Buying bus / train tickets in Spain

[Burlington]

Greetings to all.
Happy new year to you...

I would to ask your advice about buying bus and train tickets for travel within Spain.

As you know, European countries are becoming more and more digital every year. I haven't been there in a while. Is it still possible to go into a bus or train station a day or two before you want to travel, and buy a ticket with cash, with no prior online reservation, etc. ? Sorry if this is something of a dumb question....

Thank you kindly for your insight.

Cheers

B

 

[Bradypus]

Is it still possible to go into a bus or train station a day or two before you want to travel, and buy a ticket with cash, with no prior online reservation, etc. ?

Most of the time that is still possible. But at peak seasons like Christmas or Easter long distance trains and buses can sell out well in advance. Days or even weeks in advance. Worth making online reservations long before for such times.

 

[alexwalker]

Greetings to all.
Happy new year to you...

I would to ask your advice about buying bus and train tickets for travel within Spain.

As you know, European countries are becoming more and more digital every year. I haven't been there in a while. Is it still possible to go into a bus or train station a day or two before you want to travel, and buy a ticket with cash, with no prior online reservation, etc. ? Sorry if this is something of a dumb question....

Thank you kindly for your insight.

Cheers

B

If you are 60+, take advantage of this year-long offer on train tickets in Spain:

Tarjeta Dorada Discounts, Seniors, Retirees, AVE (high-speed) | Renfe

Discount with Renfe Tarjeta Dorada for seniors and retirees ✅ Up to 40% off on AVE (high-speed), Alvia, Avant (mid-distance high speed), Larga Distancia and Media Distancia (long and mid-distance) trains.

www.renfe.com

 

[dougfitz]

As you know, European countries are becoming more and more digital every year. I haven't been there in a while. Is it still possible to go into a bus or train station a day or two before you want to travel, and buy a ticket with cash, with no prior online reservation, etc. ? Sorry if this is something of a dumb question....

It is where there is a ticket office at a train station or bus station. For services at stations where there isn't a ticket office in Portugal, there are ticket inspectors who also sell tickets on regional and inter-city express trains. I presume there will be similar arrangements on Spanish trains with the ticket inspectors on their services.

In a similar way, it was reasonably common to see bus drivers collecting fares for local services. For longer distance services, there was always a ticket office at places where I was departing from, so it wasn't something that I saw happen.

While the train stations at major towns seemed to have ticket offices, there were places where I have caught the train in both Spain and Portugal with just ticket vending machines. I always used a card at these, although most seemed to be able to accept coins and notes, but I wasn't checking that consistently.

I apologize for being vague about this, and that is that I cannot remember when I was expected to produce my passport. But I suspect it was when purchasing tickets that crossed a border, most recently when travelling from Portugal to Spain and vice versa. It wasn't required for local travel in places like Coimbra, Porto and Lisbon, but it might have been required at some other times.

 

[Jan Jones]

If you are 60+, take advantage of this year-long offer on train tickets in Spain:

Tarjeta Dorada Discounts, Seniors, Retirees, AVE (high-speed) | Renfe

Discount with Renfe Tarjeta Dorada for seniors and retirees ✅ Up to 40% off on AVE (high-speed), Alvia, Avant (mid-distance high speed), Larga Distancia and Media Distancia (long and mid-distance) trains.

www.renfe.com

You can purchase the Tarjeta Dorada at any railway station. It is valid for 12 months and then, as the link from Alex Walker explains , you can renew online which allows you to access early cheap fares from abroad next time you walk.

 

[William H B Mawhinney]

You can purchase the Tarjeta Dorada at any railway station. It is valid for 12 months and then, as the link from Alex Walker explains , you can renew online which allows you to access early cheap fares from abroad next time you walk.

Check that you have cash to purchase the Tarjeta Dorada, I was not allowed to purchase the Tarjeta on my credit card with the rail ticket in 2019, although that may have been changed since then and I haven't had a Tarjeta Dorada since then.

 

[alexwalker]

Check that you have cash to purchase the Tarjeta Dorada, I was not allowed to purchase the Tarjeta on my credit card with the rail ticket in 2019, although that may have been changed since then and I haven't had a Tarjeta Dorada since then.

Last 2 times I paid by card.

 

[Damien Reynolds]

Note: when using digital methods to purchase tickets in advance, I tend to find the dedicated apps work better than the mobile websites. Just an observation.

 

[pjacobi]

Train tickets are now sold on-line just like plane tickets. Prices can change in a nanosecond!

All the games that you play to get airline tickets now apply to train tickets. This is especially true to the faster long-distance trains.

If there is seat availability, you may be able to purchase a ticket at the train station on the same day, but you will pay the highest price.


-Paul

 

[MileHighPair]

Twice in the last few years I have found trains from Santiago to Madrid sold out well in advance. It was not this way 10 years ago. I always buy mine in advance now. I use Rick Steves website to buy tickets because it is so easy, although they do charge a service fee.

 

[OzAnnie]

Check that you have cash to purchase the Tarjeta Dorada, I was not allowed to purchase the Tarjeta on my credit card with the rail ticket in 2019, although that may have been changed since then and I haven't had a Tarjeta Dorada since then.

This may depend .. I purchased the Tarjeta Dorada at Madrid train station in September 2023 (ie recently ).. staff said it had to be paid in CASH ……
(I have purchased the tarjeta dorada at train station on a few other occasions and had to pay with card ..)
Also renewals online would obviously be by card.
Note: I purchased a 3year card …. !!! You can now purchase or renew the card for :
1 yr / 6€.
2 yr / 12€
3 yr / 15€