My dad is a huge FC Barcelona fan and this year I finally want to take him to a game of theirs on their home turf. The possible dates are september 20 and october 25
There is only one budget airline running a direct flight between budapest and barcelona, and the problem with them (beside that I havent flown with a low budget airline yet so I dont know how much of a hassle that is) is that altough we could arrive with them on saturday, we could only leave on tuesday (in both cases). That would raise accomodation costs but of course would also give plenty of time for touristy stuff
viamichelin.com says it would take around 18 hours and about 360 euros with a car, one way.
the Hungarian airline runs to Madrid daily, that is an option for October, it seems rail connection between madrid and barcelona cost about 100 euros per trip which is sorta okay except for that I dont know how hard it is to navigate between the airports and the train stations.
In general, I dont know how easy it is to use the spanish mass transit system.
And I dont have the faintest idea about where to sleep yet.
So any feedback would be very welcome. Spainards to my rescue!
My experience with budget airlines is that they are generally ok (especially for short trips like yours), except for one thing. Timeliness. Because they have so few spare aircraft and crew, and they rely on very tight schedules, any mishap will cause a chain reaction of delays. So you probably need to build some buffer into your schedule.
The other thing is, have you considered a connected flight to a place other than Spain, e.g. fly from Budapest to, say, Paris, and from Paris to Barcelona? Connected flights generally involve less hassle than changing from airports to train stations, if that's your concern. Avoid Rome if you can, though (it's a mess).
Regarding travelling from Budapest to Barcelona, I can but support what Mono says: cheap airlines usually are good enough - barely IMHO - while everything goes OK, but the moment anything fails a nasty chain reaction follows. Not good if you have a tight schedule.
Some comments:
- Both Vueling and Wizz Air are supposed to flight Budapest-Barcelona.
- If you flight to Madrid, you haver another option, to flight MAD-BCN (Iberia operates an 'air bridge' with at least one flight every hour, and other airlines add many more; there are literally more than 100 daily flights between the two cities). The train will probably be cheaper, however, and being a high-speed link it could be faster too.
- I would suppose navigating our mass transit systems is quite easy (after all we receive many millions of tourists) but being Spaniard myself I would prefer other Languishites to offer their experiences.
About Barcelona, I think a native will know far more than me (I'm from Madrid) but Gaudí's buildings are a must, specially so the famous 'Sagrada Familia' cathedral, and a true Languishite shouldn't miss the opportunity to see the reconstructed galley of don Juan de Austria in the Maritime Museum, built following the original plans; my visit dates from 25-30 years ago but it remember it was an impressive sight.
Fly on Air France.
I flew Budapest - Barcelona last year on Clickair (Vueling nowadays), so you shouldn't have problems finding a direct route. Going via Madrid seems to be an extra hustle that can be easily avoided.
Just checked: With Vueling it's 200€ per person for the first weekend you said, and 170€ for the second.
Quote from: Alatriste on August 24, 2009, 04:28:18 AM
Regarding travelling from Budapest to Barcelona, I can but support what Mono says: cheap airlines usually are good enough - barely IMHO - while everything goes OK, but the moment anything fails a nasty chain reaction follows. Not good if you have a tight schedule.
Some comments:
- Both Vueling and Wizz Air are supposed to flight Budapest-Barcelona.
- If you flight to Madrid, you haver another option, to flight MAD-BCN (Iberia operates an 'air bridge' with at least one flight every hour, and other airlines add many more; there are literally more than 100 daily flights between the two cities). The train will probably be cheaper, however, and being a high-speed link it could be faster too.
- I would suppose navigating our mass transit systems is quite easy (after all we receive many millions of tourists) but being Spaniard myself I would prefer other Languishites to offer their experiences.
About Barcelona, I think a native will know far more than me (I'm from Madrid) but Gaudí's buildings are a must, specially so the famous 'Sagrada Familia' cathedral, and a true Languishite shouldn't miss the opportunity to see the reconstructed galley of don Juan de Austria in the Maritime Museum, built following the original plans; my visit dates from 25-30 years ago but it remember it was an impressive sight.
As a tourist i don't recall Don Juan's galley, but Columbus St maria caravel was there.
The "Rambla?" is also nice for tourists there are some good museums if you are into paintings, a very good chance of some good bars and restaurants and for Gaudi I'd say go for a tour and see his other buildings, they are in many ways more "accessible" than the cathedral.. though its been 10+ years since i was last there.
