Barcelona Flights

[*pixie*]

Thanks everyone! I will definitely look at booking through DCL when the time comes. I'm feeling completely overwhelmed by this, which is really annoying me! It looks like we won't have the option of a direct flight, and I've never flown with any stops before. And, the thought of a layover in another country also seems stressful, but it looks like it's pretty common and not a big deal.

 

[DCLCrazy64622]

Looking for a little help here....

I booked my family (2 adults, 3 kids) on Med cruise out of Barcelona in May of 2020. I know it's early but flights from Houston are pretty expensive. Is there a strategy of how far out to book flights? Is there a better option of flying into a bigger hub in Europe and flying to BCN from there? Thanks for any insight.

Have you checked Norwegian Air?

 

[fredandkell]

Thanks everyone! I will definitely look at booking through DCL when the time comes. I'm feeling completely overwhelmed by this, which is really annoying me! It looks like we won't have the option of a direct flight, and I've never flown with any stops before. And, the thought of a layover in another country also seems stressful, but it looks like it's pretty common and not a big deal.

If you’re worried about a layover try this approach. Search from East Coast cities that have nonstops to Barcelona, for example Atlanta or Washington DC or New York city. Then book from there, and book a separate domestic ticket for the day before to get you from your hometown to that East Coast city. It does add a night of a hotel but you can sightsee in the city and it is also a bit easier to deal with domestic “layovers” than international ones. I always prefer a nonstop international flight if I can get it.

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

If you can fly Norwegian Airlines they have some great deals to Europe and specifically Barcelona. They only fly out of certain airports, but it may be cheaper for you to get a US based flight to one of those airports and then fly direct to Barcelona. Also booking on January 1st if possible for airlines can get you some great prices for May flights of that same year. No guarantees but it's worked well for me on several flights to Europe on Norwegian.

 

[soniam]

We aren't doing a cruise but are flying to Barcelona from Austin, TX, on Friday. We are doing British Airways; it's a codeshare with American. They actually have a direct to London and then on to Barcelona. It's rare to find a direct from Austin to Europe. Our return is Barcelona to Chicago. It was expensive; however, we only have 1 layover on each leg, and the flight times were very convenient.

 

[Disney_Fan_01]

We did the Mediterranean cruise earlier this month and live in Dallas, TX. I checked kayak and was able to book 4 tickets at $650 for DFW-Montreal-Paris via Air Canada and return from BCN-toronto-DFW. We planned a trip around the cruise and spent 4 days in Paris pre-cruise and 3 days in Barcelona post cruise. Also booked separate tickets for Paris to Barcelona night before the cruise directly from Air France for $75/ticket. Best trip ever. If possible, arrive a few days before the cruise. It helps with jet lag and you will enjoy. Highly recommend Paris, but Barcelona is fun too!

 

[funny.bunny]

Totally agree.

 

[bearette]

I believe you can cancel air before final payment (anyone else confirm?) so maybe book airfare with Disney while you explore the options. If you set up a travel alert on Kayak or other site, you can watch for drops. Check google flights for options on flights and if there is one you like, sign up for that companies flight alerts lengthier website and if there isn't a huge price difference use their site and not a third party (example expedia) to book. Make sure you check for options (liked a checked bag and seat selection) if these are important to can we the cheaper fares usually don't come with these anemities.


I don't recommend booking into domestic flights then a flight to Europe, as any flight schedule changes can ruin your perfect planning. Book on one ticket so if there is a problem with one leg it won't effect the other (I think that is what happened to the Miami flight above-correct me if I am mistaken) or the flight will be changed/accommodated for free. If it is all one one ticket then then changes are made free, but on separate tickets you are on your own. I missed my connecting flight coming home from DulIes, but they put me on the next flight without any fees. (Weather delay). I had my Air France flight cancelled, but without any fee, I was able to move it to another day (two days earlier) to meet my needs because both were on one ticket.

If you are going to Barcelona, just book to Barcelona. If your are not a frequent flier, any booking tickets here to there and then on will just be confusing, stressful, and not worth your time and effort. Some of those "cheap" airlines charge a few dollars (euros) for a carry on, a few to print your boarding pass, more to eat, money for a beversge, money for a blanket and a few more $$$ to breath (well almost) so it may not be worth it.

