Spanish train questions

I just returned from Spain and used Trainline to purchase my train tickets to avoid any possible credit card issues.

The Madrid to Seville tickets are for a specific train and have a seat reservation. So, you cannot just take a different train.

I would just take a taxi from the airport to the train station. They are cheap and readily available.

The trains were very crowded in March, so you definitely want to make sure you prepurchase the high-speed train tickets.

And you need to go through security at the train stations and then another ticket check prior to boarding. So, you need to be at the station well before your train time to figure out where to go. There are multiple security stations and I found it confusing trying to locate the correct one.

1. Is it necessary to pre purchase a train ticket from Madrid airport to Madrid train station? I see from the Omio app that it is $6 and runs on the hour and takes a 1/2 hour.

What terminal are your sons arriving at at MAD? If arriving at Terminal 4, I would recommend the following advice.

If your sons purchase a Renfe AVE (i.e. the Spanish national railway operator's high-speed train) ticket from Madrid to Seville, that ticket actually includes travel at no extra cost on Madrid's suburban rail network (Cercanías) up to 4 hours prior to the departure of the AVE train.

You simply scan the QR code on the AVE ticket and it will let you through the ticket barriers at the Cercanías ticket at Barajas airport, from which you can take line C-1 to Chamartín and transfer to any train going to Atocha (C-2, C-3, C-4, C-7 or C-8).

If your sons are arriving at T1/T2/T3, the Cercanías station is unfortunately only accessible from T4. In this case, I would recommend taking the express bus that runs from the airport straight to Atocha station.

(A cab is, of course, always a possible option! If your sons are reasonably comfortable on public transport, however, I don't think any of the options from MAD are that difficult.)

2. If they pre purchase a train ticket from Madrid train station to Seville train station for 1:00 pm for example, can they take the 12:40 if they are there in time? I'm wondering if the ticket agent will allow them to take an earlier train if there is space available.

Long-distance rail tickets -- such as from Madrid to Seville -- are for specific trains, like how plane tickets are for a specific flight and they can sell out, since every passenger has an assigned seat. It is best to plan conservatively for the particular train.

3. From the Rick Steves 2017 Spain book (the most recent one I have), it says the Spanish train websites don't accept US credit cards. Is this still the case with US chip credit cards?

I have not had a blanket issue with US credit cards, but will say that I have had better luck with Visa/Mastercard than with American Express.

I’m going to be that person that says not to schedule a train on the same morning you arrive. Lots can go wrong and the Spain high speed rail tickets are only good on that particular train. If you are coming in the morning, i would take an afternoon train.

Another option is for the sons to spend a night or 2 in Madrid first, then take the train to Seville. That is what I did. This way, there is no worrying about trying to time the train with the arrival of the flight. And with the new EES system, there is no way to predict how long passport control will take. I got lucky and had no lines, but lines can easily get backed up as there are now multiple steps for entry--EES, eGates, border agent.

And yet another option is to purchase a ticket on an IRYO train in the Infinita Class that allows time changes for no fee.