Getting to Seville

[Ian Mackenzie]

I am looking at walking the Via de la Plata starting mid March 2020 and am looking for suggestions for travel from Sydney Australia to Seville.( Preferably by Aircraft)

 

[Anniesantiago]

I am looking at walking the Via de la Plata starting mid March 2020 and am looking for suggestions for travel from Sydney Australia to Seville.( Preferably by Aircraft)

We may see you on the trail! We begin in Zafra March 2 and will be walking slllloooooowwwww.
I'm pretty sure you should be able to get a flight directly into Seville. If not, a flight to Madrid, and bus/train to Seville.

 

[Donjek]

I am looking at walking the Via de la Plata starting mid March 2020 and am looking for suggestions for travel from Sydney Australia to Seville.( Preferably by Aircraft)

Fly Sydney to Madrid.

Take Renfe Train from Madrid Atocha to Seville Santa Justa. Its high speed and there are several trains daily. http://www.renfe.com/

Rome to Rio suggests flying Sydney to Seville via Barcelona.

You can catch train from Barcelona to Madrid and Madrid to Seville. It might work out cheaper.

 

[Deleted member 73526]

I am looking at walking the Via de la Plata starting mid March 2020 and am looking for suggestions for travel from Sydney Australia to Seville.( Preferably by Aircraft)

I always turn to ITA Matrix to explore my options - It takes some learning but it lets me do some clever searching. For March 2020, Etihad or Emirates might currently be the cheapest options. You can fly to Madrid or Barcelona and then take a domestic flight or train to Seville (ditto from Santiago back to the gateway airport).

 

[Margaret Butterworth]

Avoid Barcelona, in case of further riots breaking out!

 

[Deleted member 73526]

Avoid Barcelona, in case of further riots breaking out!

I cant say that this would be one of my considerations when thinking about where to connect, but everyone has their own view of risk.

 

[SabsP]

Avoid Barcelona, in case of further riots breaking out!

I would think that a general strike in any other city might prove to be a bigger hassle than the small possibility of a riot breaking out.

But to the OP : flying to Madrid seems most sensible in terms of connections.

 

[Ian Mackenzie]

I always turn to ITA Matrix to explore my options - It takes some learning but it lets me do some clever searching. For March 2020, Etihad or Emirates might currently be the cheapest options. You can fly to Madrid or Barcelona and then take a domestic flight or train to Seville (ditto from Santiago back to the gateway airport).

Fly Sydney to Madrid.

Take Renfe Train from Madrid Atocha to Seville Santa Justa. Its high speed and there are several trains daily. http://www.renfe.com/

Rome to Rio suggests flying Sydney to Seville via Barcelona.

You can catch train from Barcelona to Madrid and Madrid to Seville. It might work out cheaper.

Thanks for your suggestions Raggy.

 

[Ian Mackenzie]

Fly Sydney to Madrid.

Take Renfe Train from Madrid Atocha to Seville Santa Justa. Its high speed and there are several trains daily. http://www.renfe.com/

Rome to Rio suggests flying Sydney to Seville via Barcelona.

You can catch train from Barcelona to Madrid and Madrid to Seville. It might work out cheaper.

Thanks Donjek.

 

[t2andreo]

I am doing much the same thing, also in mid to late April. However, I can only walk the first third or so of theis route at this time. I will return in future to finish it.

My travel will be Miami - Madrid - Sevilla on Iberia. I am booking an "open jaw." This means I can return Santiago - Madrid - Miami. The airfare is not materially different from a route trip to Sevilla.

The point is, as was made above, that the easiest way to get to Sevilla to start the VDLP is to fly, via Madrid.

Hope this helps.

 

[Ian Mackenzie]

I am doing much the same thing, also in mid to late April. However, I can only walk the first third or so of theis route at this time. I will return in future to finish it.

My travel will be Miami - Madrid - Sevilla on Iberia. I am booking an "open jaw." This means I can return Santiago - Madrid - Miami. The airfare is not materially different from a route trip to Sevilla.

The point is, as was made above, that the easiest way to get to Sevilla to start the VDLP is to fly, via Madrid.

Hope this helps.

Thanks t2andreo. Thats good advice regarding an open jaw return. That way I won't have to lock myself into a particular finishing date.

 

[NorthernLight]

Thanks t2andreo. Thats good advice regarding an open jaw return. That way I won't have to lock myself into a particular finishing date.

Open jaw gives you a different airport, but you still have to pick the dates. It does save the time not having to travel back to the first destination airport.

 

[Karl Oz]

Fly to Madrid. (I am puzzled why Barcelona is suggested since it adds unnecessary extra time and distance.) I expect carriers like Qatar Airways or Emirates have a one-connection trip of about 22 hours. Then take the train to Sevilla - it is very quick. You can then afterward easily return to Madrid from SdC for your flight home.

 

[Deleted member 73526]

Open jaw can be useful but if you're not 100% sure that you'll finish up in Santiago, you might prefer to book the last domestic leg separately (i.e. different PNR). Depending on the conditions of the ticket that you buy, you may be required to take every flight - failure to fly from Santiago to Madrid might result in the cancellation of the rest of the itinerary (i.e. the Madrid to Sydney part of the trip).

 

[Deleted member 73526]

Fly to Madrid. (I am puzzled why Barcelona is suggested since it adds unnecessary extra time and distance.)

If you're planning to take the train to Seville, then MAD probably works out quicker. But if you opt for flights all the way, Sydney to Seville via BCN is marginally better than via Madrid for journey duration and distance. In truth, though, there really isn't much difference:

• SYD-MAD-SVQ is slightly further (11,230 mi) than SYD-BCN-SVQ (11,186 mi). See screenshots from Great Circle Mapper below.
• On a random date that I chose, the shortest total duration for flights from SYD to SVQ was via BCN. See screenshot of flights sorted by Duration.

Since there is so little in it, I don't think that time and distance are the deciding factors. Cost, airline preference, and ease of connections would be more important considerations for me

• Over a one month period (Apr 2020), that I checked on the ITA website, itineraries via BCN were marginally cheaper than via MAD - maybe 20 to 30 AUD cheaper.
• Ease of connections is probably a wash. BCN probably requires a change of terminal. MAD is a monster airport.
• Airline preference ... whose sardine can do you prefer to be packed into?

 

[jpflavin1]

I am looking at walking the Via de la Plata starting mid March 2020 and am looking for suggestions for travel from Sydney Australia to Seville.( Preferably by Aircraft)

There is no fast way but I would recommend flying to Madrid and then taking the train to Sevilla. There are hourly trains all day. There are also several daily flight options Madrid to Sevilla.

Kayak.com for flights
Renfe.com for trains

 

[Peregrinopaul]

I've done it 3 times from Perth, using Qatar to Madrid, then the fabulous Ave train to Sevilla. I agree with the posts above that the return international to Madrid is the most sensible option.