Barcelona HOHO vs. Public Transport

[jalynn]

We're trying to decide if we should do the ticket for the Hop On Hop Off bus or just use public transportation. We have two days and will want to see the usual highlights of the city. Any suggestions as to which would be most beneficial?

 

If HOHO, does anyone recommend one bus line over another?

 

Thanks in advance!

[travelgirlie]

I thought the HO HO was incredible and you can get a two day pass for a great price. It seems to go near every point of interest (or very close). However, when we got off to visit Parc Guell it was a tremendous hike uphill--but just for max of 15 minutes. Also, it was pretty bad since we were in a hurry to run through the park in time to come back down the hill to get the last HoHo bus for the day (and it was in August). Also, if you are not feeling energetic you can certainly take a taxi up the hill instead of the hike. I hope that this helps. I do have the name of the bus--I think it is the Tourista bus, but I will check and post again if I do not have the correct name. Have a great trip! You will love Barcelona:D

[ab0si]

It depends on your travel style. If you want get from point A to B to C to .. as quickly as possible, then the normal public transportation is the way to go. If you want to wander around and see the city in general, the Barcelona Bus Turistic is fine. The bus can get extremely crowded in high season, which means, if you are unlucky, sometimes having to wait for the next bus or the one after that.

 

My wife loves HoHo buses and thinks Barcelona's is one of the best. I prefer to use public transportation and walk. We are both right -- different travel styles.

[jalynn]

Would I be correct in assuming that the HOHO would stop closer to the major sights than the Metro?

[ab0si]

Would I be correct in assuming that the HOHO would stop closer to the major sights than the Metro?

 

Yes, that is correct. However, the normal buses stop closer than the Bus Turistic to Park Güell and several other places.

 

If for some reason, you are comparing the HoHo bus to ONLY the metro, though, you are quite correct.

[cruisemom42]

The problem I had with the HOHO in Barcelona is that it gets very crowded. If you get off to see something, you may have to wait for 3-4 buses before you can get back on. Not an efficient use of time if you only have limited sightseeing opportunities.

[jalynn]

Thanks again for the input. It's all appreciated.

[riffatsea]

We bought a T-10 card which is good for 10 rides on either metro or bus.

It can be shared so if there are 2 people then each would get 5 rides.

We found it easy to take the city bus#24 to Parc Guell . It stops right AT the park entrance so no need to walk uphill at all!

We took it back and then walked easily to Sagrada Familia and the other Gaudi houses(La Pedrada and Casa Batlo)

On another day we took bus #50,which goes along the Gran Via and then up to Montjuic. I like buses better than metro in a strange city because you get to see more of the city.

We thought the T-10 card was a good value.There are ticket machines in each metro station. We also found that taxis were not expensive, easy to find , and quite reliable!

[riffatsea]

SORRY, forgot to say that the card cost 7.70 euro. The machine will give you change.

[travelgirlie]

The Ho Ho bus ticket for 2 days is 21E. Also, the 10 trip bus ticket also allows you to take the cable car from Barceloneta to Montjuic. If you go to Barceloneta and want to dine I can recommend Carpe Diem--if you do not want to dine, make sure you go to take pics and sit outside-have a drink and enjoy the view. You won't be disappointed. Check the place out online. I did not do the cable car last time but I certainly will next week! I was in Barcelona in August last trip and never had to wait for a 2nd bus. I am sure that needs to be taken into consideration. Maybe I was just lucky in prime season.:D

[travelgirlie]

The Ho Ho bus ticket for 2 days is 21E. Also, the 10 trip bus ticket also allows you to take the cable car from Barceloneta to Montjuic. If you go to Barceloneta and want to dine I can recommend Carpe Diem--if you do not want to dine, make sure you go to take pics and sit outside-have a drink and enjoy the view. You won't be disappointed. Check the place out online. I did not do the cable car last time but I certainly will next week! I was in Barcelona in August last trip and never had to wait for a 2nd bus. I am sure that needs to be taken into consideration. Maybe I was just lucky in prime season.:D

 

So sorry--I misunderstood what I read. The T10 card does not cover the cable car to Montjuic (called transbordador) that will cost 9e one way and 12.5 E r/t. If you decide to take it to Montjuic, you can then hop the funicular which can be paid for with the T10 card (my apologies) It would be the Estacio funicular that takes you to Paral.lel metro station. I hope I didn't through you off base. :rolleyes: ENJOY

[SmokinActuary]

The problem I had with the HOHO in Barcelona is that it gets very crowded. If you get off to see something, you may have to wait for 3-4 buses before you can get back on. Not an efficient use of time if you only have limited sightseeing opportunities.

 

I am going to in Barcelona for 4 days before my cruise and I am still going to use the metro because I too am concerned about the crowds on the bus.

[schoolinmy3]

We will be in Barcelona for one day as a port day on May 22, a Saturday. We are a family of 5. How crowded do you think the HOHO buses will be on that day? Also, for a family of 5 (19yo, 17yo and 10yo) what would be the most cost effective way to see the city?:)

Thanks!

Diane

[tom_uk]

We were in barcelona on a cruise for a day in 2005, we used one of the HOHO buses and I have to say we hated it. We found the following problems:-

 

a) the buses could get very crowded;

b) waiting at the stops could be chaotic. The bus routes are colour-coded (Red & Blue, IIRC) and in some cases a stop handles more than one route. So when a bus hoved into view there would be great confusion while people were waiting to see which colour it was, and the queues would be surging back and forwards. Not pleasant;

c) on the open top it got very hot at times. Many of the streets in Barcelona are wide boulevards, so the open-top buses had no shade;

d) long waits at odd spots to keep to the timetable; e.g. a 15-minute wait at Barcelona station, in the sun;

e) a lot of the time while transiting between locations there wasn't actually a lot to see....

 

Later in the day we switched to the Metro, and found this to be much, much better. The electronic ticket machines can be set to display in English, the trains & stations are air-conditioned, and we found the service quick, clean and efficient. We'll be using the Metro when we go back in May.

[schoolinmy3]

We were in barcelona on a cruise for a day in 2005, we used one of the HOHO buses and I have to say we hated it.

Later in the day we switched to the Metro, and found this to be much, much better. The electronic ticket machines can be set to display in English, the trains & stations are air-conditioned, and we found the service quick, clean and efficient. We'll be using the Metro when we go back in May.

 

Thank you, that was very helpful. I think we will be using the Metro. If the buses are crowded squeezing the five of us in isn't going to be making it any easier.

diane

[Turtles06]

We're trying to decide if we should do the ticket for the Hop On Hop Off bus or just use public transportation. We have two days and will want to see the usual highlights of the city. Any suggestions as to which would be most beneficial?

 

If HOHO, does anyone recommend one bus line over another?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

When are you going to be there? The HOHO buses run far less frequently during the winter than they do in the high season, a major reason we opted not to take one when we were there in January. We didn't want to spend half an hour waiting for a bus... (I believe you can check the schedules on line.)

 

We used the Metro, which we found to be incredibly easy to get around on. As a poster above says, the T1 card is a great value. Two people can share it. If you haven't found this web site yet, it's a great resource for info on Barcelona, including how to get around the city (and how to use the Metro):

 

http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/en/maps/barcelona-metro-map.html

 

I do like buses for giving you an introduction to a new city, it just didn't seem like the right thing to do in January.

 

Have a great trip!