Country info: Spain (Espana)

Rail companies: Renfe (Red Nacional de los Ferrocarriles Españoles)

Spanish Rail Network Map 

Currency: Euro 

Train travel in Spain: train types, tickets, fares, discounts & other useful info

National Train Service:

Train types in Spain: Commuter/Suburban, Regional, Long distance (Arco/Talgo/Alaris/EuroMed/Duirno/Estrella); High-speed (AVE/Alvia/Altaria) & sleeper Trenhotel trains

• Commuter/Suburban (marked as Cercanías on Renfe website) – commuter and short-distance service around big cities like Barcelona, Madrid, Seville etc., no seat reservation required
• Regional (marked as Media Distancia & Avant on Renfe website) – medium distance trains regional & interregional service (in some instances can be express trains – Catalunya express;  Andalucia express etc.), no seat reservation required
• Arco/Alaris/EuroMed/Duirno/Estrella/Talgo – daytime & overnight long-distance trains, mainly operate on up to 200km/h speed and serve various routes between major and minor Spanish destinations (also can serve international routes like 'Talgo' Montpellier-Barcelona/Valencia/Alicante/ Cartagena or 'Estrella' Madrid-Cerbere), seat reservation compulsory
• AVE/Alvia/Altaria – high-speed trains operating with speeds more than 200km/h and serving major Spanish rail routes (like from Madrid to Barcelona, Seville, Malaga etc.), seat reservation compulsory
• TrenHotel – national & international overnight sleeper trains, seat/sleeper reservation compulsory. Currently there is 4 domestic routes ('Rias Gallegas' from Madrid to A Coruña, Pontevedra, Ferrol; 'Alhambra' from Barcelona to Granada; 'Pio Baroja' from Barcelona to Gijón and 'Galicia' from Barcelona to A Coruña) & 3 international routes ('Lusitania' from Madrid to Lisbon, 'Joan Miro' from Barelona to Paris, 'Pau Casals' from Barcelona to Zurich (service suspsended), 'Salvado Dalí' from Barcelona to Milan (service suspsended) & 'Francisco de Goya' from Madrid to Paris)

 Discounts, special offers & ways to save money for passengers traveling in Spain:

1.  Early ticket purchase ensures best fares - golden rule for almost any rail company in Western Europe, Spain & Renfe is not an exception. Spanish Railways for almost any connections (daytime or overnight) offers a limited amount of special discounted tickets under offer "Promo" (previously known as Tarifa WEB), which gives up to 70% discount from the standard ticket price, "Promo" tickets are nonexchangeable & nonrefundable. Similar offer, but with possibility to change/refund ticket, offered for high-speed AVE and other long distance trains is "Promo+", it gives up to 65% discount
   On Renfe website "Promo" tickets will be shown as , while "Promo+" as
2. Another relatively easy way to save 20% on train tickets in Spain is to purchase return tickets (such discount only applies when passenger travels on the same route & both journeys are done in less than 60 days). On Renfe website return tickets with 20% discount will be shown as
3. Renfe also offers special family discount (from 20% up to 50%) on both medium and long-distance trains (including high-speed), offer is called Familia Numerosa (=Large Family)
   
4. Also special group/family discount applies for AVE high-speed trains only, it allows up to 60% discount for groups & families when 4 passengers occupy 4 seats facing each other, offer is called Tarifa Mesa. On Renfe website "Mesa" tickets will be shown as
5. Another simple & easy way to save on train tickets in Spain is to use regional trains instead of more expensive high-speed train. Obviously regional trains are slower and in many cases you will will need to change trains on route, but on the contrary tickets for regional trains are much cheaper & can be purchased even before departure. For instance, on journey from Madrid to Valencia standard ticket for direct regional train cost only 26,35 euro, standard ticket for high-speed AVE train is 72,4 euro
   
6. For passengers planning multiple journeys within Spain, Renfe offers special Spanish Pass, rail pass is valid for one month (from the date of first journey) for 4, 6, 8, 10 or 12 trips on AVE or Media Distancia train. Spanish Pass offered in two classes: Business/Club or Tourist & can be bought online via Renfe website. Prices for Spanish Pass start from € 163 (adult, 4 trips) to € 392 (adult, 12 trips) in Tourist Class & from € 229 (adult, 4 trips) to € 550 (adult, 12 trips) in Business/Club Class

International Train Service:

a) Regular discounts

Portugal: 20% off on all the return tickets for Spain-Portugal overnights TrenHotel trains (from Madrid to Lisbon & from Irun to Lisbon)

France: 30% off on all the return tickets for Spain-France overnight Elipsos TrenHotel trains (from Madrid to Paris & from Barcelona to Paris)

Switzerland: 30% off on all the return tickets for Spain-Switzeland overnight Elipsos TrenHotel train from Barcelona to Zurich (NB: connection suspended)

Italy: 30% off on all the return tickets for Spain-Italy overnight Elipsos TrenHotel train from Barcelona to Milan (NB: connection suspended)

b) Special offers (SparSchiene)

Offer Mini : Trenhotel Elipsos routes (from Madrid to Paris & from Barcelona to Paris) from only 74 euro (Tourist Class)

Prem's : discounted ticket for direct TGV trains from (Barcelona)-Figueres to France (Perpignan, Montpellier, Nimes, Valence, Paris)

Promo & Promo+ : discounted ticket for overnight Trenhotel tains from Spain to Portugal

c) CityStars

Not available

Besides various discounted tickets (MINI, Prem's) for direct connections from Spain to France it is also possible relatively cheap to cross the border using regional trains from Barelona to Cerbere (first French station after the border), ticket Barcelona-Cerbere cost only 12,6 euro (or 16,9 euro for slightly faster Media Distancia train), while from Cerbere passengers can easily catch trains to many destination in France & buy discounted French domestic tickets (www.tgv-europe.com)

Passenger <26 or >60 years old planning to travel extensively to/from Spain (& between other European countries) also might consider purchasing Rail Plus Card (allows you to save 25%)

How to Buy Train Tickets in Spain:

Domestic (national) & some international tickets (including offers) can be bought online via official Renfe website - www.venta.renfe.com

Tickets for trips between Spain & France (including Elipsos Trenhotel and TGV trains) can be also purchase via www.tgv-europe.com

Do you still have further questions or want to share your own travel experience? You are welcome on our Forum

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