Is there really a price break if I buy my Spain train tickets in advance?

Yes there is, the discount tickets are called "Turista", you can buy them 2 months from time of travel. The reason you're not seeing them is because they sell out fairly quickly, these tickets are only available as a Web fare. For example a round trip from Madrid to Pamplona, I entered a travel date of May 1, the Turista fare is 57.80 and the return on May 6 is 23.10, the Preferente fare (which is the more expensive fare) on the same date is 88.30 to Pamplona and 35.30 return to Madrid. So, as the date gets closer the prices go up because the tickets are selling out. To Pamplona you would save 30.50 euros and return you save 53 euros,

The discount tickets are Web fares and they are 60% off. I would call that a decent price break. From Barcelona to Madrid, 47 euros instead of 117 for Turista class. Madrid to Sevilla, 33 euros instead of 83. Other times and trains may differ, but that is what we paid. The reason you are not seeing them is you are looking in the wrong place. You must go to "purchase" for a specific date to see them. These Web fares appear 62 days in advance and on some routes they sell out quickly. On others they last until 30 days ahead, or even closer. But you cannot buy them at a station in Spain. If you want them you do have to plan ahead and commit. These are reserves seats for a specific train. We saved hundreds of euros on our trip to Spain last May by taking advantage of this. But if they are not interested, then. . . Too bad.

And with all respect to Barry, what he is describing is the difference between first class ( Preferente) and second (Turista). Those are classes of travel and have nothing to do with the Web discount fares, which may be available in either Preferente or Turista class. On one of our trips we traveled on a Web fare in Preferente for much less than a regular Turista ticket. But that was because the Web fares were all sold out for Turista class on the train we wanted, so the discounted Preferente seats were cheaper.

Oh, I see the difference! I went to the actual purchase screen and then I could see the price difference. Well, let's hope I can convince them. One other question: if I have purchased some of their tickets as point-to-point, it obviates the need for the reservations (and $15 fee) that you need to make with the Railpasses, right? Thanks all!!

Correct. The tickets, even the deep discount tickets, include seat reservation. There is no extra fee.

Well, I'm confused! After reading all the posts in reply to Valerie's question, I went to the RENFE site and could not find any discounted tickets. I punched in a May 10 Madrid-Sevilla fare -- the 62 days in advance -- but all I could find, after punching consultar y comprar (check and buy) were Internet prices (precio internet) and station prices (precio estacion). All about the same: E 83.30 and E 83.90 respectively. Could not find a "purchase" spot, although I speak enough Spanish to know that comprar means to buy. What am I doing wrong? Please explain. Thank you.

Make sure you are on the actual Renfe.com site. There is a shopping basket on the main pageit says " compra des billetes". Or just use it in English. Click on that and It will open in a new window. You cannot get there from the " fares and schedules" ( horarios) page, even though it also shows prices. Those are the regular fares for purchase on the Internet or at the station. The discount prices for May 10 do not show up yet; they only go to May 8. And they are not offered on every train. The website is mysterious in it's ways but keep trying and it should work eventually. Just watch out for the turista Mesa tickets. They are low but that is the price per person if you buy the whole table, four tickets. It is the Web fare, marked with a W, that you want.

I just bought some AVE tickets on RailEurope - world.com - mainly because there are often problems purchasing on the Renfe site. RailEurope charges a four euro service fee but it was really easy to use. Buying a ticket from Cordoba (Cordova) to Madrid, a little under 2 months out, I was able to get 2 adult ticket (with reservations) for 53.3 euro (for both, not each) plus an 8 euro service fee. If I look two weeks out (seems to be as late as this site goes), my best bet is 133 euros (plus the service fee). I don't know if it would be higher than that buying a day of ticket and reservations at the station. Here's a couple of sites to use: http://www.seat61.com/Europe-train-tickets.htm#Spain http://www.raileurope-world.com/?cmpid=AF020819&belboon=02ec7c0853a9024d42003f26,2570462, There was also a good discussion about using the Renfe site on TripAdvisor (which is a big reason I went with raileurope)

RailEurope is a good option but their prices are still a few $$ higher, so it is worth trying Renfe first. It is not as difficult as the Tripadvisor discussion makes it appear. But there are some credit cards that just won't work no matter what, so one should try another one, or go to RE. I compared the prices onnanother thread this morning. For the AVE from Madrid to Sevilla, where Renfe offers a Web fare of 33,30 euros, RE charges $47. The is about $3 more than the Renfe price, and then you add the handling fee, so $7 more. Still way better than paying full price.