Car Rental at Barcelona Airport - Discovering the Costa Brava

Catering for around 50 million passenger movements each year, Barcelona Airport is a major Spanish gateway located just 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) south-west of the city. Known locally as Barcelona El Prat Josep Tarradellas Airport (in homage to the famous Catalan politician), it is the second largest international air transportation hub in Spain after Madrid Airport and one of the busiest in the whole of the Mediterranean region.

Operated by Aena, S.A. (a Spanish public company that currently manages almost fifty airports), the airport has two large passenger terminals (T1 and T2) and three runways - two in parallel (06L/24R and 06R/24L) and a cross runway (02/20). More than 350 routes depart from Barcelona Airport, serving over 200 destinations in 60-plus countries around the world, with international traffic accounting for approximately 75 per cent of all traffic.

One of the world's must-visit cities, Barcelona continually buzzes with an innovative spirit and creative energy quite unmatched by most other European destinations. Visitors are spoilt for choice when it comes to where to go and what to see (there are dozens of first-rate museums and attractions), although the majority eventually lose themselves in the the atmospheric tangle of medieval buildings and cobblestone alleyways known as the Gothic Quarter (Barri Gòtic).

With a car rental from Barcelona Airport you'll be able to combine all the excitement of an extensive sightseeing itinerary in Barcelona with the chance to explore the beautiful Costa Brava, a glorious 2,000-kilometre stretch of idyllic cliff-backed beaches on Spain's spectacular north-east coastline. Highlights here include the Roman beach town of El Vendrell (famous for its amazing Archaeological Museum) and Arenys de Mar, a charming fishing village dating back to the 14th century. Furthermore, please note that Auto Europe offers travellers the chance to pick up their car hire in Barcelona and drop it off somewhere else (such as Malaga, for instance, by means of our convenient one-way car rental offers.

Auto Europe offers the best deals for a very affordable car rental at Barcelona Airport and all other top destinations in Spain and the rest of Europe. Established over 70 years ago, Auto Europe has remained a strong leader of the international car rental industry by offering great prices and the best service.

Airport Information

Located in the municipality of El Prat de Llobregat, Barcelona Airport (Aeropuerto Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat) is a short drive (around 15-20 minutes) to the south-west of Barcelona. Spain's second-largest airport after Madrid, it handles some 50 million passengers a year and is a major hub for the low-cost carrier Vueling Airlines, as well as being a base for Iberia, Ryanair and Air Europa.

Barcelona Airport (BCN)
Address: 08820 El Prat de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
Telephone: +34 902 40 47 04
Airlines operating at Barcelona Airport: The list of the most important airlines operating at Barcelona Airport currently includes Aegean Airlines, Aer Lingus, Air Algérie, Air Arabia, airBaltic, Air Canada, Air China, Air Europa, Air France, Air Premia, Air Serbia, Air Transat, American Airlines, Arkia, Asiana Airlines, Atlantic Airways, Austrian Airlines, Avianca Bogotá, Azerbaijan Airlines, Azores Airlines, Bluebird Airways, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Bulgaria Air, Cathay Pacific, Croatia Airlines, Cyprus Airways, Dan Air, Delta Air Lines, easyJet, Egyptair, El Al, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Eurowings, Finnair, FlyOne, HiSky, Iberia, Iberojet, Icelandair, ITA Airways, Jet2.com, KLM, Kuwait Airways, LATAM, Level, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Luxair, Middle East Airlines, Neos, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Nouvelair, Pegasus Airlines, Play, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, Ryanair, Saudia, Scandinavian Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Smartwings, SunExpress, Swiss International Air Lines, TAP Air Portugal, Transavia, Tunisair, Turkish Airlines, T'way Air, United Airlines, Volotea, Vueling, WestJet and Wizz Air.

Where to pick up a car rental at Barcelona Airport

The welcome desks of many Auto Europe's most prestigious car rental partners at BCN are located on the first-floor of terminal T1 and the ground-floor of T2. Offering a wide range of leading international and local vehicle providers, including Avis, Budget, Alamo, Enterprise, National, Europcat, Hertz, Thrifty and Sixt, we enable our customers the opportunity to take advantage of a great choice of cars available for online reservations with a few clicks of the mouse through our high-tech booking engine.

