PortAventura and Ferrari Land for Families

Roller coaster track at a theme park against blue sky

My son ranked his Barcelona experiences on the flight home. Sagrada Familia: “amazing.” Park Guell: “good.” The Aquarium: “quite good.” PortAventura: “THE BEST THING EVER IN MY ENTIRE LIFE.” He said this while still shaking slightly from the Shambhala roller coaster. PortAventura is not subtle. It’s not cultural. It’s not educational. It is, however, the single most exciting day your children will have in Spain.

Roller coaster track at a theme park against blue sky
PortAventura has roller coasters for every age group. From gentle rides for under-5s in SésamoAventura to the genuinely terrifying Shambhala (76 metres high, 134 km/h) for thrill-seekers. My eight-year-old graduated from the kids’ section to the intermediate rides in one visit. My five-year-old was happy in the SésamoAventura area all day. Both came home buzzing. That’s the sign of a good theme park.

PortAventura World is Spain’s biggest theme park, about 90 minutes south of Barcelona near the town of Salou. It has three parks: PortAventura Park (the main theme park), Ferrari Land (a Ferrari-themed section with Europe’s tallest roller coaster), and Caribe Aquatic Park (a water park). You can buy tickets for one, two, or all three.

Here’s everything families need to know.

Children with excited expressions on a theme park ride
The expressions on their faces are worth every penny. We’ve done Disneyland Paris and honestly, PortAventura is better value. It’s less crowded, the rides are more varied, and the queues are shorter. My kids didn’t wait more than 20 minutes for anything, even in July. Compare that to 90-minute waits at Disney and the maths speaks for itself.
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Short on Time? Here Are Our Top Picks

PortAventura + Ferrari Land Combo — $59
Both parks in one ticket. 1, 2, or 3-day options. Best value for families doing a full day.
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Caribe Aquatic Park 1-Day — $37
Water slides, wave pools, lazy rivers. Perfect for hot summer days. Under-3s free.
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PortAventura Park: What Families Should Know

Colourful entrance gate to a theme park
The park is divided into six themed worlds. Mediterranean, Far West, Mexico, China, Polynesia, and SésamoAventura (for small children). Each world has its own rides, restaurants, and shows. The theming is genuinely good — not Disney-level, but far better than most European parks. My kids believed they were “in Mexico” during the Templo del Fuego show. The fire effects helped.

The main park has over 40 rides spread across six themed areas. For families, the key areas are SésamoAventura (ages 2-6) with gentle rides, colourful characters, and a playground; and the main park zones for older children who can handle more intense rides.

Height restrictions apply to most rides. Check the PortAventura app before you go — it lists minimum heights for every ride. Children under 100cm (about age 3) are limited to SésamoAventura. Between 100-130cm (ages 3-8) opens up most family rides. Above 130cm unlocks the big coasters.

Colourful carousel with painted horses at amusement park
SésamoAventura is essentially a theme park within a theme park. Elmo, Cookie Monster, and the Sesame Street gang have their own rides, shows, and play areas. For under-6s, this is the whole day. The rides are gentle, colourful, and perfectly sized. My daughter rode the mini roller coaster seven times. The queue was never more than five minutes. She declared it “better than Peppa Pig World.” Controversial, but she meant it.

Ferrari Land: Worth It for Families?

Red Ferrari sports car on display
Ferrari Land is smaller than the main park and more focused on speed and thrills. The centrepiece is Red Force — Europe’s tallest and fastest roller coaster (112 metres, 180 km/h). My eight-year-old was too short to ride it. He was devastated. But there are also go-karts, junior driving experiences, and interactive Ferrari simulators that kept him happy for two hours. If your kids are car-obsessed, it’s worth the combo ticket.

Ferrari Land is a separate section included in the combo ticket. It’s smaller than PortAventura Park — you can see everything in 2-3 hours. The headline ride (Red Force) requires a minimum height of 140cm, which rules out most under-10s.

For families, the appeal is the go-kart track (ages 6+), the Junior Ferrari experience (a driving simulator for younger kids), and the general Ferrari-themed atmosphere. Car-mad children will love it regardless of their height. Children who don’t care about cars will be bored within an hour.

My recommendation: get the combo ticket (it’s only about $19 more than PortAventura alone), spend the morning in the main park, pop into Ferrari Land after lunch, and finish the day back in PortAventura. That way everyone gets what they want.

Caribe Aquatic Park: The Summer Essential

Colourful water slides at a family water park
The water park is a separate day from the theme park. Don’t try to combine them — you’ll end up doing neither properly. The water park has slides for every age and bravery level, a lazy river, a wave pool, and splash areas for toddlers. In July and August, this is the better option for families with under-5s. The kids cool off, the slides tire them out, and everyone sleeps well that night.

