spain train
 

My husband and I are flying in to Madrid in May . Our flight gets in at 805 am and we are then taking the metro to downtown Madrid and then straight on to Seville. My question is: should we book our train out of Madrid and on to Seville now or wait until we get there? There is a 10am or 11am train out of the Madrid Atocha station. Would 10am be pushing it or 11am too late? Just worried if we wait that it may be booked up and also you can get a free metro ride if you are taking the train to Seville. (not that 5 euros or whatever it is really matters that much). Any suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!

You must book your train asap if you want reaonably priced tickets. Do it NOW. We would take the 11 am train as we don't like that time pressure. There is also an express bus that will drop you at Atocha.

The only problem with booking discounted tickets when coming in by plane is that they are indeed non-changeable non-refundable I believe - so leave more time than normal for plane to be late -long lines at Immigration, etc.

For lots on Spanish trains check www.seat61.com - great info on discounted tickets - www.renfe.com is the official booking site; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

We also took the train from Madrid to Seville. First of all, you should take the suburban train (not the metro) from the airport - it takes you straight to Atocha with few stops.(http://www.aeropuertomadrid-barajas....rt-bytrain.htm) We arrived on an international flight and the entrance to the station was near the baggage claim hall. There was a railway representative (who spoke English) that helped us buy the tickets and directed us to the train. You don't have to buy the tickets in advance.
Second, if you don't know Spanish, use the man in seat 61 (above site). You can also write to Mark (the man in seat 61....)and he'll answer your questions. I know some Spanish so I used the Renfe site but this site can be a little frustrating (some pages aren't translated into English so I gave up and did all my transactions in Spanish).
Enjoy your trip. We loved Andalusia!
If there are refundable/ flexible tickets, it may be worthwhile to pay a little more. I personally prefer to buy the tickets and be sure of a seat. Definitely take the 11 o'clock train so you won't be pressured. You could even take a later train (noon?) and take your time getting there. You're going to need time in Atocha. Atocha is a big, very busy train station and we didn't find many English speaking attendants to help us (Another reason to buy tickets in advance.) So you need time to find the platform. Factor in the time it takes in line - all baggage is screened for every train.
Atocha is not only a big station - it's a mall so if you have to wait, you can find a restaurant or cafe.

The suburban train , cercania, connects only T4 with Atocha.
If you take metro, you have to change lines...
As suggested , Atocha is very busy and the lineup for tickets
could be long ( there is a separate window for same day travel).
Some train tickets can be exchanged with penalty.
You can find information re. Tickets in English on Renfe site.

There there is train ticket station in the airport. Buy your tickets there. I think it is opposite the bus pick up point for the train station.

oh I marked down to take T4 train towards principio pio. I thought that was metro but I guess it is just the local train. Is the train ticket window near T4? I guess I don't want to be running around the airport if it is in different directions.