Night train Barcelona to Madrid?

Night trains are a good idea in the right situation. This route is only a three hour ride during the day so it might not be worth it. I do see some night trains on the DB site. Be sure not to get the one that has a transfer in the middle of the night. Also, a six person cabin will be like a hostel but half the space. If it were me, I would take my three hour train ride in the afternoon when it will be really hot in August and use the cool evening time in Madrid to explore the great city. You could probably find a hostel for the same price with much more space than a train.

Thanks for your replay, Charles! I understand the clear logic behind your advice. However, my needs are a little different. For me its exclusively a museum and architecture tour, and these are usually open only during daytime. I will go to sleep early so I can rise with first light. The big question is whether Ill be really able to sleep inside this 6 bed cabin. otherwise I`m better off with a daytime train. In a hostel people might be getting in and out on various hours. I wonder whether people use these night rides to really sleep, and whether the custom is to keep it quiet there.

Barak, On that particular route, a night train is not a particularly good option as the day trains are so quick and easy. One of the night trains has a change at about 04:45, which means waking up in the wee hours of the morning. There is a direct night train, but keep in mind that the facilities won't be spacious and you may not get a good sleep, so you likely won't get as much Museum and Gallery touring done if you're tired. If you take the three hour AVE that departs at 06:05 (arriving Madrid at 09:15), you can store your luggage at the hotel or hostel and then embark on a full day of touring. Happy travels!

Hi Lo, and thanks for Responding. Yes, 49.1 IS the lowest price I could find, too, but no, I wasn`t looking there but on renfe.com and on earlier dates, on which I could find that very price on hours that may perhaps be more convenient to me. I set the search parameters to: ida Barcelona() Madrid() 10.8.2013 and I got this very price for a 3 hour ride promo ticket of AVE 03192 between 19-22 departing from Barcelona Sants and arriving at Madrid Puerta De Atocha.
Why does it matter whether I get to Madrid on the preceding night (or during night) or whether I get to it in the early morning after? Fares seem to be more expensive in the morning and I would pay for a room on that night either in Barcelona or in Madrid... Really, night train would have been just the thing for me, if not for the reservations and misgivings brought up here...

Thanks, Ken! that bit of info concerning the change is quite useful. Ill take both yours and Charless advice seriously, and probably skip the night train. The early morning AVE quadruples the fare. The 19-22 AVE at least merely doubles it. As far as time management goes, both options are equal to me. Any special reason why take the morning one, please?

Did you search Renfe here? The cheapest price I found on the Renfe site is for Tuesday, August 13 at 06:05. It is Turista 49,10 and takes 3 hours 10 minutes. The prices vary for the same time on other days and Wednesday, the 14th, doesn't seem to have a 06:05 departure at all. I may be missing something, but I think the idea was for you to get to Madrid by 09:15 so as to have lots of time to sight see and still get a somewhat decent night's sleep the day before. But it is Spain, so you may be eating pretty late the night before. The following week has more days with the early departure at the reduced price, as does the previous one. Odd, unless there's some special event going on that week.

Barak, You may find it helpful to have a look at the excellent www.seat61.com/sleepers.htm#.Uer1dFNzB10 website, as that provides LOTS of great information for train travel in Europe (and elsewhere). "Fairs seem to be more expensive in the morning and I would pay for a room on that night either in Barcelona or in Madrid." Have you balanced that against the costs you'll have to pay for the Couchette. There's usually an extra charge for a bed in a Couchette, which is often about the same price as a Hostel room. I suggested a morning train as you'll likely be more rested and therefore in better shape to "hit the ground running" with your touring plans. You may find that trying to sleep on a night train with several people snoring in your compartment is not the most pleasant travel experience. I tend to base my train decisions on convenience and ease of travel rather than price. Cheers!

Now I understand what you are saying and of course it doesn't matter, unless you want to see the scenery between the 2 cities.

Ken Wrote: Have you balanced that against the costs you'll have to pay for the Couchette. There's usually an extra charge for a bed in a Couchette, which is often about the same price as a Hostel room. Thank you. No, I didnt know about this extra for a Couchette... <br />This extra bit does put the lid for me on the whole night train idea. <br />Ken Wrote: <br /> <blockquote><p>You may find that trying to sleep on a night train with several people snoring in your compartment is not the most pleasant travel experience. <br /></p></blockquote> <br />Id be plugging my ears with wax, but youre right, it would very likely prove to be quite a memorable experience. <br />Ken Wrote: <br /> <blockquote><p>I tend to base my train decisions on convenience and ease of travel rather than price.</p></blockquote> <br />Indeed, a solid advice, well needed in my case...</p> <p>Lo wrote: <br /> <blockquote><p>Now I understand what you are saying and of course it doesn&#39;t matter, unless you want to see the scenery between the 2 cities.</p></blockquote></p> <p>I initially thought to rent a motorcycle between cities as I do inside of them and enjoy the roads, too, maybe pick an important site or two along the road, but times too pressing . Ill be missing that probably glorious scenery, but when put on the balance against actual hours inside museums, the latter, in my very specific and subjective case, wins hands down. <br />
This has been very helpful and educating for me. If I can help it Id take a cheaper early 3 hour night train and sleep in Madrid. Otherwise, it would be an early morning one.