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Top tip for using RENFE trains in Spain

Rich1

Active Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Frances (5/15)
Frances & Muxia (2016-18)
Camino from Madrid (9/18)
Frances to Burgos (9/19)
TBC
Top tip for using trains in Spain - don't always trust the RENFE website for train times.

The website stated first train from Segovia to Leon today was 10.03.
I thought I'd check other possibilities on Rome2Rio which said earliest train was 7.08 arriving in Vallodolid at 7.45 and then on to Leon at 8.10. RENFE site confirmed the individual train times.

Arriving early at Segovia station, I asked for a ticket to Leon and was told the next train was 10.03!! I then used my best Camino Spanish (!!) to explain that I thought I could get a train to Vallodolid then to Leon. She had a quick check and agreed. I simply had to buy separate tickets for each leg.

So don't necessarily trust the RENFE website (or the people at the ticket desk) . Always worth checking Rome2Rio first
 
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Another tip: you can obtain a Seniors Card which lasts for one year (if you are as old as me!) It costs 6 or 7 Euros and gives you great discounts on rail travel. Ask at the ticket office.
 
Margaret Butterworth said:
Another tip: you can obtain a Seniors Card which lasts for one year (if you are as old as me!) It costs 6 or 7 Euros and gives you great discounts on rail travel. Ask at the ticket office.
Click to expand...
I have had one for several years, but never used it. There always has been a special going that cost less than the senior discount fare! Still, it is worth having "in case."
 
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Margaret Butterworth said:
Another tip: you can obtain a Seniors Card which lasts for one year (if you are as old as me!) It costs 6 or 7 Euros and gives you great discounts on rail travel. Ask at the ticket office.
Click to expand...

Thats a tip I can't quite use...yet
 
Hola, Rich!

I think you encountered something else in Segovia than wrong info on their web site. The thing is that Segovia has TWO train stations! One in town, close to the center but the other one (for higher speed trains) called Segovia AV is approx.2km out of the city.
Might that be a glitch? Different departure times from different train stations?
 
good thinking bit the trains were both from the high speed station out of town
 
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Rich1 said:
good thinking bit the trains were both from the high speed station out of town
Click to expand...
Duh???
You're right. I checked trains for tomorrow and the times are the same as for today and all are from Segovia AV. Can't think of any logical explanation. Anyway I hope you get to Leon safe to continue your Camino
 
Renfe’s website is definitely not infallible for gving you all the options, because it doesn’t pick up all the possible connections, as you found out. But Rome2rio can be equally limited, because it just directs you back to Renfe’s web site.

I find that the best thing to do — assuming I don’t find a good solution on Renfe — is to look on a map for large intermediate towns, and then check journeys to each of the legs separately. For example, in going once from Madrid to Fromista, I found more solutions by checking the Madrid - Valladolid and Valladolid - Fromista legs separately than by just checking the schedule for Madrid - Fromista.

The Renfe site also has an option so it automatically checks all stations (“Todas”) within a city (click on “Todas”), so you can avoid picking the wrong one.
 
You also have to consider that RENFE medium and long distance trains are not in the same webpage that Cercanias (suburban) trains. That is, you may want to check trains from Barajas to Atocha, and will probably find in the RENFE webpage a "no se encuentra disponible" (not available) message. You need to check the Cercanias, instead.
For some places near main cities both options are available -but the Cercanias train are much less expensive (and considerably slower, evidently). And actually, in Atocha, Cercanias and long distance are not the same station (both are close, but not the same). Iit is pretty confusing until you understand the system.
 
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Funny story about Segovia ....showing that research beforehand is a good idea...or to have better Spanish. Having walked from Irun to Santo Domingo de calzada, we then caught a train from Miranda de Ebro (after a haro visit) to Madrid and from there we were going to Segovia. Well the train stopped at the new Segovia station...and it looked like it was in the middle of nowhere. So...we stayed on the train to Madrid .....and then promptly got the train back to Segovia.
 
I need to take the train from Fromista to Madrid on Saturday October 20. Are Saturday schedules different, or will the 12:09 train leave as usual? Does someone have practical experience taking the train from Fromista? Or is there also a bus to Madrid?
 
Camino Way markers in Bronze
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Thomas: I did take the train from Fromista to Madrid, and it’s easy. You can check Renfe’s website for your specific date of travel. However, the schedule for October 20 is not out yet. But it’s not likely to be any different from the schedule for any upcoming Saturday. Checking Saturday, September 8, for example, there are trains leaving Fromista at 9:36 am and 18:22 pm. These will take you to Palencia and then Valladolid. From either of these cities, you then switch to frequent trains to Madrid. But (a big “but”) if you just plug in Fromista - Madrid on the Renfe website, it won’t show you all possibilities, so you need to break your search down. First, check Fromista - Palencia, and then check Palencia - Madrid. Alternately, you could check Fromista - Valladolid, and then Valladolid - Madrid. You’ll get the same possibilities.

