Anyone mastered this and care to share?
I'm registered and have the apps for both Trainline and Renfe. I'll see Renfe trains listed on Trainline that do NOT show up on the Renfe site. And conversely I see trains on the Renfe site that are NOT on Trainline?
What is going on here?
Is there any one app or web site that shows everything comprehensively?
And if there isn't, are their other apps/web sites I should also be checking?
What is the "best" and "easiest" way to book trains in Spain? Thanks!
The Man in Seat 61 has the answers.
There are many train companies in Spain, not just RENFE, what itineraries are you looking for?
You can do this. I am tech challenged in all ways and I managed to figure it out, although part of me still wonders if it was just dumb luck, at least initially. One thing that helped me was using my laptop AND my phone. For some reason, my laptop showed more detail (plus the older I get, the more I appreciate a big screen), so I used it to find the trips I wanted, then reserved them on my phone so I'd have the QR code to add to my wallet.
As far as I could tell, there was no definitive time frame as to when trips were added to their schedule. Several people here who clearly were familiar with Renfe told me it was too soon to find one particular trip I needed to book, when one day, it was just there, so I booked it. Once I'd used the app a few times, it got easier. By the time I was actually in Spain, I was able to book a last minute trip I decided to take one day.
Good luck and have a marvelous time in Spain!
If the company that operates the trains and a third party reseller show different information, trust the company that actually runs the trains. Although Renfe's website can be a bit confusing and not always easy to use. So if Iryo is an option where you are going you can use them instead.
