Travelling by train from Paris to Barcelona, Valencia and Allicante but having trouble figuring out what mode of travel (car rental not an option) to use in cintinuing on to Nerja, Cadiz and Tavira. Also can't seem to find much in the way of inexpensive laid back accommodation on the beach. Don't need luxury. Just a pool and a bar. Hope someone can offer up suggestions.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
Buses would be the main method of transit in this part of Spain (and many parts, for that matter, as the Spanish train network is not as developed as many other European countries, and the high speed network is skeletal).
To find buses, try a trick I learned on this forum: go to Rome2Rio https://www.rome2rio.com/ and put in your start and end cities. It will indicate various transit options, and show what's involved with trains and buses. See who operates the buses, and go directly to those bus company websites for up to date information about schedules and prices (you may need Google Translate).
And if you're having trouble finding routes from Alicante, note that it only has one "l"; misspellings often result in "no route found," as not all websites have Google's handy "did you mean?" feature.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16893 posts
There are no trains along the Spanish coast south of Valencia. If you wanted to take a train from Valencia to Malaga, for instance, it will go inland and take about 5 hours, usually connecting at Madrid (or occasionally at Cordoba) and occasionally running direct (departing around 17:00 on Mon, Fri, Sun only). Schedules could always be adjusted for summer or fall. But Nerja and other coastal destinations will be by bus (several companies).
Buses run directly from Sevilla to Tavira. They don't run direct from Cadiz; you would connect at Sevilla. There's no train across the Spain-Portugal border in this region (and only a couple in any other region).
I'm going to guess that cheaper hotels won't tend to have a pool and bar. The beach and other local bars would serve those guests.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Looks like the far more convenient and time efficient mode of transport from Alicante (there is a train from Valencia) to Nerja then Cadiz and on to Tavira is a car service called mydaytrip. Twice the cost but it picks up and drops off at your hotel. Has anyone used them? Also any input on small hotels in Nerja and Cadiz (small pool would be nice) located on a beach with a beach bar or two? Nothing fancy required. Cozy and casual is what we're looking for. Thanks