I think right now the fastest Acela trains take under 3h between Washington DC and NYC. But most trains take about 3h 30 minutes. It's pretty laughable.

Maribel,

after all the problems they suffered last year with the AVE in Barcelona (it hasn´t been solved yet the problem with the tunnel under the Sagrada Familia), they won´t dare to do a big opening just a couple of weeks before the elections.

Myself, I am going to try the Bilbao-Madrid Alvia in two weeks time, I still cannot believe that it will be only 5 hours, and I have been able to get a Estrella fare, 25 euros.

Bye, Cova

Is it just me...but the fares seem very high compared to airfare?

I pulled up some random dates on Vueling and found fares from most 25e-40e each way. The flight time is 1:15. There's about 7 flights a day.

Is there something I'm missing that would make this a better option than air travel?

I don't think that air travel can really compete when the train takes 2.5 hours. Don't forget that you need to travel to and from the airport. Granted, the Barcelona airport is pretty easy to get to from the city center, but the Metro for Madrid Barajas will take longer (plus the terminals are scattered -- and the Metro is not convenient for some terminals).

However I can see that the air links will be there. For example people may fly to Barcelona via connection in Madrid or to Paris via London. If you're already at the airport, it doesn't make much sense to go downtown for the train even if the train may be faster.

cova,
I'm sure that with the *cold* reception the Ministra de Fomento got when she made her appearance in Barcelona yesterday, she won't attempt an official inauguration trip like the one she made to her home turf in Málaga! Particularly if things don't go as planned...

Glad to know you got such a cheap fare, but that train ride to Bilbao still sure is a long one, isn't it?

aimeekm, trains don't have to be cheaper than planes...just more convenient. Like the Eurostar from the centre of London to the centre of Paris. Most airfares are cheaper than the Eurostar (except for some very advanced buyers) but ..you don't want to have the hassle of the aiport nowadays. The same happens in Madrid or Barcelona. Though Barcelona airport is nearer to the city centre than the others.
But as Maribel says, we have to see now the "fares war" between airlines and the train :)

Getting to the airport in Madrid takes more than just a few minutes, and then there's check in, security, waiting to board, boarding, retrieving luggage on the other at sometimes, getting into town, etc., etc...and that's IF the flight is on time.

I've been tracking this route for over a month now when the web fares were announced. I am SO excited that the high speed line will be up and running when we are in Spain in April.

As of this morning, Renfe had a full schedule up for my date, April 15th, and the web fares and estrella fares were available.

Wow, Renfe has actually done something on time! =D>

Yes...They should have smoked something (and it's no plain tobbacco ! ) LOL
Well, at the TV news they said there was still an issue with the Estrella fares if you want to buy a return ticket and that they expect it will be solved "anytime soon".

I was just as surprised as you ladies were because everytime I entered a date, just to get and idea of the schedule and the fare, I got the dreaded "there are no trains for the day you selected" error. Unfortunately, I am at work and did not have my passport number handy, so I am praying the site is still up, running, and web fares are available when I get home this evening.

I just tried-for a one way Web fare, Madrid-Barcelona for 4/30 departing at 11:30. Yep, Web fare popped up at 40.55€
The trick for the 60% discount Web fare may be to travel at off peak hours. But then again, with Renfe, all bets are off!

I was able to get my tickets, with the web fares, despite a few glitches - go figure! Thanks Maribel and Kenderina for the heads up on the great fares!

misty,
News reports say that by 6:30 pm on the first day of sale, 14,000 Madrid-Barcelona AVE tixs were sold online. Happy to know that you were one of those successful purchasers!

The AVE passes near Sagrada Familia and there were fears that the vibrations might effect the foundation. Just when they have a mere 100 years to go, there might be a problem.

No, the Ave doesn't pass near Sagrada Familia now. It finishes in Barcelona Sants. The problem with Sagrada Familia is on the works they are supposed to be doing to extend the AVE from Barcelona to the French border. Now that works are stopped...and it seems there's no easy solution...The AVE would have been arriving to Figueres in 2009 but right now, they are 3 years delayed .

Kenderina, the problem with the Sagrada Familia is that they weren´t planning on ending at Sants, but at the station of França. To get there, they are alredy excavating the tunnels underneath the Sagrada Familia.

It will take longer to get there, that´s why it is now ending at Sants.

And talking about a different thing, the Avant trains to Segovia (like the Toledo high-speed ones) begin on Wednesday. It will be around half an hour from Madrid to Segovia, time to go there, have lunch and get back easily.

Bye, Cova

hi kenderina,
Just read the El Mundo report. All 12,000 passengers on the first day of AVE service arrived on time!!

First train left at 6:01 and arrived at 8:35, a few minutes ahead of schedule.

Passengers seemed pleased with their cell phone coverage, ability to connect to the internet but complained about long waits in the bar car. (Renfe had assigned only one waiter to the bar car on one of the BCN trips. Oops!)

Looks like train may soon replace plane for most folks.

Can someone tell me how to book these promo prices? The cheapest price I see on renfe is €101.80 other than the night train?

Thank You

^
Just to note, the date Im looking for is March 24th