourist card has to be collected in situ because it’s a physical card. All you have to do is show your email confirmation on paper or on your phone.

There are several collection points:

• Terminal 1 or 2 at Barcelona Airport (between 8:30am and 8:30pm, Monday to Saturday; between 8:30am and 2:30pm on Sundays and bank holidays)
• Kiosk in Plaça de Catalunya (daily from 9am to 9pm)
• La Sagrada Familia pick-up (Monday, Tuesday and Sunday 9am to 2:30pm; Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday 9am to 8pm)

Barcelona Digital Pass: pricing, what’s included & how it works

The final pass in our list is a digital tourist card. With this option, you can do everything from buying it to choosing dates for your activities while you’re still at home. As you’ll see, this is the easiest city pass to use.

How much is the Barcelona Digital Pass

The pricing is simple. There are 2 criteria: how many days you can take the tourist bus for (1, 2 or 3 days) and the age of the user.

For ease, we’ll focus in the summary below on the version offering unlimited tourist bus travel for 1 day.

Age	Price
30 - 64	85 €
65+	68 €
13 - 29	81 €
11 - 12	63 €
7 - 10	26 €

How it works

You buy this city pass online and choose the date(s) you want to do the activities included.

You’re then emailed the different tickets that give you fast-track access to attractions. All you have to do is show them in situ on your phone or printed out. You also get a code for 10% off other possible attractions in Barcelona. You can then book these online.

Sites included with the Barcelona Digital Pass

This city pass includes the main must-see attractions, such as:

• Parc Güell
• La Sagrada Familia
• Hop-on-hop-off bus tour
• Access to the POPGuide audio guide app
• 10% off other activities in Barcelona

How long the Barcelona Digital Pass is valid for

This tourist card doesn’t expire. It’s a digital city pass that’s used more to give you access to block bookings. The advantage is you can spread your activities over 2 or 3 days.

The discount giving you 10% off other activities also remains valid after the dates chosen for your attractions included in the Barcelona city pass. This means you can use your tourist card throughout your trip.

Where do I get the Barcelona Digital Pass

This Barcelona city pass doesn’t need to be collected as it’s digital. After you buy it, you’re sent your tickets by email. Then just show them on your phone or printed out.

Which must-see locations are included in Barcelona city passes?

Depending which pass you choose, you can access some or all of the city’s main activities. Here is a summary of the sites you absolutely must visit and the tourist cards that get you in.

Conclusion : when should you buy a pass for Barcelona?

Is it worth buying a city pass? Is your trip compatible with one of the tourist cards available? Here is our advice to help you decide which pass is right for you.