I’ve been trying to figure out the best way to get from Paris to Madrid (long story but I have a flight home from Madrid). Our trip is in early September. I have a 3 year old and a 5 year old. We’ll be in Paris for a week, then I was planning on going to Loire and Mont Saint Michel for 5 days before flying to Madrid the day before flying home. My husband worries that’s too much for young kids and the back to back flights will be hard on them. I’m wondering if anyone has any advice on an easier trip after Paris?
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
11977 posts
Your plan to fly to Madrid the day before is the easiest, or fly a couple of days before. The train is over 9 hours and requires one change.
Posted by
France Southwest - Occitanie
4104 posts
Taking the train from Paris to Madrid (with a connection in Barcelona) takes about 11 hours. I agree with Elizabeth, flying is easier, there are more than 10 flights a day to Madrid from Orly, and just as many from CDG.
Posted by
Chicago
9774 posts
Absolutely fly. I can imagine the kind of planning change that ended up having you fly out of a place so completely inconvenient to the rest of the trip but I would be pricing those flights to Madrid and then the cost of changing your tickets to fly out of Paris. While ticket changes are expensive -- it cost us a couple of thousand for a change this spring when we flew home early due to a medical issue which may or may not be reimbursed by our travel insurance -- the cost of 4 tickets to Madrid is going to be pricey as well. You are going to lose at least a day doing this and if you do plan to fly to Madrid to fly home, I'd get there a couple of nights ahead so you have at least one full day for Madrid. This is a punishing trip for little kids.
And if you did Madrid at the start of your trip and are returning to home base to fly home, I would encourage you to instead head to Paris and your other French sites first and then finish in Madrid if those hotel arrangements could be changed.