danpollard
Traveller
1 comments
Posted 14 years ago
Hi all
I'm doing a trip split into two legs, for reasons which I won't bore you, however I have a dilemma with the first part.
I'll be flying into Madrid, with plans to go on to Valencia and then Barcelona.
If I buy the bigger IR ticket (the 10 days in 22) it costs me €80 more (I definitely need the 5 in 10 one for leg 2). However there will be a supplement (& reservation required) of €6.50 on each train as far as I can see making a total of €99.50.
If I just book the tickets through the Renfe site it will cost a total of €104.70, so only €5.20 more than IR.
I'm guessing having the tickets already by the time I get to the station will be easier and removes the risk of a train being booked (particularly as there's a big festival in Barcelona that w/e) - does this seem sensible or am I being stupid?
Thanks in advance.
Peter
Traveller
9333 comments
Hi.
Let's say it like this: Spain is a bit InterRail hostile as for all their supplements on nearly every train.
And a GLOBAL InterRail Pass is not a good deal if you only want to travel for some days within one country.
If you can get special discounted tickets for Spain, buy it.
Peter :)
danpollard
Traveller
1 comments
Thanks Peter - I'd heard the Spaniards aren't great fans of the IR pass, so you've confirmed what I was thinking. Also, unlike the countries I'm visiting later, I know absolutely nothing of the language at the moment (though I intend on a one-week learning binge before we go) so I can see them trying to tell me it's more than just the €6.50 anyway.
Your advice is much appreciated!
Peter
Traveller
9333 comments
Have a look at this information:
[u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-train-reservation/spain/es[/u]
Print it out and have it with you. As you can see: some Regional, slow trains need supplements in some regions, in some regions not.
As long as you avoid the AVE, Avant, Talgo 200 trains (which have a supplement of EUR 10), you will have to pay a maximum of EUR 6,50 per train.
I recommend you to write down on a small paper the train connection you want, including the train type, write as well INTERRAIL Pass on it and give it to the ticket window. Then you usually get what you want. But at the big stations a lot of the staff speaks (or at least understands) English.
Peter :)