There are many ways to travel around Barcelona. If you prefer public transport, there’s nothing better than a T-casual ticket. This will come in handy especially if you are in the city for several days, such as a long weekend or a day trip.
The most attractive thing about the whole ticket is the price you pay per ride: just over 1 euro.
You should know: The T-casual was preceded by the hugely popular T-10, which was cancelled in January 2020. If you have been to Barcelona in the past and used the T-10, the T-casual is the best replacement as it is very similar to the…
What are the main advantages of the T-casual ticket?
The T-casual is a bargain ticket that offers 10 public transport journeys for €11.35. This price is valid for zone 1, which covers the whole centre and even the journey from the airport. Of course, you can also buy tickets for other zones, but if you don’t plan to go to the outskirts or completely outside the city more often, it’s not worth it.
The T-casual ticket is integrated: it is valid for all public transport in Barcelona. You can use it for the metro, trains, trams, buses or even the cable car. However, there is one exception: the T-casual is not valid on the L9 Sud metro from the airport, nor on the airport aerobuses, which are operated by a private company. However, if you want to use this ticket to get from the airport to central Barcelona, you can use it on the train or bus. (List of all carriers participating in the ATM system).
The T-casual ticket is a transfer ticket: you can start your journey on the metro in one journey and then continue on the tram, for example. Or change from the metro to the train. Or whatever else you can think of – but it will always count as one ride, as long as you fit within the time limit.
You have 75 minutes from the time you pass through the turnstile and start your journey to get to where you want to go. That’s more than enough time, as everything within the centre is easily accessible by public transport within 10-40 minutes. (If you want to go somewhere further and therefore need more time, T-casual can be purchased for multiple zones.
What else is good to know about the T-casual ticket?
- The ticket must be punched through the ticket marker on every vehicle you board. If you are within the 75-minute limit, it will still count as one ride. If you forget to mark it somewhere and get caught by a ticket inspector, it’s like riding without a ticket!
- The number of transfers within a given time window is limited to 3, then it would count as another trip.
- If you transfer within a closed transport system (e.g. on the metro), it will count as one journey. Conversely, if you leave the station completely and then return to it, it will cost you two trips.
- The system prefers high-capacity transport: you can change from bus to metro and then back to bus in one journey. Or from the metro to a bus and then to another bus on a different line. However, if you take the metro, change to a bus and then to the metro again, it would already deduct two rides from your ticket instead of one.
- Even if you have just started your tenth and final journey, don’t throw your ticket away before you reach the end of your journey. There are 2 reasons for this: sometimes you may be checked, and sometimes you need the ticket to get off the vehicle – i.e. you have to push it through a turnstile (e.g. on the metro).
- Although the T-casual ticket offers a generous 10 rides, it cannot be shared with other people. The ticket is personal, so if you are travelling in a group, everyone must have their own ticket. (This was not the case, for example, with the earlier T-10, which could be “borrowed” between people).
Would you like to share one ticket between multiple people? Buy T-familiar
In addition to the T-casual, the Barcelona Transport Company also offers the T-familiar ticket. This offers 8 rides for €10 and its main difference is the possibility of sharing it between several people (otherwise all the parameters described above are sterile).
The price for 1 ride is ultimately slightly higher than T-casual (€1.135 vs €1.25), but perhaps some of you – for example if you’re travelling as a couple – will appreciate the benefit of one shared ticket for multiple people…
T-familiar also makes sense if there are more of you and you know you won’t be travelling much: that 10 rides on T-casual for each person in the group would be too many, and T-familiar may then be more convenient for you.
T-casual ticket price and its time validity
The price of the ticket depends on the number of zones in which you use the ticket. As I wrote above – if you live in the city centre, 1 zone will be enough, i.e. a ticket for €11.35.
As the number of zones increases, so does the validity of your ticket. The table below will give you a better idea.
| 1 zone | 2 zones | 3 zone | 4 zones | 5 zones | 6 zones |
| €11.35 | €22.40 | €30.50 | €39.20 | €45.05 | €47.90 |
| 75 minutes | 90 minutes | 105 minutes | 120 minutes | 135 minutes | 150 minutes |
How do you know how many rides are left?
Each of your journeys is recorded on the back of your ticket – when you pass through the turnstile or mark it in the bus validator, information is printed on the back, hiding the time and number of journeys. The number of journeys information in particular is useful because if you change within 75 minutes you may have multiple entries on the back, but it will still be counted as one journey.
My experience: Is T-casual ticket worth buying?
Whenever I go to Barcelona, I prefer to stay somewhere in and around the city centre. And this is what I advise everyone to do. And since the centre is relatively small, most sights and attractions (with a few outlying exceptions) tend to be within walking distance. And since I really like to walk, I don’t really need to use public transport that often. In a week in the city, when I’m sightseeing, I don’t go through more than one or two T-casual tickets. And if you plan a bit and don’t use public transport mindlessly, you’ll be just as well off.
If you’re on the fence about whether to get a T-casual or one of the tourist cards, grab a map, paper and pencil and try to make a quick estimate of how much you’ll be travelling around the city, given your accommodation and your trip plan…
How and where to buy a T-casual ticket?
- There is a vending machine right at the airport just before you enter the platform of the train heading to the city centre (map).
- In the city, the T-casual is available from all machines at metro and bus stations
- At the Punt TMB customer and information centre at Diagonal, La Sagrera or Universitat metro stations.
- You can also use online shopping via the TMB website or the mobile app of the same name
On the other hand, it is not possible to buy a T-casual ticket from the driver on a given means of transport – for example, only single tickets are sold on buses.
