Barcelona El Prat Airport (BCN)
History, Facts and Overview

(Barcelona, Spain)

Leading up to 1920s, several airfields were in use around Barcelona, including an up-and-coming aerodrome based next to El Prat. Soon to become Barcelona's official airport, El Prat Airport was based on farmland next to La Volateria and evolved greatly over the following years, being used by the popular Catalonia Flying Club. In 1927, commercial domestic flights began at Barcelona Airport and Madrid was a popular destination.

The following two decades saw rapid growth and the airport was redesigned several times, with additional runways being added and improved. In the 1960s, a new control tower and terminal were erected, and in the 1970s, a popular route to Lisbon and New York commenced.


The next major set of improvements took place prior to Barcelona's Olympic Games in 1992, to ensure that its airport would be able to cope with such high numbers of passengers. More recently in 2007, Barcelona International Airport (BCN) has been modernised and expanded further, almost doubling its previous overall capacity.

The airport features a great selection of facilities, which include all of the absolute essentials, such as banks and ATMs, as well as those dedicated to comfort, relaxation and indulgence. In total, Barcelona Airport is home to more than 50 different shops, with the most popular outlets including a supermarket, Accessorize, Aldeasa, Burberry, Imaginarium, Les Boutiques, Nike, Relay and Trucco.

Restaurants and bars are also plentiful at the airport and can be found in each of the terminal buildings. Bar Tip Top Tatpas is particularly notable if you fancy a taste of Spain, while Café Europa, Café de Liore and Café Madas Beer all offer a good range of sandwiches, salads and snacks. Also of interest, Barcelona Airport is home to a large meeting room offering all essential business facilities, as well as six VIP lounges, including Dali, Gaudi and Spanair.