Inter-city travel in Spain

Even for a short hop it can matter. I booked a Spanair flight from Madrid to Barcelona - and it went out of business between the time I bought the ticket and the time I flew. I'm not sure you can plan for that. Vueling is a pretty popular budget airline in Spain. I haven't flown them. If you fly, you should at least shop their flights. I agree with the others though, if you aren't already at the airport, don't fly. Buy a ticket on the AVE high speed train. If you buy early, the price is reasonable. I believe the train lets you off at Atoche station, which is a few blocks from the Prado and a pretty long walk (or easy Metro Ride) to other parts of town.

The best "airline" between Barcelona and Madrid is the AVE (train). It is faster than flying, when you include transport times to and from city to airport, security time and wait time. And it is comfortable and a lot less hassle than flying. Buy your tickets 2 months ahead to get the Web fares (60% off) for the best price.

Thanks

Agree with Lola, unless you are already at the airport (flying in to Spain from somewhere else). In that case you should fly. Keep in mind that discount airlines in Europe are VERY strict about their extremely limited carry on and luggage weight policies. Expect to pay stiff fees for your bags. It's a short flight; which airline you choose matters little.

Could not check the AVE fares for April 2013 as they are not available yet but the fares I did see were very hight at about 200 euros per person. Significantly higher than airfare on AirEuropa, Vueling or Iberia.

That is not the correct fare. The Web fare I mentioned is 47,90 or 59, 90 euros, depending on the train. These usually appear 62 days in advance and they do seell out. Right now, you cannot see fares beyond Jan. 6-that is the latest day they have loaded into the schedule. But to see what the fares look like, go to the "Purchase" area (shopping card) on Renfe, not "Fares and Schedules", as that only shows full price. Take a look at Jan. 6 and you'll see what I am talking about. We had no trouble buying all of our tickets for travel in Spaint (barcelona to madrid to Sevilla to Granada to Cordoba and back to Madrid) on Renfe and always got the Web fare on the AVE trains. Once we get past the mid-December schedule change, you should have no trouble. That is, in February, 60 days before your day of travel, you should be able to buy the tickets at the Web price.

I hope Mitch sees my post about AVE prices before he books flights. Vueling may look like a good option at 39,90 euro, but there are only a few seats at that price, and you have to pay extra if you want to choose a seat or check a bag. Carry-on limit is one piece weighing no more than 10 kg. If it weighs more when you get to the counter, you must check it and pay 25 euro.

thanks for the helpful information

Check the AVE site for tickets 60 days prior to your travel and you will get a substantial savings. Also, Vueling can be good or can be bad, very bad! They canceled two flights on me this spring for no reason...Impossible to deal with them....but if they fly, the flight is good!