Traveling from Barcelona and Spanish Cities to France: A Complete Guide

If you don’t make it to Western Europe that often, you should try to fit both France and Spain into your trip if possible. Below, you’ll find various transport options available for this journey.

Best Way of Traveling Between France and Spain

Unless you’re lucky enough to be visiting two cities on the high-speed rail connection between Paris and Barcelona, you’ll almost certainly want to fly. For good connections between smaller cities in Spain and France, there’s an option for bus travel, but this can be slow, uncomfortable, and surprisingly expensive.

By Plane

You can easily fly to Spain from Paris, with several airlines flying to Barcelona and Madrid, as well as a few that operate flights to Seville, Malaga, and Vigo (in Galicia). It’s essential to note that there are three airports in Paris—Paris-Orly, Paris-Beauvais, and Paris-Charles de Gaulle—with flights to Spain from all of them.

By Train

Most of the train routes from Spain to the rest of Europe have been discontinued, including the night train to Paris. In its place is the excellent Barcelona to Paris high-speed train.

Once, there were rumors of a Madrid to Paris route, but this never materialized as the Barcelona option was deemed more practical.

Furthermore, consider purchasing a Spain-France Eurail train pass to simplify your travel.

By Bus

The two main companies that run buses from France to Spain are Eurolines and ALSA. Unfortunately, the routes tend to be slow and costly compared to other travel methods.

By Car

The highways connecting France and Spain are well-maintained and comfortable for travel.

Starting Points

In most cases, you’re going to want to take the high-speed train from Paris to Barcelona. Currently, there are no direct trains to Madrid. When visiting northern Spain, you can take the train to Irun/Hendaye on the French-Spanish border and connect from there or opt for a flight.

• Paris to Barcelona – Take the high-speed train directly.
• Paris to Bilbao – Take a bus to Hendaye and then the train, or consider flying.
• Paris to Madrid – Fly or change trains in Barcelona.
• Paris to Pamplona – Fly via Bilbao or take a bus to Hendaye followed by a train.
• Paris to San Sebastian – Take the train, changing in Hendaye, or fly from Bilbao.

South-West France to Spain

Realistically, you’ll want to head to the Basque Country in northern Spain.

• Bordeaux to Bilbao – Take a bus; by train, you’ll need to change in San Sebastian and Irun/Hendaye.
• Bordeaux to San Sebastian – Take a bus; by train, change in Irun/Hendaye.
• Bordeaux to Barcelona – Take a bus.
• Biarritz to Bilbao – There is an irregular bus or a train that requires two changes.
• Biarritz to San Sebastian – Again, you will need to change in Irun/Hendaye.

South-East France to North-East Spain

Travel from the southeast of France to Catalonia via high-speed train. You don’t need to head straight to Barcelona, as there are various attractions in northern Catalonia along the train route, the most famous being the Dali Museum in Figueres.

• Lyon to Barcelona – Fly or take the train (one change).
• Montpellier to Barcelona – Take the high-speed train.
• Marseille to Barcelona – Opt for the high-speed train.
• Nice to Barcelona – Fly.
• Perpignan to Barcelona – Take the high-speed train.
• Toulouse to Barcelona – Take the high-speed train.

Flights and Trains

Typically, your best options for traveling from France to Spain are flying or taking the train.

Cities in France With Direct Flights to Spain

France and Spain are well connected via air travel, offering significantly more connections than train services.

The following cities are ideal for traveling from France to Spain. The cities listed earlier usually have the cheapest flights, sometimes as low as 20 euros!

However, consider also which cities lie along major train routes, as the rail option could provide a more comfortable journey.

• Northern France – Paris, Brest, Lille, Rennes
• Southern France – Marseille, Nice
• Western France – Nantes, Bordeaux
• Eastern France – Lyon, Toulouse, Strasbourg

Cities in Mainland Spain With Direct Flights to France

• Central Spain – Madrid
• North-East Spain – Barcelona, Zaragoza, Girona
• Northern Spain – Asturias, Bilbao, Santander
• North-West Spain – Santiago
• Southern Spain – Seville, Malaga
• Eastern Spain – Alicante, Valencia

Direct Trains From France to Spain

Currently, there are only two direct train routes to Spain—the new high-speed service from Barcelona to Paris and another along the western coastline up to the border.