But if you must search for options, try Madrid and do a few days pre or post there-you can get a train between there and Barcelona. (A little easier when you are in the same country and you could more easily book a flight between the too). Just research to watch for the fees and research carefully. Only once did it ever behoove me to get a cheap/discount airline flight (that was in Africa where it came with a checked bag but no drinks between Cape Town and Johannesburg.)

I have done nonstop, domestic stop, European stops, and two stops flights. The more stops the less $$, and the less stops or lay overtime the more money you pay. You just have to find the balance. Good luck!

 

[gstdog]

I highly recommend the website Skyscanner. You have the ability to do a search where you set the destination as "Barcelona," and the departure as "United States." You can then quickly see the price of from every airport within the US, and then you can decide if you want to drive to a closer airport, or as others suggested, fly in the day before.

 

[LNMom]

We were in Barcelona and Madrid in early June. It was a wonderful trip.

#1 TIP: I use google.com/flights to price flights. Put in your departure city, arrival city, and dates (hover over the calendar icon to see the lowest prices for every day that month). I try different combinations of departure and arrival cities.

I started checking ticket prices around December. I bought 3 months ahead of time.

Houston is a United hub, I believe. I recall checking prices from Houston to Spain, but never found a good price. I don't live in Houston, but it's a quick flight to get there for me, but pricing never worked out. Check United's Global Alliance partners for better pricing (it does happen!).

I flew Miami to Madrid ($550 RT; purchased with American, but flew Iberia since they codeshare; I did not purchase seats for my family of 5--I just hoped they sat us together--and we were sat together on every leg of our journey to Spain and back). I bought a separate ticket to Miami ($200 RT). I bought another ticket from MAD to BCN (another $100 or so). We spent the afternoon in Miami (I rented a car--ate at Havana Harry's and booked a room at the Aloft-Airport using points--there was a pool table, great pool, a Pollo Tropical-a fav Cuban fast food restaurant and a Starbucks that share a parking lot with the hotel; we were able to eat, swim, and shower before our overnight flight). We didn't get into BCN until evening, but I would do this again.

There are flights MAD to BCN almost hourly. Give yourself a few hours cushion to get through immigration.

We flew back through London on British Airways. A long tram ride between concourses and customs meant that we had very little time between connections. I'd say give yourself at least 2.5-3 hours if traveling through Heathrow. We overnighted in Miami at a hotel that offered shuttle serve from/to the airport. It was a good way to re-enter US life.

Here are my Spain highlights/comments:
Barcelona: We did the Devour food tour (not the one for kids, but the regular food tour; my 3 kids ages 4-12 loved it). It was the perfect first activity for our first full day. All we had to do was follow someone who fed us! My kids loved Happy Pills-look it up. Also, Hoffman Bakery--have the mascarpone cream croissant (the tour guide took us here and we went back two other times). I regret not making dinner reservations for BCN. It would have been easier for us.

Madrid: While you are in Spain, it's difficult not to see some of the country. Madid was great; totally walkable. We stayed at the Petit Palace Alfonso XII. It's right across from the street from El Retiro Park (the rate with breakfast [which was fantastic] for the suite overlooking the park was great--for discounted rates join the hotels membership club which is free). I would not stay in the center of Madid. There's just too much going on with tourists. My kids loved the park (as did my husband who ran every morning there).
We booked a Prado for Kids tour with Across Madrid (my kids said, "A museum for 3 hours and I liked it. That's a good tour!" My kids like art and are well behaved on tours which helped)--the tour guide is recommend in Rick Steve's guidebook and gets 5 stars on trip advisor.

We just visited BCN and MAD. I like to travel slowly with the kids, so we'll just have to go back to Southern Spain and Northern Spain/Pyrenees.

PM me for more info.

 

[LNMom]

PS--PP is right. You take a chance booking two separate tickets. I made sure there was at least one extra flight between my domestic and international. I have travel insurance through one of my credit cards, so I was comfortable taking that risk.