Barcelona Public Transportation

There is so much about the public transportation system in Barcelona that I learned later on in my trip. If you are studying in Barcelona for at least three months, which means all the students studying for the semester, you need to know some things. 

If you are in Barcelona for a semester, then you will be there for just about 4 months. Here is what I would recommend doing. Get a T-usual card for one zone from the very beginning. A zone is a set area within Barcelona. Zone one will cover most of the city center, including the airport. This card gets you unlimited rides for 1 month. After this card expires, then you should get the T-joven card.

The T-joven card is what most students got. It is a card for people under the age of 25 and it gives you unlimited rides for three months on all buses, metros, rail lines, trams, and I think even the red bicycles around the city, but you will have to double check that. 

To get the T-joven metro card, there are some things you should know. First of all, you will need to book an appointment online to get it. If you have trouble you can go into the offices but they will just show you how to do it online. There are a few offices around Barcelona, inside the metro station. So you will need to get a ticket to enter. I asked how to do it one morning on my way to class so I wouldn’t need to make an extra trip. When you go to the appointment you should just need your passport and Barcelona address. I am not sure what the price will be in the future as online it says it will change. But overall it was a quick process. Then you get a green card that you keep and can refill if needed near the end of the semester.  

You could get a T-casual(this gives you 10 rides) then make an appointment to get your t-joven, but you will still have to get a month pass for the last leg of your trip. So it would just be better to start your trip with the T-usual.  

There are some things you need to know before the T-joven card expires. You have access to travel in all six zones. This can get you to places like Sitges and Montserrat. The six zones cover a wide area so before you buy a ticket check to see if it is within this area. A simple ‘what zone is this city in’ works pretty well as a quick google search. If it is not within one of the six zones it won’t give an easy answer. But if it is, it should display the answer at the top. I know many of us bought separate train tickets to travel around, simply because we did not know how much access we had already. So save yourself some cash and enjoy all the access you have.

Safe travels!