V
Quote from: Valdemar on August 24, 2009, 06:22:09 AM
As a tourist i don't recall Don Juan's galley, but Columbus St maria caravel was there.
The "Rambla?" is also nice for tourists there are some good museums if you are into paintings, a very good chance of some good bars and restaurants and for Gaudi I'd say go for a tour and see his other buildings, they are in many ways more "accessible" than the cathedral.. though its been 10+ years since i was last there.
V
I don't know if the 'Santa Maria' is still there - IIRC it cought fire some years ago, like 'Cutty Shark' - but the 'Real' has never left dockyard. And she's a real beauty!
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fes.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FArchivo%3AMuseu_Maritim_fg01.jpg&hash=e563eedcdedecf78d586b3a3d1136b68b18ab86e)
If you find a torrent for it Tamas, look up Rick Steves Barcelona show.
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/spain/498barce.htm
It will be the 25th of October, it is now sure. We are planning on staying for Monday as well so we can have most of Sunday and Monday for sightseeing, and my mother is coming as well, which is nice because I want them to get used to flying and have them actually go on holidays for their own good.
Anyways that means if anyone will be there during those days and want to have a beer, I can leave the others behind and meet him. :)
I will later look for some accomodation and post the info here for comments.
The Gothic quarter is a nice place to wander around.
If you like art, the Picasso museum is worth going to see but it's very touristy, best time to visit would probably be in the late afternoon.
All the Gaudi stuff is interesting, the park (Parc Guell) being my favourite of his things.
The museum of the History of Catalonia is also worth visiting.
Have some Spanish Tapas while you are there :)
Make sure to study the rules for baggage limits. IIRC Ryan Air charges extra for checking luggage, so you'd probably be best off with hand luggage only (and remind your dad not to pack fluid in too large containers and scissors).
Watch Barcelona and L'Auberge Espanol, particularly Barcelona.
I am thinking about "Hotel Eurostars Mitre" as a place to stay. Far from being the cheapest or the most expensive, it does not seem to be so far away from the city center either. Could one of you spanish guys be kind enough to google it for reviews? there is a ton but I can't translate. :P
Also the flight is a hard decision: Malév, the national airways go to madrid quite cheaply, if we go from saturday until tuesday. judging by google maps, the Barcelona airport is very near to their railway junction so I dont think it would be much more hassle once we arrive there.
But of course we would need to arrive there first, and Vueling goes straight there, altough only a little bit cheaper, and we would need to stay until wednesday.
Okay here is an other problem:
It SEEMS that you can buy tickets on fcbarcelona.com. It is cheaper, obviously, but also its a "print your own ticket" kind of stuff which is clearly superior to the "fedex will bring it to your hotel one day prior to the game" stuff of the agency.
BUT! I cant get into any match past 30th of September. Questions:
-would it be normal that they are not selling tickets for that yet?
-anyone knows an e-mail address to ask the website? :P
Quote from: Tamas on August 25, 2009, 07:59:31 AM
I am thinking about "Hotel Eurostars Mitre" as a place to stay. Far from being the cheapest or the most expensive, it does not seem to be so far away from the city center either. Could one of you spanish guys be kind enough to google it for reviews? there is a ton but I can't translate. :P
Also the flight is a hard decision: Malév, the national airways go to madrid quite cheaply, if we go from saturday until tuesday. judging by google maps, the Barcelona airport is very near to their railway junction so I dont think it would be much more hassle once we arrive there.
But of course we would need to arrive there first, and Vueling goes straight there, altough only a little bit cheaper, and we would need to stay until wednesday.
I'd go straight into Barcelona, I doubt that the money you'd save by going to Madrid instead would offset the cost of having to travel again to Barcelona, either by plane or train.
As for the hotel, apparently it's a nice one, located in a residential area with not much around but nearby a metro station, and from there it's a couple of line changes until the city center. People complain of breakfast being expensive.
As for the tickets, it seems that only september games have them available. Maybe you'll have to wait.
Thank you!
Yes it seems we will wait until we can buy the ticket directly from the webpage
Expose yourself at the train station in Barcelona... i've seen it done before and it's very exciting.
Whatever you do, try to avoid SkyEurope when flying. They're basically sinking into chaos. A colleague spent 9 hours trying to get from Sofia to Vienna (flight time normally one hour), because the flight was delayed, SkyEurope can't land in Vienna anymore because of unpaid airport taxes and she had to go via Bratislava instead with a borrowed plane of "Dubrovnik Air" or some such that reminded her of the old Soviet days. Her luggage went to Vienna airport, though, so she had to pick it up there.
