My husband and I are in our 70s. We are embarking on a cruise out of Barcelona in Oct.2026. I am doing preliminary searches on the best fares, premium select, for the flight. Currently, it appears that flying from JFK to Madrid is the most cost efficient.
Question
1.Would it be best to use train or air(i hate flying...making it because it will be my husband's 80 birthday)?
2. If train, how difficult is it to get to the train station? Will checked luggage size be allowed on the train?
3. From the train station in Barcelona, is transportation difficult?
Thank you for your help. We are both quite mobile.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
11382 posts
I live in Europe and when I’m flying home, I like to connect to my domestic flight and not deal with luggage until I’m at my destination. Then I roll it to the curb and take a taxi to my apartment . You can do that if your two flights are on the same itinerary and airline, which for Spain is through Iberia. You should also book directly through the airline, no third-party booking agency online.
If you stayed a night or two in Madrid, then it would make sense to take the train. The train is 3 hours from Madrid to Barcelona plus the time needed to change from the airport to the train station, which is very large.If you choose to take the train, take a taxi to the train station. You can bring large suitcases on the train, but you have to transfer them, load them onto the train and store them in the train. Luggage is not checked on a train.
Take a taxi from the train station to your hotel in Barcelona . Then take a taxi from the hotel to the cruise port. Don’t fly into Barcelona the day of the cruise.
Posted by
NC
671 posts
Speaking as a woman of a certain age (and an admitted over packer!) limit your luggage to carryon size so that it is more manageable as you move around. Yes, check your bag to your final destination but size down…hard as it is. No one will be looking at you…no one will care what you wear…and no one will remember…even you. But, the trip will be much more pleasant without large luggage.
Posted by
New York, NY
4118 posts
It would be so much easier to fly directly to Barcelona from JFK especially as you are seniors & your husband be 80. Much less stress, much less physicality.
I assume you are looking at Delta as you used the term “premium select” which is a Delta product. Have you compared Delta with Iberia Air which also flies nonstop between JFK & BCN?
Getting airfare information 12 months ahead of your travel is going to be difficult. Delta hasn’t published airfares yet and neither has Iberia.
You’ll begin to see them at the mid to end November.
Posted by
14 posts
I am making my first trip to Spain next week so I’m a novice. We are 66 and 70 yo. But I agree with the above comment about flying into Barcelona instead of Madrid. Why would you want to add a long train journey and two taxi rides all while schlepping your luggage? (Especially if you are not going to tour Madrid) While taxis are cheap and easy to get according to RS and most posters here, the train tickets can be quite expensive and the train stations are huge. Spend a few extra dollars and fly into Barcelona. I got the best deal using Google flights.
Posted by
Sarasota,FL
442 posts
We traveled between Barcelona and Madrid a year ago. The fast train only takes just over 2 hours and tickets are very affordable if bought 2 to 3 months ahead. My husband (over80) loves going over 200 mph on a modern train. BUT I agree with everyone that if you’re not going to spend several days in. Madrid, fly directly to Barcelona. Both cities are worth visiting. We have cruised in and out of Barcelona three times. Definitely take a taxi to the ships port.