Family-Friendly Day Trips from Barcelona

If you're on holiday with kids and you've exhausted all the interesting things to do in Barcelona during a normal tourist visit, such as visiting the Aquarium to see the wonderful creatures of the ocean or going to the Barcelona Zoo for a day of fun with the animals, then it's time to think about plans a little further afield than the capital's borders. Take inspiration from this list and have the most fun family holiday ever.

PortAventura Park is considered one of the largest and most fun theme parks in Europe and is just over an hour's drive from the Catalan capital.

Getting to PortAventura from Barcelona is really easy and you will find numerous transport alternatives including organised excursions with transport included.

On arrival you will find a gigantic complex with plenty to do and three theme parks inside: PortAventura Park, Caribe Aquatic Park and Ferrari Land. In addition, numerous special events are held throughout the year including circus shows, open-air theatre and Santa Claus parties for the Christmas season in Barcelona.

Useful information

• Price: Varies depending on the season; box office prices can cost around €60, while organised tours are available from €75. My recommendation is to buy your tickets in advance.
• Duration of excursion: Minimum one day. Organised tours leave Barcelona early in the morning and return in the evening to make the most of the day in the park.
• Recommended if... you are looking for fun with a focus on roller coasters, adrenaline and water rides. If you are travelling with very young children (5 years old or younger) you will find an area with age-appropriate games in the park, ensuring fun for the whole family.

Just 30 minutes' drive from the heart of Barcelona is the Tibidabo mountain. At the top, you'll find Tibidabo Amusement Park. You can easily plan a day of family fun, as you'll find all kinds of attractions here: bumper cars, carousels, Ferris wheels, water fountains, haunted rides and much more!

The opening hours vary depending on the season, so I recommend checking the official website a few days before your visit.

Inside the complex you will find restaurants and other services; but as the amusement park is located on top of a mountain, the whole area surrounding it is suitable for hiking, bicycles and Segway vehicles.

Useful Info

• Price: Around €35 for an adult ticket and around €14 for a junior ticket; you can buy tickets on the Tibidabo Park website.
• How to get there: You'll need to take the suburban train to the outskirts of Barcelona and then the funicular to get to the top of the mountain.
• Recommended if... you're looking for an adventurous option close to the city where you can spend a fun afternoon/evening. This alternative is ideal if you are only in the city for a few days, two or three days in Barcelona.

A recreational area located 35 minutes from Barcelona that you should visit if you are going to the Catalan capital with children. Catalunya en Miniatura is a theme park designed for family fun but with a very peculiar approach; here you will find a circuit of gigantic models of spectacular realism.

The models represent the most emblematic places of the region of Catalonia to learn about its particular culture and folklore. Among other attractions, you'll find an impressive model of what the exterior and interior of Gaudí's Sagrada Familia will look like when completed.

In addition to the model tour, you'll find trees with zip lines, climbing areas and an adventure circuit with various levels of difficulty. All in all, there are more than 60 fun activities you can do here. To find out more about the activities and the model exhibition you can visit the official website.

Useful information

• Price: The model exhibition area is available from €14 for adults and €10 for children. The adventure circuit costs €22 for adults and €15 for children.
• Duration of the excursion: If you can spare a full day, but if you're in a hurry you can do a half-day excursion.
• Recommended if... You're looking for fun and educational activities to do with children around Barcelona. The exhibition of models is highly didactic, so children learn about Catalonia without noticing that they are learning.

Les Deus Aventura is a space focused on extreme adventures that offers fun for all the family. It is an acrobatic park designed by a company specialising in mountain sports in close collaboration with specialised monitors who accompany visitors on each of the attractions.

Here you can find all kinds of activities that take place in a natural environment of trees and mountain vegetation. Located just over an hour's drive from the centre of Barcelona. Here you can do both children's circuits, as well as zip-line sport circuits and many other recreational and mountain activities.

The timetable changes depending on the time of year and the months. I recommend visiting the website of Les Deus Aventura days before your trip to have updated information.

Useful information

• Price: Prices vary depending on the circuit you want/can do. They are available from 5€ for the circuit in the children's area.
• Duration of the excursion: I recommend spending a full day on this adventure.
• Recommended if... You're looking for a fun day among the mountain trees; it's especially fun if you're visiting Barcelona in spring and are looking for an activity to do outdoors and in nature.

Granja Aventura Park is a place designed for the whole family to have fun, but the ones who really enjoy the experience the most are the young children who have the opportunity to live, touch and play with all kinds of farm animals.

Join the caretakers as they feed the chickens and collect eggs from the pens; get up close to the goats to feed them and you can even touch and hold small tame snakes.

La Granja is located 38 minutes by car from the centre of Barcelona and as well as spending time with the animals you can also go on the adventure and games circuit.

