I rolled into Barcelona Sants Estació from Paris to begin the second leg of my trip in Barcelona…read more Train stations tend to be chaotic, and they're prime spots for people to get pickpocketed, so I like to spend at little time in them as possible, and constantly be moving while there. This is the main train station in the city, and as such it's quite large with several different areas and connections. I was a little confused once we arrived as I needed to find the Metro, but after orienting myself it was no issue. Besides that, Barcelona Sants Estació is really no frills. It got me where I needed to go, and at the end of the day that's all that matters.

The main train station in Barcelona, therefore the busiest almost all the time…read more Currently there is a lot of construction work going on inside and out. So paths are a bit constricted and not clearly marked. I recently took the inOui from Paris to BCN, a 7 hour trip that was nicer than the bustle of air travel. Arriving at 10 pm BCN Sants was quite busy, but was able to pop up easily and get out of the station. I would have liked to have grabbed a sandwich to take to the hotel, but construction made it impossible to find a vendor. The outside construction and some rain made areas a muddy and rough mess. Bummer, it has been a great station in the past. Just be aware of pick pockets here.

This is a major railway junction 40 miles to the south-west of Barcelona and 20 miles from…read moreTarragona. Named after a small hill-top village to the north, it's now surrounded by the pleasant but suburban and rather characterless seaside town of Coma Ruga. The station was originally opened on the first route from Barcelona to Tarragona via an inland route through Vilafranca in 1865. In 1881, the coastal route via Sitges and Vilanova opened, making Sant Vicenç an important junction. An inland route was also opened from here to Lleida via La Plana-Picamoixons, by-passing Tarragona, which until the opening of the high speed line also carried expresses to Madrid. Today, the station is still an important one, and always busy with people changing trains. It's the terminus of Lines 2 and 4 of the Barcelona suburban railway network, Line 2 providing a half-hourly off-peak service via the coast (including Sitges and Vilanova) and Line 4 providing an hourly service via the inland line via Vilafranca del Penedès (and the Cava wine-producing region). It's also served by all the Media Distencia services from Barcelona to Tarragona, Lleida, Tortosa and Reus and other places to the south, and a small selection of the fast Barcelona-Valencia coastal services. Although it has 11 platforms, the station buildings are rather modest: just two platforms have awnings, and a modern brick-built structure contains a ticket office, newsagents and a small café. There are very few facilities outside the station - there are no bars and the nearest shops are 10 minutes' walk away. There is however a decent sized car park in front of the station. Trains to Barcelona via Vilafranca (line C4) depart from the three terminating platforms just in front of the station buildings. All other services are accessed via the subway, most stopping at platforms 1-4. Like many Spanish stations, the platform numbering system is not sequential, which can be confusing for visitors. A new digital display system has just been installed, which should make things easier for travellers.

The railway came late to Vilanova: the first line south from Barcelona adopted an inland route to…read moreTarragona because of the difficulty of building a line along the rocky coast. After a lot of local campaigning, a line was eventually built in 1881. This soon became the main line as it provided a shorter, more direct route. A major engine depot and railway works was provided at Vilanova, together with the splendid large station, which survives almost unaltered to-day. Built in the Spanish colonial style, with a long cast-iron portico on the railway side, it contains a bar (with the station's toilets), ticket office and a small newsagent. The square in front of the station named after one of the main sponsors of the railway, Eduard Maristany - has a taxi rank and is also the main bus station for local and district bus services. There are also ticket machines for the suburban services bear in mind the Spanish oddity that the ticket office may not accept payment by credit card (the machines will). Fares are low by British standards: a single to Barcelona costs EUR2.50, and a single for the two-hour plus journey to Lleida costs around EUR8. The main service off-peak consists of four trains an hour on the C2 suburban line (Rodalies or Cercanias in Catalan/Spanish - with a white and red livery) to and from Barcelona, via Sitges. This provides a half-hourly stopping service originating at Vilanova (usually from platforms 10-13) which alternates with a half-hourly semi-fast service originating at Sant Vicenç de Calders, further south. Trains take around 45 minutes into Barcelona. This is augmented on week-days to provide 8 trains an hour in the morning peak. Stopping services call at El Prat de Llobregat station, where you can change to line C10 for the 5-minute ride to Barcelona Airport. In addition, some medium distance (Media Distencia - orange and white livery) trains call at Vilanova, providing a direct service to places such as Torredembarra, Tarragona, Reus, Lleida and Tortosa. Tickets and passes for the suburban trains are not valid on Medium Distance trains, nor do the ticket machines sell tickets for these journeys.

One of my favorite train stations. Nice art Inside, and when you exit look up to notice the amazing…read morebuildings by Gaudi.

