Barcelona is one of the most beautiful cities in Spain, and, together with Madrid, it is also one of the best connected to Sardinia. Every summer, lots of people from Barcelona decide to spend their vacations in Sardinia to enjoy its heavenly beaches and wild nature. But there also are many that visit Barcelona and Catalonia or Costa Brava, and then decide to continue their holidays in Sardinia.
Getting from Barcelona to Sardinia could seem hard if you don’t know how to do it – information available online is sometimes inaccurate or out of date. Since I live in Sardinia and regularly travel to Barcelona, I thought I’d share some useful information that could help you plan your trip. Continue reading and I will explain all the best options of getting from Barcelona to Sardinia.
Make sure to also read my posts How To Get To Sardinia and Which Are The Airports In Sardinia?
How To Get From Barcelona To Sardinia
Barcelona to Sardinia flights
Barcelona has two main airports: Barcelona – El Prat, and Girona – Costa Brava. Unfortunately, only one of them is connected to Sardinia. Direct Barcelona to Sardinia flights are mostly available during summer, since this is the time of the year during which the majority of people decide to travel to Sardinia. Thus, it is easier to find routs to get from Barcelona to Sardinia between May and October.
Flights from Barcelona El Prat to Cagliari
Cagliari Elmas Airport (CAG) is the best connected airport to Barcelona. Flights from Barcelona to Cagliari last about 1 hour and 25 minutes.
Low-cost company airline Vueling operates direct flights from Barcelona (BCN) to Cagliari. There are three flights per week from December to mid March, when an extra flight is activated. From mid March to mid June you can count on five flights per week. There are six flights per week (every day but Wednesdays) from mid June to mid September, when flights are reduced again to five and then four per week.
The schedule changes frequently, so I suggest you to check the schedule online to find the flight that most suits you for the week you want to travel.
Vueling, which operates the Barcelona to Cagliari flights, works in code sharing with Spanish company Iberia so you may buy your tickets on both sites – however, tickets sold on Iberia are significantly more expensive.
Check out the schedule and book your Barcelona to Sardinia flights here.
Flights from Barcelona El Prat to Olbia
The flight from Barcelona El Prat – to Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport (OLB) lasts about 1 hour and 25 minutes.
Olbia is connected to Barcelona only during the summer months – from mid June to mid September – with flights operated by low cost airline Vueling. Direct flights are available five times per week, usually on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Also in this case, you can buy your tickets from Iberia, even if Vueling is the only company that operates these flights.
Check out the schedule and book your Barcelona to Sardinia flights here.
Flights from Barcelona El Prat to Alghero
At the time of writing, there are no direct flights from Barcelona El Prat to Alghero Fertilia Airport (AHO).
Girona – Costa Brava to Sardinia Flights
There used to be regular direct flights from Girona (GRO) to Alghero and Cagliari airports operated by low cost airline Ryanair, but at the time of writing, there are none. I suggest you keep an eye on Ryanair website in case new direct flights are activated.
Otherwise, in order to reach any Sardinian airport from Girona, you would have to find convenient connections via another airport – you’ll need at least two and at times even three flights in order to get here. If that’s the case, your trip could last from a minimum of 9 hours to a maximum of 25 hours!
The best thing you could do if you are in Girona and want to reach Sardinia, would frankly be to reach the airport of El Prat and leave from there. It’ll definitely be less tiring than a 9 hours + journey!
Traveling from somewhere else? Read the following posts:
- How To Get From Rome To Sardinia
- How To Get From Naples To Sardinia
- The Best London To Sardinia Flights
- How To Get From Amsterdam To Sardinia
- How To Get From Paris To Sardinia
Barcelona to Sardinia ferry
Taking a ferry from Barcelona to Sardinia could seem more exhausting than taking a plane, but it has some positive sides. First, you can travel with your own car or motorbike, instead of renting one or having to deal with the public transportation in Sardinia, which is all but efficient.
Secondly, if you want to spend some time on the island and bring your pets with you, then taking a ferry is the safest and more convenient way for them to travel. While regular airlines will allow you to take pets on board, low-cost airlines won’t. And no regular airline operates direct Barcelona to Sardinia flights – you’d have to go via Rome Fiumicino or Milano Linate.
The only available Barcelona to Sardinia ferries go to Porto Torres, on the northwest of the island, and are operated by Grimaldi Lines. There is one and at times two ferries per week during the low season, and up to four ferries per week during the summer months.
Ferries usually depart at 2:30 am from Barcelona and arrive in Porto Torres at 5:00 pm. Thus, the journey lasts approximately 14 hours and 30 minutes. The bright side is that you could sleep all night and relax for the rest of the day, but if you are prone to sea sickness this may be a nightmare!
Check out the schedule and book your Barcelona to Sardinia ferry here.
How Much Do Ferries And Flights From Barcelona To Sardinia Cost?
As you can imagine, the prices for flights and ferries from Barcelona to Sardinia vary a lot depending on the season and on any add on you may have. There is more availability during the summer months, but that’s also when ferries and flights are more expensive. However, if you book well ahead of your traveling dates, you can still find a good deal.
As you can see, it is not that difficult to travel to Sardinia from Barcelona. You just need a good guide to help you find all the information you need.
Don’t forget to read my posts The Best Ferry Routes To Sardinia and How To Get From Corsica To Sardinia.
Pin It For Later!
Direct flights from Barcelona to Sardinia are currently unavailable. The best way to get from Barcelona to Sardinia is to fly from Barcelona to Olbia, which has direct flights with multiple airlines. From Olbia, you can take a bus or a ferry to your final destination on Sardinia.
You mention that direct flights from Barcelona to Sardinia are unavailable, but as of right now, there are direct flights available with Vueling Airlines. I would suggest updating this information.
Looks like you have missed the bit where I said that there are direct flights from Barcelona to Cagliari throughout the year, and that there are direct flights from Barcelona to Olbia in the summer months.
2questions:
1. When do they start offering 4 ferries weekly from Barcelona to Porto Torres?
2. How early can you board the ferry leaving Barcelona at 2:30 am?
Thanks for your response!
1. It should be at least a couple of months in advance. You will have to set up an alert to make sure you don’t miss it.
2. They normally let you on one hour before or so. It varies by company.