Caribe Aquatic Park opens May to September. It’s a full-size water park with slides, a wave pool, a lazy river, and dedicated toddler splash zones. A separate ticket is required ($37 per adult).

For families visiting in summer, this is often the best day. The heat in July-August makes the theme park exhausting — you’re queueing in 35°C sun. The water park solves this problem entirely. Every queue ends in getting wet. Every ride cools you down. And the toddler areas are genuinely excellent — shallow pools, gentle sprays, and enough activities to fill a full day for under-5s.

Children enjoying an outdoor swimming pool
The toddler splash zones are the best part for small children. Knee-deep water, soft surfaces, gentle sprays, and enough activities to keep a two-year-old occupied for hours. We spent the entire afternoon here while the older kids did the bigger slides. Both age groups were equally happy. That’s the definition of a successful family water park.

Practical Tips

Family enjoying a fun day out at an amusement park
Arrive at opening time. The park opens at 10am (check the website for exact times — they vary by season). The first two hours have the shortest queues. Do the big rides first while everyone else is still arriving. By midday the queues double. By 2pm the popular rides have 30-40 minute waits. Early birds win at PortAventura.

Getting there from Barcelona. Trains run from Barcelona Sants to Port Aventura station (about 90 minutes). Some tours include coach transport from Barcelona — check the full-day trip with transport option if you don’t want to navigate trains. By car it’s about 1 hour 15 minutes on the AP-7 motorway.

One day or two? One day is enough for PortAventura Park if you arrive at opening. Two days if you want to include Ferrari Land and/or the water park. The 2-day ticket is better value than buying separate days.

Food. Park food is expensive and mediocre. Budget 15-20 euros per person for lunch. You can’t bring food into the park (bags are checked at the entrance). Some families eat a big breakfast at the hotel and only buy snacks and drinks inside. This saves a fortune.

Where to stay. Salou has dozens of family-friendly hotels within walking distance of the park. We stayed one night in Salou and made it a two-day trip — theme park on day one, water park on day two, then back to Barcelona. This is the smartest approach with children. Doing it as a day trip from Barcelona (3+ hours of travel) is tiring for everyone.

Sandy beach along the Costa Dorada coastline near Salou Spain
Salou has beautiful beaches if you stay overnight. The Costa Dorada coast is flatter and sandier than the Costa Brava — perfect for small children. We spent the morning after PortAventura on Salou beach before driving back to Barcelona. The kids said it was “the best holiday within a holiday.” They weren’t wrong. Two days in Salou is the hidden gem of any Barcelona family trip.

The Best Tickets for Families

1. PortAventura + Ferrari Land 1, 2, or 3-Day Ticket — $59

PortAventura and Ferrari Land combo ticket
The combo ticket is the best value for families. Over 2,100 reviews. Both parks, flexible 1-3 day options. The 2-day ticket gives you enough time to do both parks properly without rushing. Online booking avoids the ticket office queue, which on summer mornings can be 20-30 minutes. Under-3s free. Children aged 4-10 get a reduced rate.

The most popular ticket combining both PortAventura and Ferrari Land. Over 2,100 reviews. Flexible duration options. Our full review covers park layout and family strategy. The obvious choice for families who want both parks.

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2. Caribe Aquatic Park 1-Day Ticket — $37

PortAventura Caribe Aquatic Park ticket
The water park is the summer essential. Over 1,300 reviews. Slides for every age group, wave pool, lazy river, and brilliant toddler areas. At $37 per adult it’s cheaper than a day at the theme park. Open May-September only. If you’re visiting in peak summer with small children, this might be the better option over the main park — everyone stays cool and happy.

The water park component of PortAventura World. Over 1,300 reviews. Full-day access to slides, pools, and splash zones. Our review covers the best slides for different ages. Best for families visiting in summer who want to beat the heat.

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Read Our Review

More Barcelona Family Guides

Children splashing and playing in a swimming pool on a summer day
PortAventura is the exclamation mark on any Barcelona family holiday. Do the Gaudi buildings, the aquarium, and the cultural stuff first — then finish with a day (or two) of pure adrenaline at the theme park. The kids end the holiday on a high. You end the holiday collapsed in a Salou hotel room. Everyone wins. Just maybe save the roller coasters for after lunch, not before.

PortAventura is the perfect end-of-holiday treat after a week of Barcelona culture. Pair it with the city’s best family experiences: Sagrada Familia for the wow-factor building, Park Guell for outdoor Gaudi magic, the Aquarium and Zoo for animal lovers, and the hop-on hop-off bus to tie everything together. A week of Barcelona culture followed by two days of PortAventura chaos is the family holiday formula that works every single time.