What do you think? I think we would save about 1.5 hours if we took the train. We would pick-up a car in Pamplona and continue on to Burgos, Leon and Santiago. Our most ambitious trip ever!
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
Definitely a good idea, unless you wanted to stop in Zaragoza on the way.
4 direct services per day and quite fast at approx 4 hours.
Afternoon train ALV530 departs at 1530 and arrives at 1922, in time for dinner.
Posted by
Firenze
500 posts
I remember doing in a charter bus the drive from Pamplona to Barcelona, and it looked like driving in the wild west. A stop at a restaurant in the middle of nowhere was particularly depressing. Doing the trip with a train would not be a bad idea.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
As already implied, I don't think you'll find much reason to stop at random along the fastest driving route. If you wanted to drive through the mountains, it would warrant another day, at least. So I also would take the train to Pamplona, then drive beyond there. Train tickets are cheapest when booked a couple of months in advance through www.Renfe.com (pay with PayPal to avoid credit card approval issues) or www.petrabax.com (a US agent).