Travelling by train with bike in Spain

Check the Renfe.com website, it does discuss bicycle transport and has contact information for questions.

https://www.renfe.com/es/en/viajar/informacion-util/equipajes/bicicletas-y-patines

If you travel on Media Distancia (mid-distance) trains (not Avant):
Folded bicycles may travel as hand luggage or special luggage, depending on the measurements (see all the information). If the bicycle is not folded, the only restriction is that you can take only one bicycle or scooter per person. They do not need to be disassembled or carried inside a bag.

Thanks, I've already read the Renfe info but it's hard to tell if the media distancia train goes all the way to Seville. I can see that the fast train is available but I would need to put my bike in a bag for this option

Thanks, I've already read the Renfe info but it's hard to tell if the media distancia train goes all the way to Seville

The short answer is that at most, there is 1 Media Distancia train a day from Madrid to Seville, that takes over twice as long as the high-speed trains -- 8 hours on the MD, vs. on average 2h45m for the high-speed train.

You can see this for yourself if you try to do a booking on the Renfe website for a Madrid-Seville train. Directly underneath the arrival time for each train is specified the type of train; on this route these are:

• AVE / Intercity / Alvia -- all long-distance, high-speed trains on which the bike in a bag is mandatory. These are the vast majority of Madrid-Seville trains.
• MD (Media Distancia) -- on all the days I looked there is only 1 such train, usually departing Madrid at 10:55 and arriving Seville at 18:58. (Compare the AVE train which departs Madrid at 10:00 and arrives Seville at 12:45).

On a side note: yes, some of the regulations on the de-facto monopoly railway company in Spain, RENFE, are simply ridiculous.

These days, for travelling medium to long distances the only option tends to be high-speed trains (in one of its 'flavours', whether AVE, AVLO, ALVIA, etc) Regulations on high-speed trains are absurdly strict, even draconian, and simple things like carrying a bike or travelling with a dog or with two or more large suitcases can become cumbersome and even impossible.

Example: if you intend to travel with your dog and he is over 10kg you CAN'T travel on a high-speed train. Period. Not with a special transport cage, not paying an extra ticket no nothing. if you can't reach your destination by MD (medium distance) train, you better change your plan because there's no alternative to travel with medium/large dogs, not on a bus not on a rental car (most companies specifically indicate "no dogs" on their rental contracts).