Attempting to resurrect the trip to Spain again.

I read your (Maribel's) comments following skerew's trip report about going to Toledo.

Also read Maira's comments about a royal wedding. Hmmm.

Well our plans presently are arrive in Spain May 28th (Madrid 5/28-5/31) and leave June 11th.

My question is about Toledo and the train.

The only days available for Toledo are Sat May 29th and Monday the 31st.

Any idea how long disruptions will be?
Are we better off just scrapping Toledo and replacing it with Segovia?

I realize there are issues with both days. Saturdays (probably more people and less trains) and Mondays(some things are closed but haven't looked into which).

Any thoughts?

Trains run at least hourly between Madrid and Toledo so put any angst to rest about them - taking about 45 minutes. Most are commuter trains, for more comfort hop the few InterCity trains that have first class. The station is at the foot of the hill Toledo is draped over. Segovia is fine too but it doesn't hold a candle to Toledo in terms of being throughly ancient looking. Also hourly commuter trains and some IC trains to Segovia, about one hour.

Myer,
Just checked
www.renfe.es again
Currently trains to Toledo don't run every half hr. While they're building the Madrid-Toledo AVE they've reduced service considerably and only 5 Regional Express trains run during the week, with only 3 on weekends. And as posters who've just returned have said, trains bound trains have been routed lately to another suburban station then passengers bussed to Toledo.
That said, I don't know how long these disruptions in service will last, and when the AVE will be officially up and running-sometime in '04. I don't see any current news its progress on www.renfe.es, but perhaps car, josemacall, cova or olga, our Spaniards know. Could be that you'll have a brand new AVE to speed you to Toledo next May!

Since the Sephardic Museum and Sinagoga del Transito are currently closed for renovation as well as the Alcazar, with no known reopening date, folks currently have 2 fewer monuments to see, plus on Mon, another is closed.

I know you don't enjoy bus travel (car sickness, correct?), so I won't recommend to you what I do to others, to take the Continental Galiano bus from the Estacion Sur de Autobuses, with departures every 1/2 hr.

So, if the above 2 monuments remain closed in May '04, you could go by train on Mon. and just visit the glorious cathedral (opens Mon. at 10-takes quite a while to see it all, including the treasury) and the Church of Santo Tome, which houses the El Greco masterwork, "The Burial of the Count of Orgaz".
If you're an art lover, the Museum of Santa Cruz, housing 12+ El Grecos, plus Flemish tapestries, is also open Mon. (10 a.m.) Also the Sinagoga de Santa Maria la Blanca is still open daily, but it's so tiny, it takes minutes to see.
The Museum/House of El Greco is closed Mon., but frankly there's not much to see, as his masterpieces aren't there, just portraits of noblemen of the period.
There's a current Regional Express that departs Atocha station at 8:30. Scheduled arrival in Toledo is 10 a.m., then you could taxi up to near the Plaza del Zocodover to start your touring.
You could return on Mon. on the Regional Express departing Toledo at
4:05.

Or you could just save Toledo for a later day, and go to my favorite day trip destination from Madrid, Segovia.

Hope this helps.

Hi Myer,
Sure hope your twice cancelled trip becomes a reality this time!

Was just reading a message board in Spanish about the new Madrid-Toledo AVE. Posters there are asking the same question: When will it go into service?
People want to know if they should invest in Toledo real estate ASAP. AVE trip from Madrid should under 45 min. (maybe just over 1/2 hr.) when it finally goes into service.
Some guess that it may be up and running by 09/04. They'll use the current Toledo train station for awhile until the new AVE station is built, so what I've read. Plans are to then build a connecting AVE line to Ciudad Real to meet up with the Madrid-Seville line.
Contracts for that project will be awarded some time in '05. That's all I could find out.

And don't know that magic day for the June royal wedding!

Hi Myer,
I was listening to a radio program from Toledo this afternoon, and the town mayor said that the AVE should be opened by June'04. He also said that it would be a 25 minutes trip from Atocha in Madrid (although I think that there will be delays, and if it is open by September, they should be happy ...).

There is a new exhibition centre opened in one of the monasteries in the city (Santo Domingo, San Marcos ???) I forgot to write it down...

And the wedding ... it will be held at the end of June, probably the last weekend. They are still trying to define what is worse for Madrid's traffic, sunday or saturday. The bad thing is that a very needed work in Puerta del Sol, a whole revamp of the metro station, will probably be postponed so that the city looks good on that day ...

Rgds, Cova

Well, I don't have to decide yet but I'll make sure there are some options.

My life doesn't depend upon Toledo. If it becomes a hassle I'll pass and go somewhere else for the day.

Maribel,
I'll post the itinerary for you to critique this evening or tomorrow. The days are set. Now we just have to make it there.

See, Myer,
I knew we could count on cova to give us the insiders' scoop! Thanks, as always, cova!