Due to various concerns, mostly that all the opposition before that time suck sweaty donkey balls, I have purchased the tickets for:
Barcelona-Valencia in March. Manage to buy two expensive tickets about the edge of the expensive zone, slightly above the corner flag, will be excellent to see players up close, less excellent to follow the game itself.
And the other thing is, the regular airline to Madrid is cheaper than the the budget airlines to Barcelona, so can anyone give me any pointers where to look for train and bus rides between madrid and barcelona?
One tip, at least from scandinavia, it's cheapest to fly to alicante or malaga and then on to your actual location from there.
Girona has also an airport if I'm not mistaken. And Girona is not that far from Barcelona.
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 06:31:32 AM
And the other thing is, the regular airline to Madrid is cheaper than the the budget airlines to Barcelona, so can anyone give me any pointers where to look for train and bus rides between madrid and barcelona?
For the nth time, I don't think that's really cost effective. It's not that expensive to fly to Barcelona itself, and even less if you book so long in advance.
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 08:22:07 AM
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 06:31:32 AM
And the other thing is, the regular airline to Madrid is cheaper than the the budget airlines to Barcelona, so can anyone give me any pointers where to look for train and bus rides between madrid and barcelona?
For the nth time, I don't think that's really cost effective. It's not that expensive to fly to Barcelona itself, and even less if you book so long in advance.
Well, but it would be about 270 euros per person (for the roundtrip) and this means arriving possibly on the day of the game, and staying until Tuesday (game will take place either on saturday or sunday).
The regular airline's Madrid trip costs 130 euros per person, and can arrive on friday and leave on monday.
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 08:34:31 AM
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 08:22:07 AM
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 06:31:32 AM
And the other thing is, the regular airline to Madrid is cheaper than the the budget airlines to Barcelona, so can anyone give me any pointers where to look for train and bus rides between madrid and barcelona?
For the nth time, I don't think that's really cost effective. It's not that expensive to fly to Barcelona itself, and even less if you book so long in advance.
Well, but it would be about 270 euros per person (for the roundtrip) and this means arriving possibly on the day of the game, and staying until Tuesday (game will take place either on saturday or sunday).
The regular airline's Madrid trip costs 130 euros per person, and can arrive on friday and leave on monday.
Adding the train train ticket would be upwards of 100€ per person, so you're not really saving much by going to Madrid. Bus would be around 50€, in a longer and way more incomfortable trip. Personally, I don't think that the amount you'd save is worth the hustle of having to do this additional transfer, even moreso if you're having your parents on tow.
But riding trains is fun!
Things are moving fast: I already knew that my mom probably will not be able to make this march date due to work comitments but she did not mind it, was not that fond on coming.
HOWEVER, viamichelin sez that the app. cost of a car trip, back-and-forth would not be much more expensive than the combined cost of airplane tickets for two.
So, we will be going by car, and my sister and his boyfriend will be joining us. They frowned upon the combined costs of match ticket, travel and hotel, but getting a free ride changed their minds. :D My mom will accompany us (but not coming to the match) optionally.
Great!
So all is left is to find a suitable hotel, more or less on the outskirts of the city so the car can be left there easily, we plan on using mass transit for touristy stuff, instead of struggling with a car in an unknown city. But I have plenty of time to solve that question.
Thank you all for the helpful tips. :)
Attached, is fcbarcelona.com's example of the view from the sector the 4 of us will be sitting at.
You plan on travelling from Hungary to Spain by car with the whole family? You're nuts.
You're going to DRIVE 2000km from Budapest to Barcelona?
Maybe you just go with a Gypsy caravan
Quote from: DisturbedPervert on September 14, 2009, 11:23:42 AM
You're going to DRIVE 2000km from Budapest to Barcelona?
Maybe you just go with a Gypsy caravan
*pre-orders the AAR*
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 11:10:55 AM
You plan on travelling from Hungary to Spain by car with the whole family? You're nuts.
Why? there will be two drivers, a sweeping majority of the route on motorways. I did my Italy trip alone with no problems.
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 11:25:54 AM
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 11:10:55 AM
You plan on travelling from Hungary to Spain by car with the whole family? You're nuts.
Why? there will be two drivers, a sweeping majority of the route on motorways. I did my Italy trip alone with no problems.
