Andalucia tour - connections from Seville to Cordoba via train

You might check with the RS tour office, they generally give you the best options for getting to the start of their tours.

Trains run frequently between Seville and Cordoba. That's the line that goes on to Madrid and then (via Zaragoza) to Barcelona.

You'll want to take one of the fast trains. Those fares vary by time of day and type of train, but it's a short enough trip that a last-minute purchase will not be excrutiatingly expensive. While we'd normally recommend that you wait until you're exiting the airport to buy a train ticket for travel on your arrival day, there's a bit of an issue with doing that in Spain. It's not unheard of for Spanish express trains to sell out. You might want to check train availability frequently in the days leading up to your departure to be sure you won't have a problem.

Trains between Seville and Cordoba are operated by Renfe, Iryo and Ouigo. Renfe has the most departures, I believe.

I have used the Trainline app to book trains in Spain. Usually I recommend booking directly with the company, but Renfe has some problems processing foreign credit cards. Trainline charges a small fee, but the app is very easy to use. Download it and get familiar. I would probably wait until you have arrived to purchase Trainline tickets. Just in case your flight is delayed. The next logistical issue is getting to the train station. Santa Justa is the main station for trains to Cordoba. You can use the local train to get there. Buy a ticket at the station.

Unless you have some reason for wanting to fly to Seville, consider flying to Madrid and taking a rapid train to Cordoba. You will probably have more options and will spend less money.

I did this a few years ago. There’s a bus from the Seville airport to the train station. I think I read about it in the RS guidebook. Then at the train station I tried to actually buy a ticket. The lines were crazy so I sat on a bench and ordered a ticket for the next train. No problem except a good case of nerves!

Renfe's staffed ticket counter at Madrid's Atocha Station is a nightmare; you could die of hunger or thirst while standing in that line. I had no need of a staffed counter in Seville, so I don't know what you'd run into there. However, tickets can be purchased in vending machines with an English option. The machines worked for me. There were some reports pre-pandemic about difficulties with US credit cards that didn't have PINs, but either they've solved those issues or my purchases were under the threshold for which a PIN was required. It would be smart to load the Renfe app ahead of time and play around with it enough to know how it works. Apps are nearly always a good option for buying train tickets.

Thank you to all! I greatly appreciate the comments and suggestions. I'm sure things will all fall into place!🤞Have a wonderful holiday season!

Hi all, appreciate all the responses re train travel in Spain. Am now booked into Madrid (instead of Seville) with a final destination of Cordoba. Plan to take the fast train. Noticing all the options on the RS train assistance page. Just a double check: If I book a train via RS train page before departing U.S. and my flight is delayed, as I understand it, I can still get on the next possible train and pay additional on board cost (if necessary) with a semi-flexible ticket. Am I understanding that correctly? Leave in mid-May.

I cannot answer your question because I have never bought tickets through the RS train booking site. I am curious: Has this european rail ticket purchase option been on the RS website a long time or is it new? I am curious because I have not noticed it or seen people on the forum reference it before but maybe I was not paying attention. I have always booked directly with the national rail in question but I do remember the difficulties with RENFE and credit cards sometimes. When I tried it out just now, it looks like RS charges a flat booking fee of $8.45 USD regardless of the ticket price (at least for Trenitalia trains in my trials) plus you pay in USD. It uses Rail Europe.

Madelynb-- We did the Madrid to Cordoba high speed train.

I suggest you buy the first class ticket. I'm glad we did, because I had to make 4 changes to it due to a myriad of issues getting to Madrid due to airline issues. The Renfe office in Madrid can be crazy, but I was able to utilize my Spanish language skills at the customer service desk and was able to make the final change to our tickets without a problem or extra charge. We booked online and when I'm traveling, I select the choice that gives me the most flexibility for peace of mind.

If you are landing in Madrid, you can take the train to Madrid station from the Airport using your Renfe ticket without extra charge, too, I did not know this until I went to the train ticket desk at the airport. They looked at my Renfe tickets and said I didn't need to buy the Airport to Madrid station ticket. Yay!

At the Madrid station, the platform for the train to Cordoba is upstairs. You have to go through security and a metal detector so allow extra time for this process. Upon arriving to Cordoba, It is an easy 1km walk from the Cordoba train station to the RS hotel-- are you staying at the H10 Palacio? If so, it's a wonderful hotel centrally located and lends itself to exploring Cordoba pre tour. There is a refrreshing plunge pool and worth the effort to bring a bathing suit.

I assume you are doing the Andalucia tour. It's great. I have a scrapbook on the RS site for it.