	Barcelona Activities 2009: "Hop on Hop Off" Sightseeing Bus, Flamenco Show, Tapas Evening, FC Stadium Tour

Your Guide To The Formula 1 Barcelona Grand Prix 2009

Grand Prix Barcelona 2009 This page will give you all the essentials practicalities for attending the Barcelona Grand Prix 2009. Find out how to travel to the circuit, how to buy your grand prix tickets and how to prepare for the day to ensure that it is as easy and pleasurable as possible.

Where Is The 2009 Formula 1 Grand Prix Venue in Barcelona?

The Barcelona Grand Prix will be staged at the Catalunya Circuit which is 12 miles 20km North East of Barcelona city centre. It is situated in a small town called Montmelo.

When is the Grand Prix Main Event?

Sunday May 10th is the date of the final race. Practice and qualifying sessions will take place on the Friday 8th and Saturday 9th before the big race on Sunday 10th May. You can therefore make a weekend of the event and buy a 3 day pass.

Tickets: How do I Buy My Grand Prix Ticket?

The easiest way to buy your Grand Prix Tickets is to buy them online. Click here to purchase your Barcelona Grand Prix Tickets

How do I travel From Barcelona Centre To The Catalunya Circuit?

You have 2 main public transport options.

Train to the Catalunya Circuit

You can catch the train from either Barcelona Sants, Passeig de Gracia or Clot rail stations in Barcelona centre. You will then need to get off at Montmelo station which is the nearest stop to the Catalunya F1 race circuit.

Train Tickets. May be purchased from any of the rail stations mentioned above.

Price of Train Tickets

One Way Ticket (billete sencillo) 1.50 euros
Return Ticket RENFE 3.00 euros

Train journey time: 28 minutes from Barcelona Sants to Montmelo station.

Train Timetable: Barcelona Sants to Montmelo use the link below to look up the train timetable.

When you follow the link below select Barcelona Sants in the Origen and Montmelo for the destination. Then click Horarios (timetable). The other 2 stations are not shown in this menu but the train also stops at Passeig de Gracia and Barcelona clot.

Timetable For Train From Barcelona Sants to Montmelo (stop nearest the Formula 1 Barcelona Grand Prix Circuit

Train map from Barcelona centre to Montmelo the map is not that easy to read but you can zoom in and out.

Once at Montmelo you have a few options to arrive at the Formula 1 circuit. You can walk to the race circuit. It is worth noting that this is quite a difficult journey by foot. It will take around 30 minutes and is along some rather large roads.

Click here for a map to walk from Montmelo station to the F1 Barcelona Catalunya race track

Alternatively there is a small shuttle bus / train that operates between the Rail station and the Catalunya circuit. This operates throughout the day on the 8th, 9th and 10th May. It is free of charge for people with tickets for the Circuit. Important note – the shuttle buses only run on the Grand Prix days and not throughout the year.

Last year over 47, 000 people used this regional train service over the three day period. The RENFE train company puts on extra trains for this period to compensate. However, it is still worth remembering that the trains are likely to be very busy

Bus Transfer from Barcelona centre to the Grand Prix race course

There will be a special bus service operating to transfer for spectators of the Grand Prix from Barcelona centre to the race venue at Circuit de Catalunya. This is organized by the coach company Sagalés.

Where to catch the transfer bus to the Grand Prix Circuit

The bus leaves from outside Passeig Sant Joan 52 - Diputacion. The nearest metro stops are:
Metro Tetuan (Purple Line, L2) or Girona (Yellow Line, L4)

Bus tickets may be obtained from the ticket office at:
Passeig Sant Joan, 52

Alternatively, it is possible to book the tickets fro the Sagalés phone line: (0034) 90 213 0014

Price of Return Bus Ticket - 8.00 euros

Operating hours for ticket sales: Monday to Thursday from 09:00 until 14:00 and 15:00 to 18:00 Friday: 09:00 until 14:00

Bus operating hours:
The buses will be running from Passeig de Sant Joan Number 52. Buses leave every 5 minutes on the 8th, 9th and 10th May 2009. They operate from 07:00 – 23:30 on 8th and 9th May and from 06:00 – 22:30 on 10th May.