Car rental operating hours

	Avis at Barcelona Airport Arrivals Hall T1 and T2, Barcelona, Spain 08820 +34 902 10 84 95	Opening Hours: Daily 7am-midnight
	Budget at Barcelona Airport Arrivals Hall T1 and T2, Barcelona, Spain08820 +34 902 10 84 95	Opening Hours: Daily 7am-midnight
	Hertz at Barcelona Airport Arrivals Hall T1 and T2 Barcelona, Spain 08820 +39 902 01 19 59	Opening Hours: Daily 7am-midnight
	Sixt at Barcelona Airport Arrivals Hall T1 and T2 Barcelona, Spain 08820 +39 02 9475 7979	Opening Hours: Daily 8am-midnight

Terminal

Barcelona El Prat airport has two large, spacious and very stylish passenger terminals with every convenience and amenity required by the modern traveller. Designed for 55 million annual passenger movements, Terminal 1 (T1) was unveiled in 2009 and is the airport's main hub with well over 20 thousand parking spaces and over one hundred boarding gates. Terminal 2 T1) is BCN's oldest terminal but was greatly extended in 1992 for the Olympic Games which took place in the city that same year. It comprises three zones - A, B and C - and has been used by the majority of the world's largest low-cost and charter carriers since the terminal was reopened following the building's expansion and modernisation. It has 12,500 parking spaces and is connected to Terminal 1 (T1) by means of a free shuttle service every five minutes.

Airport Facilities

Barcelona Airport offers passengers a great opportunity to purchase some of the unique regional products available in and around the city and the rest of the Costa Brava region, as well many last-minute gifts for friends and family back home and tax-free items for sale in its large Duty-free stores. There are numerous on-site restaurants, cafés and bars in both terminals, in addition to a wide choice of fast-food outlets. The exact location of the airport's facilities can be found on maps available throughout the airport and at the many information stands located in both terminals. Passengers have a broad selection of other amenities at the airport, such as numerous ATMs, banks and bureaux de change in both terminals, a CaixaBank office and free Wi-Fi access throughout the entire complex (to access the Internet, just connect to the Airport Free Wi-fi Aena network). There's also a baggage-storage service, baby services and relaxation areas for children, a police station, Catholic chapel (in terminal T1) and a medical centre. As you would expect for a major international air transportation hub, BCN provides free assistance for travellers with reduced mobility.

How to get to and from Barcelona Airport

To get to the city centre with your car rental from Barcelona Airport, you can take the B-10 or the C-31, for which you should expect a journey time of around 20 to 40 minutes depending on the traffic and time of day (it's always best to avoid travelling in the morning and evening rush-hours, if possible). The C-32B motorway links the airport to a main traffic interchange between Barcelona's Ronda de Dalt ring-road and a series of inter-connecting motorways. The very popular Aerobus service (which runs every five minutes from early in the morning until very late at night) links both terminals directly with Barcelona city centre, with Line A1 serving Terminal 1 (T1) and Line A2 serving Terminal 2 (T2). Several other bus routes serve other major cities in Catalonia and Andorra while the L9S metro line also provides a link between the airport and Barcelona, although there are no stops in the heart of the city centre. An excellent and highly-efficient train service also provides quick connections between the airport and Barcelona city centre and other popular destinations every 30 minutes or so. People who prefer to travel by taxi will find taxi ranks located directly opposite Terminals 1 and 2 throughout the day and night. The city's official cabs are easily recognisable by their black and yellow paintwork and in general the journey from the airport to the city centre costs around €30-40.

Parking Tips

The fact that there are well over 20 thousand short- and long-term spaces are available at Barcelona Airport means that you won't have any parking problems when you hire a car at Barcelona-El Prat airport. Each of the two terminals has its own car park and the main car park for long-term parking is located between the two terminals for ease of access. Terminal T1 has 11,900 spaces spread over 9 floors of covered parking and terminal T2 has 12,500 spaces, 7,600 of which are in the open air.

Parking in the heart of Barcelona is a bit more challenging due to some local parking restrictions, although on-street parking is permitted in blue zones (generally for a maximum of two hours). Once you have paid for your ticket at the nearby parking meter, please display it clearly on your dashboard in order to avoid a hefty fine and the possibililty being towed away. Car parks are often a less stressful alternative to on-street parking in the city and fortunately there are many of them dotted across the inner city which, although quite pricey, often offer 24/7 security and are located close to many of Barcelona's top tourist attractions. Three such car parks exist in Gran Via, Urgell and Augusta, although there are several other options in close proximity to the Old Town and its surroundings. A convenient alternative is the city's extensive Park & Ride (P&R) network provides plenty of good parking solutions in conjunction with Barcelona's efficient public transport system included with the same ticket, such as the car parks at at Plaça Forúm, Rius i Taulet and Sant Genis i Marqués de Mulhàcen, to name a few. It's also possible to park and/or collect your car rental at Barcelona Sants Train Station in the centre of the city.

Useful links

Barcelona Airport