Eclipsed for the past thirty years as Barcelona's main station by the subterranean sprawl of…read moreBarcelona Sants, the França terminus station is nevertheless the much more attractive of the city's two main stations, and worth a look in its own right as a piece of early 20th-century architecture. Built in the 19th century as the main terminus for trains arriving from France (as the name suggests), it was rebuilt and reopened in 1929 for the International Exhibition held in Barcelona that year. With two huge, curving train sheds covering 12 platforms and a grand vaulted concourse with a polished marble floor, the whole project was conceived on a grand scale in a restrained fusion of the art nouveau and classical styles (although the external façade is a little too restrained for my taste). The construction of the east - west line through the centre of Barcelona via the modern Sants station in the 1970's rendered França somewhat redundant. Although it is close to Cuitadella Park and the trendy Barceloneta sea-front quarter, it is rather further from the current commercial centre of the city, although it is more convenient for the old Gothic Quarter. It isn't even connected to Barcelona's metro system Barceloneta station is a good five minute walk away, via the back streets to the west of the station - but the half hourly airport shuttle (line C10) will also take you into the centre. To-day, the station is the starting point for express trains to Madrid, Valencia and other Spanish cities, medium-distance services to other parts of Catalonia, the half-hourly train to Barcelona Airport (all which also pass through Sants) and a few overnight trains to and from France. The main concourse contains the ticket office, information centre, left luggage facilities and an incongruously huge cafeteria. The platform concourse also contains a quaint scale model of the station, complete with toy trains. Although beautifully maintained, the small number of passengers who use the station seem completely lost in its vast, echoing public spaces. But that also makes it easier to appreciate as a piece of public architecture, and the absence of crowds and queues makes arriving or departing by train a rare and pleasurable experience.

Arriving at this station early on a recent Thursday morning on my way to Primavera Sound festival…read morewas a highly confusing experience, entirely because I thought we were going to arrive at Estació de Sants (a station further north). Imagine my concern when I picked up a map from the information desk, found Estació de Sants on it, went out on to the street and couldn't make head nor tail of where I was! Thankfully after 10 minutes of confused wandering I asked a passerby for help and was surprised and very pleased to discover I was already near the guesthouse. Perfect! Estació de Franca was very convenient for my trip - just a few minutes walk away from Barceloneta Metro station, close to where I was staying and not far from the Barri Gothic and La Ramblas either. It's not a massive station either so finding my train home was easyhandy when there's only one overnight train per day to Paris - missing it would have been a calamity!

Serving the mediaeval town and modern seaside resort of Calafell, this is one of the original…read morestations on the coastal line from Barcelona to Tarragona, opened in 1887. The station like others on the line is built in the Spanish Colonial style. The station has a ticket office (limited opening hours), ticket machines, ticket validation machine, waiting room toilets, newsagent and café, although the latter two seem to have rather restricted opening hours. Outside is a bus stop for Calafell's old town (otherwise a 15 minute walk) and bus services along the densely-populated coastal strip to Coma Ruga, El Vendrell, Segur de Calafell and Cunit. It is served by the trains from Barcelona via Sitges to Sant Vicenç de Calders. These run half-hourly (Mon-Sun), augmented at peak hours Monday to Friday, to Barcelona from 6.04 until 22.05, and to Sant Vicenç from 7.01 until 00.01.

Sunday morning 13 august 2017. Never have i come across somebody in customer service so rude as the…read morewoman in this ticket office! She looked at me as if i was an idiot when i enquired about a destination (in spanish) , and literally shrugged her shoulders at me . I knew i needed to change trains but this information was not offered up by her when she found the station i was going to (shown on my mobile). Downright rude!

Tarragona is the principal stop on the main line between Barcelona and Valencia and a busy regional…read moredestination in its own right. Rebuilt in the 1970s, the exterior is bleak and uninviting, but the interior is serviceable enough. For such an important station it only has four platforms in regular use, and a relatively small ticket hall, but there's a small newsagents, a confectionery shop and a decent cafeteria. Outside there is a taxi rank, and a bus stop for line 2 of the city's buses. One downside is that the only toilets (on the main platform) are two coin-operated cabins, out in the open. Let's hope you have the right change when it's pouring with rain. For once, train information is plentifully provided, with electronic departure boards and TV screens everywhere. Don't forget to validate your ticket in one of the orange machines if you haven't bought it here, before boarding your train. The ticket office is open from 5h until 23.45h, and the reservations office for advanced ticket purchases from 7h until 21.30h. Spanish trains go under a bewildering array of names, but essentially, Tarragona has a roughly hourly service of fast inter-city trains such as the 'Talgo' and 'Estrella' heading along the coast; and roughly half-hourly 'Media Distencia' services running to and from Barcelona, on their way to destinations such as Tortosa, Reus, Lleida and Zaragoza, most which are branded 'Catalunya Exprés' or 'Regional Exprés'. Since February 2008, train to Madrid on the new high speed line stop at Camp de Tarragona, 15km north of the City towards the village of Secuita.

Railway station in Tarragona is situated on the coastline, and beautiful approach to the city. The…read morestation is small and quaint at the foot of the steep climb to the town which can be reached by a winding road 10 minute walk which is very steep and winding, alternatively there are steps again very steep and difficult with luggage, not what you need after a long journey. To take a Taxi from the station to the top of the hill, the end of the rue de la rambla costs 10euros which is expensive for the two minute journey but well worth every penny after a long journey.