Well, I wouldn't do it either, but I guess that's because both Larchie and I don't like driving. I certainly know one of my brothers would refuse to travel from Madrid to Barcelona - not to mention longer trips - if he wasn't allowed to drive his own car all the way. Of course he loves driving... and besides he smokes like a chimney, something he can't do in a train or a plane.
Quote from: Alatriste on September 14, 2009, 12:12:39 PM
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 11:25:54 AM
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 11:10:55 AM
You plan on travelling from Hungary to Spain by car with the whole family? You're nuts.
Why? there will be two drivers, a sweeping majority of the route on motorways. I did my Italy trip alone with no problems.
Well, I wouldn't do it either, but I guess that's because both Larchie and I don't like driving. I certainly know one of my brothers would refuse to travel from Madrid to Barcelona - not to mention longer trips - if he wasn't allowed to drive his own car all the way. Of course he loves driving... and besides he smokes like a chimney, something he can't do in a train or a plane.
Well probably we will stop along the way to check something along the way, we will have 6 months to organize that.
But if I could drive 900 kilometers, a third of it on mountain country roads, I can drive 1000kms on motorways.
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 11:25:54 AM
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 11:10:55 AM
You plan on travelling from Hungary to Spain by car with the whole family? You're nuts.
Why? there will be two drivers, a sweeping majority of the route on motorways. I did my Italy trip alone with no problems.
That made sense because there was no clear alternative, here you have a clear cut and faster alternative.
Quote from: Alatriste on September 14, 2009, 12:12:39 PM
Quote from: Tamas on September 14, 2009, 11:25:54 AM
Quote from: The Larch on September 14, 2009, 11:10:55 AM
You plan on travelling from Hungary to Spain by car with the whole family? You're nuts.
Why? there will be two drivers, a sweeping majority of the route on motorways. I did my Italy trip alone with no problems.
Well, I wouldn't do it either, but I guess that's because both Larchie and I don't like driving. I certainly know one of my brothers would refuse to travel from Madrid to Barcelona - not to mention longer trips - if he wasn't allowed to drive his own car all the way. Of course he loves driving... and besides he smokes like a chimney, something he can't do in a train or a plane.
I don't mind driving long distances in certain trips, although I certainly don't enjoy it. It just seems like a colossal waste of time and a really tiring thing to do.
What I don't enjoy is driving in a city. Otherwise I love driving so I am actually looking forward to this 2k long trip.
Alright, the insane family undertaking of doing this cartrip is being planned.
I have found a quite well-positioned hotel with reasonable prices in the city.
Considering we will drive throuh Italy coming from Slovenia (and proceeding on the highways in a more or less straight western line), can any of you people recall a particular town to stop by for a night's sleep?
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 04:54:06 AM
Alright, the insane family undertaking of doing this cartrip is being planned.
I have found a quite well-positioned hotel with reasonable prices in the city.
Considering we will drive throuh Italy coming from Slovenia (and proceeding on the highways in a more or less straight western line), can any of you people recall a particular town to stop by for a night's sleep?
I assume you'll follow the route Trieste > Padova > Brescia > Piacenza > Genova > Cote d'Azur: so you should stop in Padova and have a nice round of beer with me :w00t:
To follow more closely your route, though, your better choice would be to stop in Genova or surroundings, almost mid-way to Barcelona: http://www.turismo.comune.genova.it/spip.php?lang=en (http://www.turismo.comune.genova.it/spip.php?lang=en); or you can proceed further and stop in Bordighera, a nice small town by the sea, near the France border: http://www.bordighera.it/international/english (http://www.bordighera.it/international/english)
L.
I will check how close will go to Padova! :w00t:
But do you think we can make it to the Genoa area in one day?
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 05:35:17 AM
I will check how close will go to Padova! :w00t:
But do you think we can make it to the Genoa area in one day?
From Trieste to Genoa it's 540 kms, Bordighera is another 100 kms towards France methinks. I don't know the distance from your living area to Trieste, tell me how many kms you'd want to drive per day and i'll suggest you other places to stay.
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on February 01, 2010, 05:40:13 AM
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 05:35:17 AM
I will check how close will go to Padova! :w00t:
But do you think we can make it to the Genoa area in one day?
From Trieste to Genoa it's 540 kms, Bordighera is another 100 kms towards France methinks. I don't know the distance from your living area to Trieste, tell me how many kms you'd want to drive per day and i'll suggest you other places to stay.
L.
