9:00 AM Train in Barcelona

[taxatty]

The Liberty of the Seas is supposed to dock at 6:00 AM. We're Diamond on RCI so we should be in one of the first groups off the ship. Barring major disembarkation problems or the ship being late, is it OK to presume that making a 9:00 AM train from Sants station to Madrid should be no problem?

 

Thanks.

 

Les

[KayAnnie]

Yes, even not hurrying off the ship, we were at the airport by 9 this year which is way farther than the Santos station.

[ab0si]

You would probably make it, but why not go for the 11 am train? It makes 1 intermediary stop while the 10 am makes 4, so the travel time is 23 minutes shorter. That means you would arrive in Madrid only 37 minutes later (at 13:52 rather than 13:15) and you won't have to worry about rushing if the ship clears a bit late.

[scottbee]

The Liberty of the Seas is supposed to dock at 6:00 AM. We're Diamond on RCI so we should be in one of the first groups off the ship. Barring major disembarkation problems or the ship being late, is it OK to presume that making a 9:00 AM train from Sants station to Madrid should be no problem?

 

Thanks.

 

Les

 

03080 AVE 08.30 11.13 2h43m

03092 AVE 09.00 11.52 2h52m

03102 AVE 10.00 13.15 3h15m

03112 AVE 11.00 13.52 2h52m

 

Personally I'd go for the 10:00 so I didn't stress it. Port bus to the Columbus monument, cross the street into Las Ramblas, Dressanes metro station and four stops up the green line to Sants. It is the ONLY way to go, compared to flying, quieter, bigger seats (huge seats even in Tourista). I was blown away how far behind the times we are in North America after riding the AVE last fall.

 

Hints on using RENFE.ES's website

• click WELCOME at the top to switch to english
  
• click PURCHASE to find tickets, not the schedule, and then buy (going through the schedule part doesn't show the discounted fares)
  

[Keith1010]

I too would go for a later train.

 

I just think that people end up worrying so much and no one and I mean no one can guarantee you won't have a late arrival to the port or a problem with the ship being cleared.

 

Keith

[CruisinGerman]

Greetings from Madrid.

 

When we take the 4-night RCCL cruises from Barcelona which return to Barcelona Monday morning, I have to be back in Madrid very early to attend my businesses.

 

We are always on the 7:30 a.m. train to Madrid and have always made it with plenty of time to spare.

 

9:00 a.m. would therefore be a luxury.

 

Remember a train is not like a plane. You can get on the train up to about five minutes before it leaves.

 

The last time we did this was on Monday, May 23, coming off the Liberty. We got to the train station with nearly half an hour to spare.

 

Kind regards,

 

Gunther and Uta

[hkto]

Budget about 15 min for disembarkation (if you carry your own luggage, otherwise you'll have to wait until it shows up on the baggage carousel which makes timing less predictable) and 15 min for cab ride to Sants. It shouldn't take more than 5 min to find your platform at Sants. Usually there is no line up for taxis before 7:30-8 am but later on it might be.

[taxatty]

Thanks to all of you for your advice. We are experienced European train travelers and are used to the routine (which has been manageable to date except for the occasional Italian train strike) and online ticket purchases (although Renfe has been the most frustrating web site to use).

 

There was no discounted Web or Estrella "Turista" 2nd class fare available (at least as of this morning) for the 10am or 11am trains--only for "Preferente." We bought the 9am tickets--with the Estrella fare, we can always switch to a later train (hopefully it should be possible on a Saturday) if needed with a reasonable change fee. We also don't bring large luggage, but to preserve our marriage we'll probably take a taxi from the Columbus monument or the port instead of the metro unless there are escalators at both the entry and exit stations. :D

 

This article was invaluable on how to use the Renfe web site: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g187514-c80518/Madrid:Spain:Buying.Renfe.Tickets.Online..html . Just make sure you call your credit card company before you try to buy tickets, and be prepared for various glitches and rejections before the transaction finally goes through (some US credit cards apparently won't work at all). Save your PDF file tickets on a flash drive and bring it with you along with the paper tickets in case of disaster.

 

Les

[CruisinGerman]

Greetings from Madrid.

 

I've been using the Renfe site for years. Never had a single problem.

 

Use the Spanish version -- I'm told the English version has some glitches.

 

And I've used credit cards from Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom -- never a problem.

 

Maybe some strange Credit Union Visa cards give problems, but American Express or a Citibank Visa card issued anywhere should work fine.

 

If you don't like the Renfe site, try one of the major booking portals such as http://www.rumbo.es. They also sell train tickets -- not just airline tickets.

 

Hope you have a nice trip.

 

Kind regards,

 

Gunther and Uta

[taxatty]

Just got back from Madrid--we miss it already and would love to return.

 

Here was our Saturday 9:00 AM Barcelona to Madrid train experience. We got off the ship around 6:30 AM by carrying off our own luggage. We wanted to take the port bus, walk two blocks and then take the Metro from the Drassanes Metro stop (there is a street/lower level elevator, so no steps with luggage, we got off there to get to the port) to the Sants train station. We were told by a local rep when we got to the cruise terminal parking lot that the port bus didn't start running until 8:00 AM, so that wouldn't work. However, there was a very long line of taxis ready to go with a 20 second wait for one. We grabbed a taxi and arrived at Sants (there didn't seem to be a good reason at that point not to just take it all the way to the train station for a few extra euros) around 7:00 AM. We had time to switch to the 8:00 AM train, but we were told at the Renfe counter that because we had discounted Estrella 2nd class tickets, in addition to a change fee, the regular undiscounted price would have to apply--the equivalent of another $100 or so. No thanks. We therefore had enough time to have a leisurely breakfast and do some shopping at the train station before going through security and boarding the train.

 

Therefore, if all goes well, and you are one of the first ones off your ship, boarding an early train in Barcelona is very easy. Thanks, Gunther and Uta, for helping us to decide to do this.

 

Les

[Eightydays]

You are not alone.

 

Celebrity Solstice gets in at 6:00 am, and we too are booked on a 9:00 am train to Madrid. Reports from other cruisers this year indicated they were off the ship by between 7:00 am and 7:30 am, and since it is only a 15 minute cab ride and we only need to be at the train station by 8:30 am, I hope all will be well.

[Eightydays]

Oops. Just realized you are back. Glad to know that everything went well.

[CruisinGerman]

Glad you had a smooth trip. I knew that a 9 am train would be a luxury and no problem to catch.

 

I am happy that it all worked out.

 

Kind regards,

 

 

Gunther and Uta