aj

Can anyone tell me what the cost of a taxi would be from the Madrid airport to the train station? Also, how much time would it take. We arrive in Madrid at 8:30am. Thank you.

pegg

I may be totally off, but around 20 euros. If you search, there are varying answers. We were ripped off by our first taxi ride our first day in Madrid (taxi from airport to train station to catch train to Sevilla). Coming from NYC, supplements seem like such a vague idea. The man seemed friendly, my bf was trying out his Spanish having (seemingly) friendly conversation. In restropect, we were naive. We told him it was our first trip to Madrid. Lesson 1, when you are with someone with questionable intentions, NEVER let them know this is your first trip there. <BR><BR>Anyhow, the meter said 14.95 at the end of our trip. He punches some numbers in his calculator and says the ride cost 28.30. We were too confused and our Spanish was inadequate to question this. We knew there was a 4 euro supplement from the airport and then baggage supplements so we accepted it. But then he shorts our change by 10 euros. We weren't stupid so we did get the correct change. Lesson 2, count your change. On our taxi ride back to the airport at the end of our trip, we had a nice honest man - he charged us 4 euros on top of the meter. So is this an airport charge or a baggage charge - see isn't this all just too vague?? Sometimes they charge for this, sometimes they don't.

aj

Pegg,<BR><BR>Thank you for your help!

sojourn

Check out www.aerocity.com - for up to 3 people the charge is 17 Euro; 4 people 20 Euro.

quepasa18

I agree with sojourn and recommend Aerocity. If you are looking for feedback from people who have used them, see www.madridman.com where there is a lot of discussion on it.<BR><BR>I would have to advise against taking a taxi from the airport. The taxi drivers in Madrid are notorious for ripping people off.<BR><BR>If you don't have a lot of luggage, you could also take the metro. This will take a little longer however.<BR><BR>

julies

WE also want to do this. We are budget travelers who always use public transportation. We had planned to use the metro but lots of people said it's a horrible hassle. Is that true? We'll each have 1 suitcase on wheels. We've taken the merto or local trains with luggage in Paris, Munich, Vienna and DC. Is this really any worse?<BR><BR>Rich Steves suggest taking a bus from the airport into downtown Madrid and the the metro to the train station.

Maribel

julies,<BR>The metro is more time consuming, as it's quite a hike from the international terminal 1 (where I'm assuming you'll land) and the metro station at the far end of terminal 2. But luggage carts at Barajas are plentiful, and the metro cars from Barajas to the new station at Nuevos Ministerios in the northern business section of Madrid have luggage racks. There's just considerable walking involved.<BR>But no, it's no worse than Paris, and it's extremely inexpensive at 1,10 euros for your ticket. For those staying in Madrid for a few days, it pays to purchase a 10 trip metro/bus ticket (called a bono de diez), which two or more people can share, as it offers an almost 50% discount over buying single tickets. <BR> <BR>To reach the AVE Puerta de Atocha station from the Nuevos Ministerios metro, you must change to a cercan&iacute;as train, which makes 1 intermediate stop at Recoletos, or take a taxi.<BR><BR>Alternatively, you can board the blue Aeropuerto-Plaza Col&oacute;n bus outside the international terminal, which runs every 15 min, has luggage racks and storage underneath and will take you directly to the Plaza Col&oacute;n in mid town in exactly 20 min for only 2,50 euros (I do this all the time), then a taxi to Puerta Atocha for the AVE.<BR><BR>For precise, up to date, detailed, very dependable info about ALL airport to Madrid transfer options, see<BR>www.multimadrid.com, clicking on &quot;practical information&quot; on the left hand column, then &quot;transportation&quot;. <BR><BR>For those considering the taxi option, please read the webmaster's very valuable &quot;Taxi Smarts&quot;. Bless him, he's a man with a mission. He's on a zealous campaign to wipe out tourist taxi abuse in Madrid. <BR>And before leaving baggage claim in Barajas, please pick up a valuable brochure from the little green stand in the baggage area, which also details all the airport to Madrid transfer options and gives estimates for taxi charges from the airport to several points in the city. Have this brochure quite visible, in your hand, when entering your taxi.

julies

Wow! What a complete answer thanks!

Maribel

Yet another complete source for Madrid airport-city transfers is<BR>www.gomadrid.com