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There are public phones (cabines ) throughout the city. Use coins or a phonecard.

Purchase a phonecard from a newsstand, phone centre or tobacco shop (estanc ). The Telefónica phonecard comes in denominations of €6 and €12. Other phonecards (BT, Fortune) for international calls are also available and tend to offer cheaper calls.

To make an international call, dial 00 followed by the country code (UK: 44; US/Canada: 1; Australia: 61; New Zealand: 64), the area code and the phone number. To call Spain from abroad, dial the international access code then 34 for Spain plus the full phone number. To make a collect call, or to pay by credit card or your calling card, dial the international operator (9009900) plus the country code. For operator assistance in making international calls from Spain, dial 1008 for EU countries and 1005 for all others. For international information and directory enquiries, dial 11825.

The cost of a local call from a phone booth to a land line is generally about 20 cents. Barcelona phone numbers all begin with the code 93; the rest of Catalonia is divided up into the provinces of Lleida (973), Girona (972) and Tarragona (977). For operator assistance, dial 11818.

Phone centres (locutoris ) provide a more comfortable – and usually cheaper – alternative to public pay phones. Phones are hooked up to a digital display showing the cost, which is paid at the end. Note that the more central the location, the more expensive the call. Prices do not vary dramatically, but Telecomunicaciones del Caribe offers some of the best prices in the city centre.

Post offices (correus ) are usually open 8:30am–8pm Mon–Fri and 10am–1pm Sat, though hours may vary slightly. Barcelona’s main post office is open longer hours. It also offers a range of services, including fax and express mail services (urgente ). The city’s mailboxes are bright yellow, generally with one slot for ciutat (city) and one for altres destinacions (other destinations).

You can receive mail at any post office, but it’s safest to have it sent to the main one. Bring your passport (or a copy of it) to collect mail.

Internet centres are dotted all over Barcelona, many around Plaça de Catalunya and La Rambla. Most are open until 11pm, sometimes midnight. For 24-hour access, head to easyEverything; for cool ambient music, try Cybermundo; and for good deals, opt for Conectate Zona: Aragón 283 93 467 04 43

Courier services will pick up a package and deliver it anywhere in the world, usually within 1–5 days.

You can send and receive faxes at most post offices. Many internet centres also offer fax services, at considerably lower prices.