As part of our Green Traveller's Guide to Spain, Richard Hammond describes how Spain is embracing the rail renaissance
Looking out of the panoramic window from a seat in the train’s bar-restaurant, I could see vineyards heavy with fruit, row upon row of olive groves, wildflower meadows and attractive rural villages whizz by. I picked up my book, sipped from a glass of Rioja, and savoured the journey. Arriving in Madrid in the early evening, it had been a joy to travel all the way to Spain from the UK by train. After taking the Eurostar from London the previous evening to overnight in Paris, I'd travelled overland to the Spanish capital in a day: Breakfast in Paris, lunch in Barcelona, dinner in Madrid. Welcome to the renaissance of rail.
Thanks to the ‘open access’ liberalisation of the European rail network, increased competition among rail operators has led to improved services and reduced costs of tickets. Nowhere is this more apparent than on the high-speed line between Barcelona and Madrid, which is now served by four operators: two standard ‘full-service’ operators AVE (operated by Spanish Railways, Renfe), which runs 10 or departures a day, and Iryo (a joint venture of Trenitalia & Air Nostrum using Italian-designed Frecciarossa trains) – both have a café-bar and first class leather seats with a meal and wine included; and two low-cost operators OUIGO (a subsidy of French Railways, SNCF), which runs about 5 departures a day on double-decker TGV trains, and Avlo (a subsidiary of Spanish Railways, Renfe), which runs about 3 departures a day. Prices for the two and a half hour 386 mile journey can be from as little as €7 from Avlo (there are strict baggage limits, passengers have to pay an extra €10 for a suitcase or backpack). The success of these services has led to increased competition on other high-speed lines in Spain, for instance, OUIGO has since expanded to include Madrid-Valencia in 2022 and Madrid-Alicante in 2023.
These operators are also capitalising on Spain’s extensive high-speed rail network – with over 3,400km of track, it’s the longest network of high-speed lines in Europe (and second only to China in the world), with AVE trains (Alta Velocidad Española) linking all the major cities, including Barcelona, Granada, Madrid, Murcia, Malaga, Seville, Valencia and Zaragoza, as well as connecting with France's high-speed network connecting Lyon and Marseille with Barcelona, via Avignon, Montpellier, Perpignan, and Girona. One of the longest high-speed connections in Europe is between Barcelona and Malaga on the south coast of Spain, travelling via Tarragona, Lleida, Zaragoza, Madrid, and Córdoba. One of the most recent high-speed installations was between Puebla de Sanabria and Ourense in Galicia, following 16 years of construction, which means it's now possible to take high-speed trains all the way from Barcelona to Ourense. There are also high-speed connections from Madrid to the northern town of León, to Alicante and Valencia (on the Mediterranean coast), south to Murcia, and Toledo (just south of the Spanish capital) and to Seville (via Córdoba).
Faster trains are being introduced to these networks to make the most of the new track. When a new high-speed line opened in 2023 between Madrid and Oviedo, it cut travel time between the Spanish capital and Asturias by over an hour, and then when Renfe introduced faster Talgo AVRIL trains on the route earlier this year, the journey has been cut down further, to 2 hours 43 minutes, with at least three trains per day. The high-speed train runs from Madrid to Pola de Lena, stopping at Segovia, Valladolid, Palencia and León and then to Mieres, Oviedo, terminating at Gijón.
Green Traveller's video of Spain:
While high-speed rail is the quickest way to travel by train, there are plenty of slower services that can take you long distance to some of the most beautiful parts of the country, such as Badajoz in the west, Huelva in the southwest, and Cadiz, Algeciras and Almeria in the south – Renfe has produced a handy map of all the high-speed and long distance train lines in Spain. There are also a few slower train services, such as the metre-gauge FEVE network, which has recently been absorbed into Renfe, serves the coast of northern Spain (from Bilbao to Ferrol via Santander, Oviedo and Gijón).
Luggage
In general on trains in Spain, you can carry up to 3 pieces of hand luggage, provided that the sum of the three does not exceed 25kg or 290cm. The maximum dimensions allowed per piece of luggage are 85x55x35cm (height-width-depth). If you are travelling on the AVE International high-speed trains between France and Spain, the same terms and conditions apply to hand luggage, but luggage tagging is mandatory. You are free to carry on bikes so long as they are folded inside a carrying case or bag whose total dimensions do not exceed 180cm.
NB. These conditions are for regular Renfe services, do bear in mind that the luggage policy is stricter on Avlo trains, see Avlo's full terms and conditions.
Pet friendly travel
Passengers are eligible to take pets, such as dogs, cats, guinea pigs and rabbits on the AVE (high-speed) lines both within Spain and between Spain and France, as well as the 'Larga Distancia' (Long Distance) trains so long as they weigh not more than 10kg, can be taken in a carrier, and the ticket for the adult allows for pet travel. There is also the option to take a dog without a carrier on those trains that have allocated seats for dogs (for those that weigh up to 40kg) on select AVE high-speed trains on the routes Madrid-Barcelona, Madrid-Malaga, Madrid-Alicante, Madrid-Valencia, Madrid-Zaragoza and Madrid-Granada. You will need to arrive 40 minutes in advance at the Renfe Service Centre of the station to submit a 'declaration of responsibility', as well as the pet's vaccination card and insurance policy. For full conditions, see renfe.com/es/en/travel/informacion-util/pets
Assistance services
Adif Acerca is a free assistance service for people with disabilities or reduced mobility, managed by Adif (Administrator of Rail Infrastructures). It's a specialist service providing guidance, information and assistance during access and transit at stations and for help getting on and off trains. People with disabilities or reduced mobility can request the Adif Acerca assistance service for their journeys through any Renfe ticket sales channel, on the Avlo website when purchasing the ticket and through the Assistance Service app.
Tourist trains
In addition to the standard train services, there is also a network of over 250 luxury ‘tourist trains’ that span across Spain, offering long distance trips that replicate the train travel of days gone by, stopping off at picturesque, historic places along the way. Many are in classic train carriages from where you can enjoy the views while feasting on first class dining as a pianist reels out the tunes of yesteryear. Examples include The Transcantábrico between San Sebastián and Santiago de Compostela across the region known as ‘Green Spain’, Al-Andalus in the south, which calls at Cadiz, Ronda, Cordoba, Úbeda, Baeza and sights like the Alhambra in Granada, the Strawberry Train (great for weekends in spring and autumn) from Madrid to Aranjuez during which you’ll be plied with strawberries from the region, and La Robla Express, a 3-night trip from Bilbao to Leon stopping at Espinosa de los Monteros, a beautiful town in Las Merindades in Burgos and ending at the Hotel Real Colegiata de San Isidoro de León. While these trips hark back to the glory days of rail, their popularity also heralds a new renaissance of rail that is sweeping across the country.
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More information:
Here’s a handy map of Spain’s high-speed lines
Renfe Luxury Tourist Trains has launched a new website where you can browse and purchase all journeys, see spanishluxurytrain.com
For detailed information about train travel worldwide, see seat61.com
Tom Chesshyre has written an excellent book about Slow Trains Around Spain
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