There is no through bus service from Fromista to Madrid, but there is a local bus that runs from Fromista to Palencia. Saturday buses leave at 9:30 and 16:15, and it takes about 45 minutes. The 9:30 bus won’t be an improvement on the 9:36 train from Fromista, but if you take the 16:15 bus, you might be able to hook up with a late afternoon train from Palencia to Madrid. The bus will take you right to the Palencia train station.

One other pioossibilitiy for you is that there’s a 7:30 AM bus on Saturdays from Fromista to Burgos, which gets you in to Burgos at 9:30. Lots of trains and buses then from Burgos to Madrid.

Here’s a link to the Fromista tourist office web site, which repeats this information.
http://www.fromista.com/index.php/turismo/transporte
 
Thankx! I'll had hoped for a straight train more in the middle of the day, but well....Is there a good taxi from En El Albergue to Fromista?
 
Thomas@Albany said:
Thankx! I'll had hoped for a straight train more in the middle of the day, but well....Is there a good taxi from En El Albergue to Fromista?
Click to expand...
Hi Thomas: I don’t know where En El Albergue is. If it’s in Fromista itself, you won’t need a taxi to get to the train or bus stop, since Fromista is a small place. The bus stop is right by the main plaza, where the tourist office is. The train station is approximately a 700 meter walk. I don’t know about a paticular taxi company, but you won’t have trouble finding a taxi anywhere in Spain. Just ask at your albergue or any bar. According to the Saturday schedule, there are mid-day trains to Madrid from Palencia at 11:40 and 14:20. If you take the 9:36 train from Fromista, you’ll have a 90 minute layover in Palencia before the 11:40 leaves. The layover will be approximately the same if you take the 9:30 bus. (If you take the bus, you’ll save a euro or two, and won’t have to walk the 700 meters to the train station). If you want to catch the 14:20 train from Palencia, you could always take a taxi from Fromista. Taxis are roughly 1 euro per kilometer, and according to Google Maps it’s 33 kilometers from Fromista to Palencia, so figure around 35 euros.
 
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This is very helpful. En El Camino is in Boadilla, 5.8 km from Fromista. I'll ask the hospitaliero ahead of time if he can organize a cab for the 9:36 train, but if not, I could get on the road at 7:30 and walk--or simply pay a cab to Palencia. That albergue has meaning for me, a dear friend stayed there in May, it is a peaceful place, and I want to be able to share her feeling of it.
 
Great. Sounds like you're on your way. Buen Camino.
 
falcon269 said:
I have had one for several years, but never used it. There always has been a special going that cost less than the senior discount fare! Still, it is worth having "in case."
Click to expand...
Greetings. Seniors card are for above what age please??
 
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Small explanation. AVE is intercity superfast with its own timetable. ALVIA is pretty fast too but has more stops. AVE goes directly to Leon. ALVIA stops at Valladolid. This would seem to be very clear from the timetable from Renfe.com. They also publish in English. Best. Kevin
 
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Thomas@Albany said:
Thankx! I'll had hoped for a straight train more in the middle of the day, but well....Is there a good taxi from En El Albergue to Fromista?
Click to expand...

Just ask the guys there at En El Alburgue to order a taxi. They are awesome and will help. I walk from there to the train station in Fromista sick as a dog. It was an easy walk. It is a tiny station there with no attendants but have automated ticket machines that accept credit cards. I took a train from there to Madrid with one transfer. I had no issue with the route planning of the machine (in English)
 
Is the ticket counter at the Palencia train station open on Saturdays, or should I buy my ticket in advance?
 
For obscure reasons RENFE has three apps. One for just looking up trains 'Renfe Horarios' and one for buying the tickets 'Renfe Ticket'. And another one for the Cercanías. Oh and another one for disability access.
 
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My phone is old, without any apps. I hope they're not closed Saturdays.
 
Thomas@Albany said:
Is the ticket counter at the Palencia train station open on Saturdays, or should I buy my ticket in advance?
Click to expand...
I think you'll be OK:
http://www.adif.es/es_ES/infraestructuras/estaciones/14100/informacion_000035.shtml

I can't find horarios by the day but I think opening hours apply to all days since Palencia is quite important train knot. Anyway the ticket machines will work.

Buen Camino!


PS (When in Spain if you are looking for info about trains that RENFE but if you need something about opening times or railway infrastructure that's ADIF)
 
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