ssander

Super -- this is very timely for us. We are in the midst of planning our Apr 29-May 10 trip to Madrid-Sevilla-Granada-Cordoba-Madrid.

We have our air and hotels...and now we are ready to get the train tickets. You did not surprise me when you said the RENFE site was a mess. I am girding my loins in anticipation.

NOTE: I've never bought tickets online from RENFE, but I have bought tickets on Trenitalia, and it really was a struggle -- though we succeeded eventually after prepping our credit card co. and restarting the website several times. The Belgian Thalys site and British Eurostar sites are marginally better.

I am hopeful.

SS

StantonHyde

I ended up with another provider for train reservations--see the original post.

Margo20

StantonHyde - Your trip sounds amazing, thanks so much for sharing. Quick question, how much time did you allot for getting from the airport to your train to Seville. My flights lands at 7AM on Sat but wasn't sure if I should arrange for an 11AM train ticket would be cutting it close.

StantonHyde

Oh no, an 11 am would not be cutting it close. We arrived at 7 and were at the train station by 9 am. There was not wait at customs and no traffic. If I were you, I would wait to buy the train ticket when you get to the station. If you buy online, they will not let you exchange the ticket. It is more expensive to buy at the station but then you aren't stuck trying to stay awake at the station for 3 hours like we did!!

CathyM

If your flight is scheduled to arrive at 7 a.m. then you are probably safe with a train around 10 a.m. I prefer to take advantage of the deep discounted web fares even if it means having to wait an hour. With the web fare savings you could likely travel in preferante or club class for the same price as a full price tourist ticket. This allows you entry into the lounge at Atocha where you can relax, freshen up and have some snacks and drinks. If you do decide to wait and purchase your ticket once you arrive if it is after 9 a.m. by the time you get bags and clear customs you could purchase your tickets at the renfe office in the airport and save time waiting in a line at the train station.

fae

Stantonhyde,

Based on your trip, what would you do in the same area if you only had 6 nights? We will be driving on a Monday morning early from about 3.5 hours east of Granada where our son is doing a exchange semester. We have to end in Sevilla as that is where our daughter and son-in-law are flying out of early on Sunday am.

In my readings, I was starting to lean more toward Ronda than Cordoba. We would have been in Italy the previous 1.5 weeks (Cinque Terre, Florence, Siena, Montepulciano, and Rome).

We will have a car coming into Granada (as we can't get there any other reasonable way from San Javier) and could turn it in in Granada or keep it and go to Ronda and then turn it in in Sevilla.

Thanks for your help given your prior visit. It really helps to have someone who has been there and can help me prioritize what to do in the 6 nights we have. I hope you see this posting and can respond as we leave in just over a month

StantonHyde

I would leave out one other day in Seville. The mosque in Cordoba is truly amazing and Ronda is just fantastic. I would keep the car and return it in Seville and then just do the train one day to Cordoba. To be honest, if you leave early enough, you really could just see the mosque in Cordoba in the morning and then come back to Seville for more sightseeing. I just would not miss that mosque.

StantonHyde

The other idea would be to just spend the afternoon in Granada to see the Alhambra. The tombs of Isabella and Ferdinand are interesting but the cathedral in Granada isn't necessarily a total must see (like the Alhambra). You will have been steeped in Catholic churches in Italy, I would seek out the Moorish sites in Spain if I were you.

gawlergirl

Bookmarked

KTtravel

bookmarking - thanks for the great information!