Seville,Granada,Cor-doa

The sight is difficult to use and tickets aren't available until 62 days prior. I used raileurope.com to get my tickets, they charge a service charge (I think 4 euro per ticket), which I'd normally avoid. It seemed worth it after trying to navigate Renfe. If you really want to use renfe, google "how to use renfe" (or similar). There is a really good explanation on how to use the sight from the US (I think it's on tripadvisor). After reading it, however, you may decide rail europe's fee is reasonable.

These three form a triangle that works very nicely. We traveled Sevilla to Granada to Cordoba, all on tickets purchased well in advance on Renfe. Give I try ( use the shopping cart icon to enter the purchase area) but make sure you advise your bank first, and also register your card with Verified by Visa first. I had no trouble purchasing on Rense after I did that. But you will also hear of people who cannot get the website to accept their credit card. If that happens to you, try one of the agencies like RailEurope or Petrabax. You can also travel by bus, and there are more of them than trains each day.

Sevilla to Cordoba by AVE (highspeed rail) is easy and quick. There are many trains per day so there is no need to reserve in advance. I'm not sure it would even save you anything. Grenada is connected to Cordoba and Sevilla by rail, but it is slower and older than the AVE. And only a few trains per day. So either reserve in advance, or take the bus. There are about hourly busses and they take the same time as the train. Tickets can be bought day of or a few days in advance if you wish. Personally, I've done both bus and train and recommend the bus by far.

Douglas, why do you recommend the bus? Isn't the bus station in Granada far from the center? Is the bus as comfortable as the train?

Bus it and you will save alot of euros and frustration w/ Renfe online. Bus and train for those 3 loc are similiar in travel time. Just back from Andalucia and some of the train routes were affected by recent flooding so i am not sure all the rail lines are functioning anyway. We were in Cordova going to Granada last wk I planned bus for 13 euros my spouse said train would be safer due to the floods. Well we paid 47 euros for train and Renfe used the train for half the trip then unloaded us in the middle of nowwhere to a bus for the next half.
Gee, yes we got there safely but it cost a boatload in the end over my originial plan.

"Douglas, why do you recommend the bus? Isn't the bus station in Granada far from the center? Is the bus as comfortable as the train?" I didn't think the non-AVE trains were all that comfy. They were pretty outdated and I specifically remember the heat being cranked waaay up on my way from Cordoba to Grenada. But you do get more leg room and can walk around. As noted above, the bus is actually a little faster than the train. The bus station is an easy taxi or bus ride from central Grenada. But the bus offers way more schedule options.

Here's a train route "map" that should help you.
http://www.renfe.com/docs/andalucia_MD.pdf Also, go to the Spain forum on Trip Advisor and look in the upper right hand of the screen for "Top Questions" - someone wrote a very long, detailed but very clear explanation of how to book trains using the renfe site. It will walk you through the process step by painful step. There are frequent trains between Cordob and Sevilla, the travel time is about 45 minutes. I think there are direct trains between Sevilla and Granada (but that's not my route, so I haven't checked it out). Cordoba to Granada, it looks like you have to change trains in Antequera.

Cordoba to Granada is a direct Altaria train with no changes. It takes 2 hours 20 min., and the fare is 36,10 per Renfe. Sevilla to Granada takes a bit longer, 3 hours 10 min. by Media Distance ( regional) train, and the fare is 28,15. The directions on Tripadvisor are good to read, but I found them unnecessarily complicated. I purchased tickets using both a Mac and a PC, using English or Spanish. I did find it easier ( no error message) if I did NOT log in. If you do get an error message in the process, try again later.

I am currently in Antequera, about equidistant from Granada, Sevilla and Cordoba. It seems there are more buses than trains each day to these destinations, and they are cheaper but for 2 hours, I want to stretch my legs and have access to a bathroom! Although the buses I have been on (usually for an hour or less) have had P.A. music, WiFi access and are clean and comfortable (a little short on legroom), I have yet to see a bathroom on one. Here since mid-October,I have not yet bought a ticket in advance, either train or bus. If you are traveling during high season, maybe an advance purchase is a better idea. On some inter-city bus routes, passengers just jump on and pay the driver directly. You will have no trouble getting between these three cities by public transport, and you'll enjoy seeing the countryside and little hill towns between them as you go.