Visiting Santiago de Compostela

Renfe.com is the Spanish rail site. May 7th isn't loaded yet, but you can enter A Coruña and Santiago de Compostela to see multiple trains per day, so no need for Flixbus. I suspect the availability is rolling, and your week will likely populate next week or the week after.

We went to the cathedral in early April last year, and even at that early season time, the line for museum tickets was huge. If you know you want to go (the only way to see the Portico of Glory), you might want to buy tickets in advance. The Cathedral itself, of course, is free. FYI, we ended up skipping the museum -- because the line was so daunting. Obviously, I can't comment on what we *didn't* see, but we still had a wonderful, moving experience without it. It just depends on what your priorities are.

A bus would probably take quite a bit longer than a train, so you'll want to stick to trains if at all possible. A potential issue I see is that there's a gap of almost 1-1/2 hours between the 9:32 AM train to Santiago de Compostela and the 11 AM train. It would be disappointing to just barely miss the 9:32 AM train. In general, trains run pretty frequently throughout the day. Allow plenty of time to get back and re-board your ship; don't plan to take the last possible train back from Santiago de Compostela.

There are several different types of trains on that route, with slightly varying travel times between 28 and 37 minutes. The Avant and Alvia trains have assigned seats and can conceivably sell out, so if you wait to buy tickets until you get off the ship in A Coruna (since you really won't know until then what time you can get to the train station), some of them may be sold out. Other tickets on those trains may go fast as your fellow cruisers buy them. The Media Distancia and Regional trains don't have assigned seats (you might end up standing), so they cannot sell out.

I think they stop selling train tickets (from easy-to-use vending machines as well as at staffed counters) before scheduled departure time; I think the cut-off is 5 minutes before scheduled departure. Renfe has an app through which you can purchase tickets. I'd recommend downloading that app, setting up an account, and playing around with it a bit here at home so you're familiar with the process of choosing a departure time. Having that app will give you a leg up on your fellow passengers who may be lining up at the vending machines and ticket counters in A Coruna (and later in Santiago de Compostela). It's always a good idea to have multiple credit cards at hand when trying to buy things like train tickets; sometimes the card processor has a problem with US credit cards.

Just in case of an unexpected problem: A Coruna itself is a very attractive town.

One other thing: The train station in Santiago de Compostela is a bit of a walk from the historic center and the cathedral. I think it may be uphill, too. Allow extra time for that, research bus routes ahead of time, or budget for a taxi.

It is a 1 mile uphill walk from the train station to the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.

I don't recommend Flixbus. It's terrible and often late. Choose the train if possible.