October 5, 2026

Monday – Travel Day

Malpensa Airport, Ferno, Lombardia, Italia > Barcelona El Prat Josep Tarradellas Airport, between the municipalities of El Prat de Llobregat, Viladecans and Sant Boi > Le Méridien Hotel, Barcelona, Spain

That was a mouthful. Wednesday, we start our first Tauck Tour. We are going today because there is no flight on Tuesday. We are going to take a tour of La Sagrada Família on Tuesday. Mike and Maddie arrive late on Tuesday and have a dinner planned with friends from New Jersey who happen to be in Barcelona.

It is an hour-and-forty-minutes of flight time between Malpensa and Barcelona. It is a three-minute walk from the hotel here at the airport to our check-in with Ryanair. Our flight is at 16:30, so we’ll head over to the airport about 14:00.

Barcelona’s El Prat Airport (BCN) is located about 15 km (9 ½ miles) from the airport to the hotel. In theory, Tauck is supposed to have a representative me us at the airport and have an arranged ride to the hotel. We are sure it will happen, ok we’re hoping.

The Barcelona airport is Spain’s second biggest international airport after Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport. It is also the largest in Catalonia and along the Mediterranean coast. It is the seventh busiest in Europe. Last year over 57.4 million passengers past through the airport on some 360,000 flights. Malpensa ranks 21st in the number of passengers with 31.3 million passengers. We have been in 13 of the top twenty busiest airports in Europe.

The last time and the only time I have been in Barcelona was 1964 with my parents. We went to Portugal and Spain again in 1999 with my mother, brother, nieces, and our children, but we stayed in the south of Portugal and Spain. It was in 1964 that we also took the side trip to Andorra.

About 06:50 this morning I went over to the airport and had a cappuccino and brioche. Got back to the room, did research on churches in Roma and the Valtellina for Harry & Ali. Wrote some emails and tried to wake Mary up at 08:00. Then again at 08:30. Finally at 09:00 I said it was time and she had to get out of bed.

We were back down in Il Canneto, which serves as the breakfast room, for breakfast by 09:20. We had a fairly heavy breakfast because it is likely we won’t get lunch. We know Ryanair isn’t going to serve us anything. We check-in at 14:30. So there is time for a lunch, but not just before flying.

We get to Barcelona Airport at 18:10. And given that we are checking bags, it will probably be 19:00 before we even get to the hotel. Which, in European and Spanish time, is about the time restaurants open for dinner, we could have dinner, but probably not. Mary complained about eating such a large dinner last night and going to bed with a full stomach.

When we got back to the room after breakfast, I took a nap and Mary too her shower and got cleaned up. An hour later I got up and got dressed, again, and we went and played cards in the members’ lounge. We had a really good game and Mary only won by 30 points, and that is a close game.

The housekeeper was sitting on the floor outside our room when we returned. She was probably waiting for us to vacate the room so she could clean it. We still had a little time before we needed to leave for the airport, but we decided to give the housekeeper a break and head to the airport. Our flight is at 16:05 and it was just approaching 13:45.

The walk to the airport, including checking out, took all of fifteen minutes.  We arrived at the Ryanair check-in and bag drop almost exactly two hours before our flight; like good little travelers. Check-in was really easy. You scan your boarding pass, put your bag on the scale, the machine produces a luggage tag, a nice young man put the tag on for us, then you do the next bag until you are finished. Once all the bags were tagged you take them to the drop-off point and put them one by one on the belt. The posts on either side belt read the tag and send it on its way.

After that we walked to security. Because of my cane we get to use the “family & disabled” line. It took maybe fifteen minutes to get through security. The it was running the duty-free gauntlet to get to the gate. In typical fashion they don’t post the gate until thirty to forty-five minutes before your flight. We do know it is an “A” gate. One of two choices “A” or “B”. There ware still about 60 “A” gates.

Walking towards the “A” gates we passed, well actually we didn’t pass, we stopped at a Furla store. Mary bought herself another Furla watch. Then, we continued on to the “A” gates and found a place to sit where we could see the board with all the flights. IT said the gate would be posted at 15:15.

