My sister and I took the train from Salamanca to San Sebastian several years ago...I remember that that eastbound train left Salamanca at some insane hour of the night, like 2 a.m. You should check the
RENFE schedules to find out when your train would leave and how much sleep you might miss if the train (like ours) is crowded and loud. We pulled into San Sebastian in the late morning, I think, and were wiped out for that entire day. Of course, I don't know that we would have found buses to be any easier...and the Salamanca-Barcelona connection might be through Madrid, anyway, which would mean you would have a better choice of times. Trains in general were fine, I thought--not luxurious, but comfortable enough and easy to figure out. I don't know if there is a high-speed link between Madrid and Barcelona, but if there is, you might prefer to go to Madrid, then over from there.
Have fun!
[ 06-08-2001: Message edited by: MadridMan ]