How to get to Altafulla: train, car and airports

Altafulla is 12 km from Tarragona and an hour from Barcelona, and it is easy to reach in the two ways that matter: by train, with the station right by the beach, and by car, with its own motorway exit. What follows are the times and routes we use ourselves, including both airports and the high-speed train.

By train: Altafulla-Tamarit station

The station is called Altafulla-Tamarit and it is in the seafront quarter, a short walk from the sand and fifteen minutes’ walk uphill from the Vila Closa. It is served by the RT2 line of Rodalies del Camp de Tarragona and by Renfe Media Distancia regional trains, with a train every half hour on normal timetables.

Reference times:

• Tarragona: 5 minutes.
• Barcelona: a little under an hour to the city centre.
• Salou and PortAventura: about 30 minutes.

It is the most convenient way to come in summer: you save yourself the parking, which in August is Altafulla’s real problem, and you step off the train with the beach in front of you.

Photo pendingAltafulla-Tamarit station, with the beach and the castle behind

High-speed trains: Camp de Tarragona

The Camp de Tarragona high-speed station is about 20 km away, in the municipality of La Secuita–Perafort, with hourly trains to Barcelona (30 minutes), Madrid (2 h 45) and Seville (4 h). From the station to Altafulla you need a taxi or a hire car: there is no convenient direct public transport connection.

By car

• From Barcelona (1 hour): AP-7 towards Tarragona as far as exit 32, which also connects with the A-7. Then the N-340 to the village.
• From Tarragona (10 minutes): N-340 or A-7 heading north.
• From Reus airport (20 minutes): A-7 towards Tarragona and the northern coast.
• From Barcelona-El Prat airport (45 minutes): straight down the AP-7.

Parking. From October to June there is no problem in either part of the village. In July and August, the seafront quarter fills up before midday: arrive early, park in the upper part and walk down, or come by train. The streets of the Vila Closa are narrow and cobbled: you leave the car outside the walls.

By bus

• From Tarragona: Tarragona’s number 12 city bus comes as far as Altafulla, stopping next to the Caprabo supermarket (Aiguamolls del Gaià). In the other direction it drops you next to the Roman circus and the walls of Tàrraco, which is the best day trip from here.
• To Salou and PortAventura: the Penedès bus line connects Altafulla with Tarragona, Salou and PortAventura.
• Barcelona, Lleida and Zaragoza: there are regular intercity coach services stopping in Altafulla.

Getting around Altafulla

Altafulla is two centres, the Vila Closa at the top and the beach below, joined by a fifteen-minute path that crosses the railway line. You do not need a car for anything that matters: the beach, Les Botigues, the Vila, the Roman villa and the walk to Tamarit are all done on foot. By bike, the Ronda Verda del Baix Gaià route starts from the hermitage of Sant Antoni.

Day trips from Altafulla

• Roman Tarragona: 5 minutes by train or 10 by car. Amphitheatre, circus and walls, a World Heritage Site.
• Torredembarra and Els Muntanyans: the neighbouring town to the north, with its lighthouse and 62 hectares of wetland with boardwalks; you can walk there along the cliffs (4.6 km) or take a train.
• PortAventura and Salou: 30 minutes by train.

With that sorted, the next step is what to see in Altafulla and, if you are staying, where to stay.