Useful information

• Price: Adults pay about 14,15€; children from 3 to 12 years old 12,25€ and children under 3 years old 2,75€.
• Duration of tour: You can go to the farm early in the morning for a half-day adventure just outside Barcelona.
• Timetable: From 10:30am to 6pm.
• Recommended if... you are visiting Barcelona with children who have a special attachment to or interest in animals. This place, as well as being fun, is incredibly educational so they will have an unforgettable adventure.

It is no secret that the region of Catalonia gave the world great artists; one of the greatest geniuses of painting, Dalí, was born in the city of Figueras located just over an hour from Barcelona. In this town a large museum has been installed in honour of the life and work of the talented artist and from the Catalan capital there are numerous organised excursions to take travellers to the cradle of Dalí's creativity.

Visiting the Dalí Museum is an excellent experience especially in the months when the temperature drops and you don't feel like being outdoors as much as you might in the winter in Barcelona.

Due to the abstract and highly imaginative nature of Dalí's work, children of all ages enjoy his work much more than might be expected, making the experience not only enriching but also highly educational for the little ones.

Useful information

• Price: Online ticket purchase is limited and subject to availability. Adults pay around €15 per ticket and children under the age of 8 are free. The guided tour including transport is available from €69.
• Duration of the tour: I recommend spending a full day exploring both the museum and the city.
• Recommended if... you are looking for an activity that awakens the curiosity and creativity of the little ones. As is the case at the Picasso Museum, getting up close and personal with avant-garde artwork is usually highly entertaining for children.

One of the favourite getaways for both tourists visiting Barcelona and locals looking for a break from the hectic pace of the city is a trip to the Costa Brava and the surrounding area.

Numerous excursions to the Costa Brava depart from the city, the aim of which is, in addition to spending a few pleasant hours by the sea, to get to know nearby cities such as the beautiful medieval city of Girona.

Useful information

• Price: An excursion to the Costa Brava with transport from Barcelona is available from approximately €80 per person.
• Duration of the excursion: This is a full day excursion, usually departing from Barcelona early in the morning and returning after sunset for a total of 12 hours on average.
• Recommended if... You visit Barcelona in summer or any time of the year with good weather. A day at the beach with the family on the Mediterranean coast is one of the best things to do in the Catalan region.

Located 119 km northwest of Barcelona is the La Garrocha National Park; many excursions are organised from the city to get to know this part of the region of Catalonia and most of them include the small medieval town of Besalú.

This is an interesting experience to do with the youngest members of the household as well as enjoying a medieval town, which may remind you of what you might see on a tour of Barcelona's Gothic Quarter.

Among other activities, you can explore wild nature at its best and enjoy the dead volcanic area of Garrotxa and the beech forests of Fageda.

Useful information

• Price: Hiking tours in this area of the city are available from approximately €115.
• Duration of tour: Tours depart early in the morning and usually take around 10 hours to complete. You'll need to set aside a whole day for this experience.
• Recommended if... the children accompanying you on the trip are old enough to handle the forest hiking trails, if you're travelling with younger children it's best to rule this option out. However, older children will be amazed by the volcanic area.

North of Barcelona, exactly 95 km away, are the salt mountains of Cardona. A unique natural phenomenon whose eroded walls continue to grow even today. Some 36 million years ago an arm of the sea reached this mountainous area, which gradually dried up until it left the interesting and beautiful geological forms that we can admire today.

From the city there are numerous organised excursions to explore the natural wonder of the Salt Mountains; it is ideal to do with children who find the explanations of the guides very interesting. The tour into the interior takes only 1.5 hours, so it is not too tiring for them.

Useful information

• Price: Organised tours with transport included are available from €90 per person.
• Duration of tour: They leave the city early in the morning, and return after sunset. You should allow approximately 10 hours.
• Recommended if... you're keen to explore a geological wonder and have time to spend in the city, as you'll need to dedicate at least a day to the experience.

There are many activities to do in Barcelona with children, but also outside the city. In the Cuenca de Barberà, 1.5 hours away by car, there is a very unique and special place to enjoy with children of all ages: the painted forest of Poblet.

Once you arrive at the park, the adventure begins at the Castellfollit forest house. You will find a mycological route where mushrooms and trees are the protagonists of the stories.

Through a pre-established passage, the mission for the day will be none other than to find the trees painted with giant mushrooms turning the family into intrepid mushroom hunters.

The easiest route through 3km of forest takes 1.5 hours and involves 190m of uphill and downhill walking. The longer route is 6.5 km long and lasts 3 hours with 390 m of ascent and descent.

Useful information

• Duration of the hike: Taking into account the distance to and from Barcelona you should allow between 6 and 7 hours for this adventure.
• Recommended if... you're up for a few hours of fun in the forest and don't mind driving a few kilometres through western Catalonia. Bear in mind that the journey will take you 120 km.