For trains to the Spanish city of Irun, stops often occur at the French city of Hendaye instead. These stations are adjacent to one another, requiring a short walk across the border.

Trains heading toward Barcelona also make stops in Figueres and Girona, perfect for those looking to visit the Dali Museum.

• Paris-Barcelona Route – Paris Gare de Lyon (for Barcelona), Valence, Nimes, Montpellier, Beziers, Narbonne, Perpignan
• Paris-Irun Route – Paris Austerlitz and Montparnasse, Bayonne, Hendaye

Discontinued Services

The previously available Talgo train service along the eastern coast of Spain has been discontinued, alongside all other services. Currently, there is no train link between Madrid and France, requiring all passengers to change trains in Barcelona.

Driving

If you’re considering driving, it may be the best option. Keep in mind, however, that driving laws in France and Spain may differ from your home country. Therefore, it’s essential to familiarize yourself with the local road rules before embarking on your trip.

Buses

For international bus routes in Europe, Eurolines is the primary operator running services from France to Spain.

Bus travel from France to Spain is not the quickest option (for example, Lyon to Barcelona, which takes about six hours by car, can take up to 11 hours by bus). Nonetheless, bus services reach many more destinations than the train from France to Spain.

However, as bus journey times can be lengthy, it is rare to choose this option unless necessary.

If you’re in northwestern France, aim to get to Nantes or Paris to fly or take the train. For central France, Bordeaux or Lyon are preferable. That said, some situations might warrant choosing a bus, especially if an overnight bus suits your travel needs. Sometimes, the convenience of direct service, even if longer, may be preferable over connecting services. However, costs can often be high.

For purchasing bus tickets from France to Spain, visit the French Eurolines website at eurolines.fr.

Eurolines Bus Routes from France to Spain

If you find the need to travel by bus between France and Spain, here’s a summary of the main Eurolines routes:

• Paris-Bordeaux-Bilbao-Oviedo
• Paris-Tours-Bordeaux-La Coruña-Santiago de Compostela-Orense
• Paris-Tours-Bordeaux-Madrid
• Paris-Lyon-Barcelona-Valencia-Murcia
• Murcia-Valencia-Zaragoza-Bordeaux-Tours-Paris
• Paris-Tours-Bordeaux-Zaragoza-Valencia-Murcia
• Paris-Tours-Bordeaux-Madrid-Seville-Algeciras
• Lille-Metz-Perpignan-Barcelona-Valencia-Murcia
• Metz-Lille-Reims-Valladolid-Santiago de Compostela-La Coruña
• Metz-Lille-Reims-San Sebastian-Bilbao-Burgos-Madrid-Seville-Algeciras
• Strasbourg-Mulhouse-Barcelona-Madrid-Tarragona-Malaga
  (Note: Barcelona-Madrid-Tarragona is a long route, but it splits in two at Barcelona, allowing for easier access to multiple destinations.)
• Strasbourg-Mulhouse-Metz-Reims-Lyon-Clermont-Ferrand-Bordeaux-Madrid-Malaga-Algeciras
• Rennes-Nantes-Bordeaux-San Sebastian-Bilbao-Orense-Santiago de Compostela-La Coruña (change for Valladolid-Vigo-Pontevedra)
• Rennes-Nantes-Bordeaux-San Sebastian-Valladolid-Madrid-Cáceres-Merida-Cordoba-Seville-Malaga-Algeciras (change for Almeria)
• Tours-Rennes-Bordeaux-Toulouse-Barcelona-Valencia-Murcia
• Lyon-Toulouse-San Sebastian-Bilbao-La Coruña-Santiago de Compostela
• Lyon-Montpellier-Toulouse-Madrid-Seville-Algeciras
• Lyon-Montpellier-Toulouse-San Sebastian-Bilbao-La Coruña-Santiago de Compostela
• Clermond-Ferrand-Lyon-Barcelona-Valencia-Murcia
• Grenoble-Montpellier-Perpignan-Barcelona-Murcia (change for Madrid)
• Nice-Marseille-Perpignan-Barcelona-Madrid-Granada-Algeciras
• Nice-Perpignan-Barcelona-Murcia
• Nice-Marseille-Montpellier-Barcelona
• Nice-Avignon-Montpellier-Perpignan-Barcelona-Valencia-Benidorm-Murcia (change for Granada)
• Carcassonne-Toulouse-Madrid-Malaga-Algeciras