Laguardia to Barcelona

Welcome to the travel forum. I assume you're not planning on driving in the urban area of Barcelona?

Absolutely not. We'll turn it in after dropping off our luggage. We've been to Barcelona several times!

Oh good.
And it looks like you've already figured out that posting your questions about an upcoming trip here (in the Destinations Q&A section) are more likely to get answers than if you post them on the Travel Reviews section where you first posted it.

Hopefully others will be able to answer your question about the route from LaGuardia to Barcelona.

Hello! From how I understand it, you have two nights to spend on your drive between Laguardia and Barcelona? If that is the case then here would be my recommended route:

-Start in Laguardia morning
Catch the A12/NA 132 to Olite (1:15 hr)
Medieval town of Olite: spend the day exploring the town and palace
Take the N121/AP-68 down to Zaragoza (1:45 hr)
Zaragoza (2 nights): see description below
Catch the AP-2 to Poblet (2 hr)
Poblet Monastery: spend some time visiting this Royal Monastery
Take the AP-2/AP-7 all the way to Barcelona (1:45hr)
-End Barcelona afternoon

Here is a description of some of the places on the route:

-Medieval town of Olite: a fortified medieval town with winding narrow streets and impressive old walls. Don't miss the Royal Palace of Olite, the seat of the Kings of Navarre. For me, it's one of the more impressive medieval palaces in Europe.

-Zaragoza: this city has more than 2,000 years of history including Roman ruins of the city walls, forum, and amphitheater, as well as the Aljafería; an 11th-century Moorish palace. The best part, Zaragoza is relatively undiscovered as far as major Spanish cities go.

-Poblet Royal Monastery: a UNESCO World Heritage Site and still active 12th-century Cistercian monastery. It was a fortified medieval royal residence and contains the unique hanging tombs of the old Kings of Aragon.

Hope this helps :)

Hi Marsha,

Late September is a beautiful time in La Rioja, DOC, as the harvest is over and the leaves are starting to turn.

I would make a slight modification to what Carlos suggested. From Laguardia, I would head to Logroño, but then take the N-111 to Viana, if you are going slow, stop, take a look around, it is similar to Laguardia, with some nice views of the Ebro Valley, and you will have a chance to step on the grave of Cesare Borgia. Then continue on the the NA-1110 to Los Arcos and on to Estella. This is would be the scenic route. From Estella you can catch the A12 to the Pamplona and then take the A15 to Olite.

If you make Olite your first night, you might like to visit the monastery of Irantzu about 15 minutes outside of Estella. The monastery is in a hidden valley, and the area is quite beautiful. Then you can take the A12 to visit Santa Maria de Eunate, and from there continue on the NA-601 to the A15 to Olite, about a 30 min trip.

I also hope that helps

Thank you for your suggestions. Since I posted this, we've decided to leave Laguardia and drive to Barcelona in one day, as it looks like about a 5 hour drive. So we will consider perhaps briefly stopping along the way.

Marsha,

FWIW, If you need the car only to get to Barcelona, a possible option is to leave Laguardia early, pick up the AP68 in Fuenmayor, and head straight to Zarazoga. It is under two hours. You could leave the car at the train station, take a short visit to the center, see the Pilar. Depending on when in the afternoon you have to be in Barcelona, you could have an early lunch, and then take the AVE to Barcelona. The trip is less than two hours.

That is an interesting suggestion that we will investigate. Thanks.

The Moorish palace in Zaragoza is also worthwhile if you have more time.