15:15 came and went. The board changed to delayed until 18:00. A two-hour delay. Shortly thereafter we get a text from Ryanair that the flight was delayed. Ok, this meant that we would now arrive in Barcelona at 20:10 instead of 18:10. We decided to find somewhere to get something to eat. Ryanair doesn’t serve anything, although they do offer things for sale.

We went to the Roadhouse. Mary got a chicken and cheese quesadilla, I ordered a chicken bowl with rice and green beans. They were both ordered using one of those screens. We ordered separately as one of watched the table while the other ordered. Mary’s came up quick. For some reason mine took about fifteen minutes. Not that it matters there is no hurry.

We finished our snack and headed back to the area near the board to see if any new information had posted. It now said that the gate would post at 16:45. Our suspicions were aroused almost immediately. 16:45 is still and hour-and-a-half before our new departure time. There are only two reasons for this. First, it isn’t going to happen and they are just stringing you along before they cancel the flight. Second choice, it is one of those flights where you get to walk or take a bus to a second terminal, before climbing the stairs to get on the plane.

Then at 16:46 the posted “aspetta gate”; or waiting for a gate. To our surprise it changed to A06. An actual gate number. We took off like a shot for the gate. It was a fairly good walk to the gate. We got there. There was a ramp and everything – except an airplane. We stood at the head of the line for priority boarding, paid for in advance, and waited.

Finally, at 17:30 they said ready to board. Interestingly still no plane at the end of the ramp. They began processing people, checking ids and boarding passes. They moved us into a secure waiting area. Then they opened the doors and we headed down the ramp. When we got to the end, the directed us down a set of stairs to the tarmac. And we waited again.

 Goodbye Milano

Hello - Barcelona

A ramp agent then lead us onto the tarmac through a set of barriers, towards an airplane sitting on the tarmac with a set of stairs leading to airplane. We walked up the stairs and boarded the plane just about 18:00, the time when we were supposed to land in Barcelona.

The boarding is a Ryanair boarding – chaotic. Small plane, six seats across, three on each side of a center isle and everyone trying to shove as much as possible into the overhead bins. Ryanair used to be much stricter about luggage. Finally, everyone in their seats. An announcement – sorry folks we are going to be delayed another forty minutes here on the ground while we get fitted into the take-off schedule.

So for forty minutes we sat in the plane. The five-year-old in front of me rocking back and forth in his seat; the six-year-old behind me kicking the back of my seat. People go up and were gathering in the narrow isle talking at what seemed as loud as the could. The person next to Mary was talking to the people behind her. Then another announcement – sorry folks it we have just been informed it will be another fifteen or twenty minutes before we secure a take-off slot.

A few minutes later they told everyone to get back in their seats and prepare for take-off. Right. Like that is going to happen. In the EU there is a three-hour rule. If your plane is three hours late, you are entitled compensation from the airline. It is now 17:00. In five minutes we are all entitled to compensation. The plane starts moving.

The next hour was the flight from hell. Little kids, people talking at the top of their vocal range. We landed a little after it had gone 20:30. Two-hours-and-twenty minutes late. We got to baggage claim, and it said the bags would be delivered in thirty minutes. It was more like fifteen minutes. We got out bags and headed out.

Just outside the exit from baggage was a guy holding a Tauck sign. We connected with him immediately. He took the cart with the bags and led us out to our car. We then spent the next half-hour getting to the Le Méridien in downtown Barcelona. He was very nice and spoke very good English. One of the first things he warned us of was pick-pockets. Be very careful. Much worse than New York.

We checked into the hotel. We will be here four nights. They gave us an upgraded room due to our platinum status with Marriott. We went to the room. If this is an upgrade at a five-star hotel in Barcelona, then the regular room is the size of a small closet. It is nice. It has a nice bed, a desk against the wall, a very uncomfortable chair, a bathroom with a shower-tub combination, but it is maybe 11 - 13 square meters (120 - 130 square feet).

We ordered a club sandwich for dinner. We thought we should eat something ebfore going to bed. It was ok, but Mary noted that there was no lettuce. I didn’t miss it. It was turkey and ham, with a fried egg. Interesting, but tasty.

We finished the sandwich and went to bed.

Buenas noches y hola - Buonanotte e Ciao,

Enrico e Maria