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Platform at Plaça Catalunya station in Barcelona with a train at the platform

Barcelona Card or Hola Barcelona Travel Card: which is cheaper for your trip

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The Hola Barcelona Travel Card costs €18.70 for 48 hours, the Barcelona Card €39.00. We work out when the extra cost is worth it and when a plain public transport ticket is enough.

In short: if you only take the metro and bus in Barcelona, you do not need a Barcelona Card. The Hola Barcelona Travel Card costs €18.70 regularly for 48 hours, the Barcelona Card €39.00 (as of 6 Oct 2026). Admissions have to earn back the difference of €20.30. Whether that works for your trip is shown by the Barcelona Card calculator.

The prices side by side

We calculate with the regular prices, and for the Barcelona Card with the price at the ticket provider Tiqets, where you can book. The Hola Barcelona Travel Card is also available for one day, the Barcelona Card only from 48 hours. The Hola card is 10% cheaper online, and those prices are in the last column.

DurationHola regularBarcelona Card regularDifferenceHola online
24 hours€12.50not availablen/a€11.25
48 hours€18.70€39.00€20.30€16.83
72 hours€27.30€59.00€31.70€24.57
96 hours€35.60€69.00€33.40€32.04
120 hours€43.60€79.00€35.40€39.24

What the two cards include

  • Hola Barcelona Travel Card: TMB metro and bus, NitBus, Montjuïc funicular, FGC, tram and Rodalies in zone 1. Plus one outbound and one return metro trip between the airport and the city. No admissions.
  • Barcelona Card: metro, bus, tram and Rodalies in zone 1, Montjuïc funicular and the journey to the airport by metro and train. Night buses are not included, and the issuer does not name the FGC lines. Plus free admissions and discounts.
  • Children: with the Hola Barcelona Travel Card, children under 4 travel free. With the Barcelona Card, children under 3 are free, and from 4 to 12 there is a child price.

If you only travel

Then the Hola Barcelona Travel Card is always cheaper than the Barcelona Card. For 72 hours you pay €31.70 more for the Barcelona Card, for 120 hours €35.40.

An example for two days: to the airport and back, plus 6 trips in the city. If you take the Rodalies R2 Nord train to the airport, the T-casual is valid for that too. According to the ATM transport authority, all integrated tickets are valid on the Rodalies network up to the airport. Then one T-casual (€13.00 for 10 trips) covers all 8 trips and is cheaper than the Hola Barcelona Travel Card (€18.70).

If you take the metro L9 Sud, the T-casual is not valid at the airport stations. Then you need two airport tickets at €5.90 each and pay €24.80 with the T-casual for the city trips, or €29.20 with single tickets (€2.90). Here the Hola Barcelona Travel Card at €18.70 comes out ahead, as it includes one outbound and one return metro trip to the airport.

In short: if you manage with at most 10 trips in two days and go to the airport by train instead of metro, the T-casual for €13.00 is cheaper than the 48-hour Hola card (€18.70).

When the Barcelona Card comes out ahead

As soon as your free admissions cost more than the difference in the table. For 48 hours that is €20.30. MNAC, Castell de Montjuïc, Fundació Joan Miró and CaixaForum cost €47.00 together. With these four admissions you save €26.70 with the Barcelona Card. How many admissions you need for each option is covered in the article Is the Barcelona Card worth it?.

If you mainly plan the Sagrada Família and Park Güell, the Barcelona Card does not help you. There is no benefit for either. You can find more on the alternatives under alternatives to the Barcelona Card.

Difference in validity

The Hola Barcelona Travel Card is valid in hours from the first validation. According to the issuer's shop, the Barcelona Card is valid for consecutive days and not for 24-hour periods, even though the options there are called 48 to 120 hours. The day of first use then counts in full, even if you only start in the afternoon. The older card page barcelonacard.com still states 24-hour periods from first use. The terms shown to you at purchase are what counts. If you use the card early on the first day, you are on the safe side in both cases.

Work out my trip

Frequently asked questions

Do I also need the Hola Barcelona Travel Card with the Barcelona Card?

No, not for most trips. The Barcelona Card includes metro, bus, tram and Rodalies in zone 1. Night buses are not included, and the issuer does not name the FGC lines.

How much does the Hola Barcelona Travel Card cost?

The regular price is €12.50 for 24 hours, €18.70 for 48, €27.30 for 72, €35.60 for 96 and €43.60 for 120 hours. Online it is 10% less (as of 6 Oct 2026).

Is the Hola Barcelona Travel Card cheaper for children?

No. TMB does not list a separate child price, the shop sells the card at one price only. Only children under 4 travel free (as of 29 Oct 2026).

Sources

Prices can change. Admission and card prices change, sometimes at short notice. We check admission prices at the official source and card prices with the ticket provider you book through. We show the date for every price and check all prices again once a month. The price shown to you at checkout is always the one that applies. If you spot an outdated price, let us know at info@citycardcheck.com.

Data source: Barcelona Card prices at the ticket provider Tiqets, where you can book (checked on 6 Oct 2026), single prices of the attractions from our price database (as of 24 Sep 2026, rechecked on 6 Oct 2026). Hola Barcelona Travel Card on holabarcelona.com and in the TMB fare catalogue (24 hours checked on 6 Oct 2026, 48 to 120 hours on 3 Oct 2026). TMB single trip, airport ticket and T-casual on tmb.cat and atm.cat, checked on 6 Oct 2026.

Photo: Pere Jurado / Unsplash

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