From our town to Trieste is 500kms, so yeah Genoa, even Bordighera looks doable. Basically we want to cover the whole trip in two days, ie. we want to arrive to Barcelona on the second evening/night.
500kms is like what 40 miles, shouldn't be a problem.
:P
Don't forget we're talking italian traffic, so 500 kms is like two thousand nightmarish miles ;)
L.
I suggest Genova, from there you should be able to reach Barcelona in the evening of the second day: I did it many years ago without problems.
or else, you should stop in Montecarlo! :domperignon:
L.
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 04:54:06 AMI have found a quite well-positioned hotel with reasonable prices in the city.
Hopefully not in the Raval area, right? :ph34r:
Quote from: The Larch on February 01, 2010, 07:15:18 AM
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 04:54:06 AMI have found a quite well-positioned hotel with reasonable prices in the city.
Hopefully not in the Raval area, right? :ph34r:
http://www.venere.com/hotels/barcelona/hotel-acta-splendid/?ref=33264#information;swa20100313,20100315,5,2
:ph34r: ?
Good location, very centric. I hope it has a garage.
Quote from: The Larch on February 01, 2010, 07:30:51 AM
I hope it has a garage.
They have a 20 euros per day parking thingie.
Tamas, why not just drive straight through to Barcelona?
If it is only 1000km, and assuming you can get on divided highways all the way, that's very doable. It means a lot more time actually in Barcelona. And at least for the Italian part of the drive I found the Autostrada to be very fast moving.
Heck - 2-3 years ago I drove with my wife and my parents the 1300kms from Calgary to Winnipeg in one day - in winter...
He's travelling with his mom IIRC. Her magic spells weaken if she doesn't get her rest.
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 07:23:10 AM
http://www.venere.com/hotels/barcelona/hotel-acta-splendid/?ref=33264#information;swa20100313,20100315,5,2
:ph34r: ?
Almost $300 per night. I think I'd look for a Gypsy caravan to stay with.
Quote from: Barrister on February 01, 2010, 01:52:47 PM
Tamas, why not just drive straight through to Barcelona?
If it is only 1000km, and assuming you can get on divided highways all the way, that's very doable. It means a lot more time actually in Barcelona. And at least for the Italian part of the drive I found the Autostrada to be very fast moving.
Heck - 2-3 years ago I drove with my wife and my parents the 1300kms from Calgary to Winnipeg in one day - in winter...
Read again Councillor, there is 1000+ to Genoa/Italian border, another 1000-1200 to Barcelona from there
V
I see.
And while I have done a 24 hr straight drive, I also swore to never, ever do it again. :yuk:
Yeah its 2000kms. If I could seriously believe that for example, I could get just a hint of rest while my father was driving, or vice versa, I would consider doing it but a small SUV with 5 people? That's not going to happen.
Plus this way altough we will still have skip any sightseeing in Italy (or the visit to Pedrito :( ), we would be able to appreciate the actual trip a bit more.
Speaking of long cartrips, I may very well drive to Verdun this year, maybe as soon as late April. Will open a new thread about that in due time. :D
If you did it in 2011 the Barrister clan might even join you. :ph34r:
you'll be taking a baby on a long ass car trip, you have more cajones or less braincells than i thought.
Quote from: Barrister on February 01, 2010, 02:26:57 PM
If you did it in 2011 the Barrister clan might even join you. :ph34r:
I heard 2010 in 2009 from you, mister :P But you decided to establish a clan instead :P
Quote from: Tamas on February 01, 2010, 02:23:30 PM
Speaking of long cartrips, I may very well drive to Verdun this year, maybe as soon as late April. Will open a new thread about that in due time. :D
Colour me interested :) I have never been there actually :Embarrass:
Quote from: Ed Anger on August 24, 2009, 07:54:00 AM
If you find a torrent for it Tamas, look up Rick Steves Barcelona show.
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/spain/498barce.htm
:XD:
Quote from: Razgovory on February 02, 2010, 07:27:18 AM
Quote from: Ed Anger on August 24, 2009, 07:54:00 AM
If you find a torrent for it Tamas, look up Rick Steves Barcelona show.
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/spain/498barce.htm
:XD:
I missed the joke.
Pedrito's suggestion was excellent in the way that there are tons of hotels in that region, not many of them has webpages and/or e-mail addresses however, and those who do keep refusing me! :ultra:
I guess they are not big on having us for a single night. I am still awaiting one answer, but...
I have been trying to find some stop-over motorway hotels so we could plan advance but so far no luck whatsoever.