My husband and I are hoping to go to Spain for 6 days in January. In this time period we are hoping to see 2 cities and were thinking Barcelona and Madrid. Thoughts on these or other cities? Which city would it be best to fly into and which to fly out of? Is the easiest way to get from one city to another via train? Can I make the train arrangements once I get there or should I do it from the USA? What should I expect the weather to be this time of year? Many thanks!

Which you fly into would depend on where you're flying in from. More flights, especially in January, arrive in Madrid. If you fly into one, then I suggest you depart from the other. It's easy to set it up yourself, our through a travel agent.

You should make your flight or train reservations in advance to save time. You'll have to register with Renfe (http://www.renfe.es) in order to make you train reservations.

The weather's "up in the air", more or less. You'll have to keep checking to see what the projections are, but last January in Barcelona, at least the first three weeks, was beautiful. Madrid was a bit cooler, but we had a great time on New Years.

Spanish high-speed trains are excellent.

You can book ahead on www.renfe.es The prices aren't too bad, but there are no supercheap tickets for advance booking (as there are in England, for example). Also, travelling off peak is not much cheaper than travelling peak - except there is a cheapy overnight train between Madrid and Barcelond (about half price).

The fastest train from Madrid to Barcelona is about 4.5 hours. The classes are "Tourist" (€65) and "Preference" (€101). Preference includes a "welcome drink" and a meal at your seat.


Do at least look at the option of a bus. Long distances buses in Spain are much cheaper than the train, and the luxury ones (individual leather seats, etc) are very comfortable.

Try www.alsa.es

Thank you all for your advice and information. We would be flying out of New York.

Currently there is no high speed train between Madrid and Barcelona. It is under construction but there is a chance it may be delayed. The new track is supposed to run within a few hundred feet of Sagrada Familia in Barcelona and there is some fear that the vibrations of the train may harm the foundation of the church.

The train between Madrid and Barcelona takes between 4 1/2 to 5 hours. The scenery is generally pleasant but not spectacular. Towards the end the train along the Sea and that is quite beautiful.

Thank you all for your information. I am still trying to decide if I should start off in Barcelona or Madrid (coming from NY). What do you guys think?

Hi, rr229 -
To decide which city to visit first, you might check opening hours of the things you most want to see. For example, some places are closed on Mondays, so if your trip includes a Monday you might want to decide which city to be on on that day based on what's open. Hope that helps!

Hello what dates are you going in january? do you know that spain's traditional christmas is celebrated on the 6th Jan (3 kings day)?
The weather will be cold, but sunny and clear. i hope..
you should also check out vueling.com for great inter-city flights and way2stay.com for apartments.

we are hoping to go from Dec 31 - Jan 6.

i would do madrid first, then barcelona. if you fly out of barcelona the 7th, you could see the parades and celebrations etc. in barcelona on the 6th. although it might be more economical to fly out on the 6th, as spanish people wont be.