I'm thinking about taking train (RENFE) from Barcelona to Figueres - probably staying overnight in Figueres - and then train to Collioure, France for an overnight or two and getting rental car there for tour through France.
Anyone have experience with this route or the ease of national train in Spain? I thought this would avoid driving rental car out of Barcelona and several days of rental$$. Thanks! Marion
Posted by
Ottawa
1446 posts
Also consider bus as well as train to Figueres easy as pie to get there from Barcelona. The Museo Teatro Dali is worth the effort! I'm going from memory here, but I seem to recall that it was easier to get to by train and to rent a car from Perpignan (which is not that far to backtrack back to Collioure - definitely less than an hour, for sure).
Posted by
london
3 posts
Not much idea about taking train with this route. Why don't you have a look on internet to get a related travel guide. There are many travel guides who can help you plan your trip according to your route. I am sure you you will get a great assist.
Thanx!
Posted by
Denver
799 posts
We did a similar route several years ago. I had planned our itinerary BEFORE realizing about the expensive drop charges if we rented a car in Spain and dropped in France (that was dumb of me not to realize). We took the express train from Barcelona to Perpignan, France, and picked up a rental car there. Then we drove back to Spain, spent the afternoon in Girona and the night in Figueres (the Dali museum is fantastic). After that, we drove back into France for the remainder of our trip. It worked just fine for us. As I think I recall, the reason we went to Perpignan first was so that we'd have our rental car and could leave our luggage in it while we visited Girona, rather than getting on and off trains. The train trip was fine, too. I had read that the express trains were nicer than the local trains; the train we rode was similar to those we've taken in France and Italy. One interesting fact - because the gauge of the train tracks in Spain and France is different, they stop the train near the border and adjust the wheel gage.