Buses arrive at the East area of the Circuit de Catalunya.

For the return journey, buses leave from the drop-off point at the East area of Circuit de Catalunya. They run from 15:30 until 17:30 on 8th, from 15:00 – 19:00 on 9th and from 15:00 – 18:00 on 10th.

Driving to Circuit de Catalunya

There are 32, 000 parking spaces at Circuit de Catalunya. The Circuit pride themselves on being one of the international circuits with parking within close proximity of the racetrack. Despite this, it is worth bearing in mind that the track is over 4 km long. Therefore, it is essential that you park your car as close to your seating as possible.

Facilities at the Track

Food

Around the edges of the track there are more than 120 points where food and drink are available. These include sandwiches, pizzas and other fast foods

Prior to attending the Circuit it is also possible to organize various food options for your arrival.

It is possible to purchase ‘Tickets’. These allow you to order a picnic box, for a minimum order of 20 euros. These comprise beverages, meals and snacks.

There are also three points around the circuit where a three-course meal is available – the ‘Menu’. There are two points called ‘Gourmet Grille’ and one point called ‘Mediterranean’where they can be purchased. Picnic style seating is available. The menu includes first course (with options of various salads, noodles or paella), second course (a selection of meats with garnish), dessert (ice cream or fruit salad), a drink (soft drinks, mineral water, energy drink or beer), bread and coffee. The price of the whole meal is 45 euros.

Both ‘menus’ and ‘tickets’ can be purchased by sending an e-mail to circuitcat@aramark.es

Recommended items to bring with you to the Catalunya Circuit

Formula 1 organisers suggest that it is worth bringing the following with you to the Circuit:

Sunglasses
Sun Cream
A Hat
Comfortable Shoes
Ear plugs or ear muffs

The Circuit de Catalunya is a very large and very exposed area. The races will be taking place under the Spanish sun at the height of the summer. Bear this in mind when preparing for your day and bring everything that you can to make the experience as pleasant as possible.

People with tickets for the non-seated grass Pelouse area often bring umbrellas. Not only will this protect you from the strong Spanish sun, it will also help you to hold on to your space if you have a prime position for watching the race!

Many people also bring ear muffs or earplugs or headphones to the event as the noise produced by the cars can be extremely loud. True Formula 1 aficionados have headphones with special built-in radios. This allows them to listen to the race commentary whilst blocking out external noise.

These sets are also available to rent at the Circuit. For a rental cost of 50 euros it is possible to hire earphones with a built-in radio and a small hand-held television screen broadcasting the race. The commentary is available in Catalan, Castellano, English and French. The packs are available from a stall that is situated in the Principal area where the team shops are located.

Disabled Facilities

The Circuit de Catalunya has various facilities for disabled customers.

Disabled parking is located in front of Gate 1 (North Area) in PA2.

Disabled seating is available on the top section of Grandstand G (Stadium Area) and in the main Grandstand (Main Straight, in front of the pits).

The main grandstand has lifts and adapted toilets. Grandstand G also has a adapted toilets.

A general admission ticket will ensure access to all of these areas.

Screens

There are 23 screens places around the circuit. These have been designed to assure that all seats at any point in the Circuit can view the whole race.

When to Arrive at the GP Circuit

On the 8th, 9th and 10th May the GP Circuit will be open fro 07:00. In an attempt to avoid problems of large crowds the Circuit offer incentives to people to get to the venue as early as possible. This means that films are screened on the 23 large screens positioned around the circuit. Last year Pixar’s ‘Cars’ was shown.

Free sun cream will also be handed to the first 20,000 guests to arrive at the Circuit.

For those with tickets for the Pelouse area there is even more reason to get to the Circuit as early as possible. As there is no seating in this section, the early birds can baggsy the prime spots for the race and spread out with their umbrellas and picnic blankets.

Circuit de Catalunya Director, Ramón Praderas, advised that it is worth being patient on leaving the Circuit at the end of the day. To avoid large crowds and queues of traffic you should simply take a walk around the circuit or go for a drink until the crowds have subsided.