Private Tours and Shore Excursions in Barcelona

Walking, driving, bike and day trips, each private and each covering different ground, starting wherever your day does: at your ship’s terminal, your hotel or the airport, for a day in port or for every day you have in Barcelona.

Back at the ship at least an hour before all-aboard
Since 2003, not one client has missed a ship
All your days planned together, nothing seen twice
Luggage planned for in advance, so you and your bags fit on the day
A driver and a guide on every city driving tour

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From a Day in Port to Several Days in Barcelona

Barcelona Experience, a fully licensed travel agency, runs private walking, driving and bike tours and day trips into Catalonia, for cruise passengers and anyone spending one day or several in Barcelona. Multi-day stays are planned and coordinated as one itinerary, and city driving tours come with a driver and a guide. On a port day the tour ends at the ship at least one hour before all-aboard; since 2003, no client has missed a ship.

Four Ways to See Barcelona and Beyond

What sets the four apart is how you travel, on foot, by car or by bike, and each suits a different part of the city and beyond. Choose one, or mix them: a bike ride in the morning and the old city on foot after lunch, or a drive up to the viewpoints and then a walk through the Gothic Quarter, in a single day or across several.

Private Driving Tours

The viewpoints and the sights spread across the city that are hard to reach any other way, Montjuïc, Park Güell and Tibidabo among them, door to door and with the least effort, and on a transfer day the car carries your luggage too.

From €690 per group

Private Walking Tours

The Gothic Quarter, El Born and the rest of the old city, where cars and bikes cannot go, and Passeig de Gràcia, which is best seen on foot.

From €350 per group

Private Bike Tours

Much of what a car reaches, plus the waterfront, the beaches, the parks and the neighbourhoods it cannot. City rides and e-bike tours are relaxed and suit almost anyone who can ride; private MTB tours take the trails outside the city.

From €260 per group

Private Day Trips

Montserrat and the destinations beyond Barcelona, a full day out with your guide and private transport, on a stay or on a long port day when the start time and the ship’s last call allow it.

€1,090 per group

Staying Several Days

When you have several days, we plan them together from the start, so each day goes to the ground it suits and none goes over ground another has covered: the old city on foot one morning, the waterfront by bike, a drive to Montjuïc and Tibidabo, a full day out to Montserrat.

Before or after a cruise, the first day can start at your ship’s terminal with your luggage aboard and end at your hotel, and the last can run the other way, finishing at the ship or the airport. If your ship stays overnight in port, both days are planned from the same berth, with the hour before all-aboard kept on the day it sails.

A written plan for every day, with its order and its timings, reaches you before you travel. The price is the sum of the tours at their published rates, with each day’s length set by the final plan, and the price we quote is the price you pay.

Your Port Day

The day is planned backwards from all-aboard, so everything you want to see fits the time you have ashore.

Timing

Met at your terminal at the agreed time
15 to 25 minutes from the port into the city centre, depending on traffic and terminal
Realistic timings for each stop, with room left for traffic and strikes
Walking and bike tours can start in the city, a taxi ride or a long walk from the ship, at a lower price
Back at the ship an hour or more before you need to be on board
If your list is longer than your window allows, we say so while you are still planning

Driver and guide

Your guide leaves the car with you at every stop
The car is waiting where you finish
No pickups to arrange and no phone calls to make during your day
We do not offer a car with a driver alone

Transfer days with luggage

The number and size of bags per person, asked for before the day
A vehicle sized to your party and its luggage
If it will not all fit, the options set out in advance: a second vehicle for the bags, or the hotel first

Why Book With Us

We have all agreed that our time in Barcelona was delightful due to your very expert and professional service. None of the tours from the ship were as enjoyable and as informative as yours. — Jean H., California

Local knowledge since 2003 It is where the realistic timings, the quick lunch stops and the room left for traffic and strikes come from.
Quick, clear answers in native English Questions on WhatsApp are answered fast during waking hours, in plain English, with a straight answer before you book rather than a sales reply.
Help for anyone who cannot walk far If anyone in your party needs one, we arrange a wheelchair or a mobility scooter they can ride seated, and plan the day around it.
Lunch in about an hour We choose places that can serve you in about an hour, where a Barcelona lunch often runs to two or more, so the time goes on what you came to see.
Booked only directly No booking site or reseller sits between you and us, and your days are never handed to another tour company to run.
A fully licensed travel agency Your days are planned, booked and run by one insured company, from the first message to the last stop.

Questions Before You Book

What cruise passengers and visitors staying longer ask us most, answered.

Will we be back at the ship on time?

Yes. The day is timed backwards from all-aboard, with room for traffic and strikes, and ends at the ship with at least an hour in hand. No client has missed a ship since 2003. How a port day runs is set out above.

Where do we meet?

At your ship's terminal at the agreed time, with a sign bearing your name. On other days we meet you at your hotel, or at the airport on a transfer day.

Can we walk into the city from the cruise port?

Yes, but it is a long walk: from the main cruise terminal it can take 30 to 60 minutes on foot to reach the Ramblas, or a short taxi ride. That makes a walking or bike tour a good port-day option without a car: you make your own way to the starting point, the tour ends in time for you to get back aboard with room to spare, and with no vehicle to pay for, it costs less. With a car, we collect you at the ship and the city centre is 15 to 25 minutes away.

Can you get Sagrada Família and Park Güell tickets?

Yes, we buy them on your behalf. Both venues issue them in each visitor's name for a set date and entry time, and on a port day your ship decides the date. They are paid in full with your deposit, plus €3 per ticket. Entrance fees, tickets, bodega fees and other third-party services, once paid for, are non-refundable at any time.

How is a private tour different from the cruise line's excursions?

The cruise line's excursions are run by local companies it contracts, often by coach, for a group, on a set route. A private tour is booked directly with the company that runs it, carries only your party, and follows the plan you agreed rather than a route set for everyone.

What if some of us cannot walk far?

A driving tour covers the distances by car, and at each stop your guide walks only as far as your group wants. If anyone needs a wheelchair or a mobility scooter, we arrange it.

Can you handle our luggage?

Yes. On a day between the ship, a hotel and the airport, tell us how many bags each person has and how big they are, and we size the vehicle to them. If everything will not fit in one, you have the options before the day.

How does lunch work?

Lunch is a planned stop, at a place chosen to serve you in about an hour, and you pay the restaurant directly. On a full day, or any day with a planned meal, you also cover your guide's lunch.

Can you take a large group?

Yes. A group of any size is planned the same way, with more vehicles and more guides as the numbers grow.

Can we join a group tour?

No. Every tour is private, so there is no group to join and nobody else on your day.

How far in advance should a shore excursion be arranged?

As early as you can. Sagrada Família and Park Güell tickets can be sold out a month before your date, and on a port day there is no other date to move to.

What is your cancellation policy?

What is refunded depends on how far ahead you cancel, and it is set out in full in our terms and conditions.

What happens if our ship cannot dock?

The day is not refunded. It was held for you and cannot be sold again at that point, and a port call cancelled by the ship is outside our control; it is a risk travel insurance is there to cover, as our terms and conditions explain.