I'll be arriving at Atocha (on the AVE) and need to catch a ride to Barajas. From reading other threads, I know there's an airport supplement if I'm taking a taxi from Barajas to Atocha. So, here are my questions:

-Is there a supplement if I'm going to Barajas from Atocha? How much would the fare be (2 people, 2 small luggages)?
-If I decide to take a shuttle ( Aerocity ), are there shuttles waiting outside the train station? Or will I have a reserve a shuttle in advance?

Thanks for answering my questions!

I have always reserved Aerocity at least a day in advance. The last time I used them they were over 1/2 an hour late picking me up at the hostal to return to the airport. I had just decided to take a cab when they arrived.

There is now a brocure which you can get at the TI office in the airport which tells you exactly what the taxi fare will be. They may have done that to help keep everyone informed and honest. I do not think that a taxi will be much (if any) more expensive than Aerocity. The real bargain is using the Metro.

I have never made this trip myself, but there is actually a surcharge of about two euros for trips originating/ending from train stations, and then the four euros surcharge for trips originating/ending at the airport. So the total trip will be over 20 euros. If you don't have a lot of luggage, consider the metro. Get the metro at Atocha, transfer to the airport express line 8 at Nuevos Ministerios. Four stops later, you're at the airport. I use it all the time.

I found the 2004 price guide and it states 19.50€ as the approximate fare in normal traffic conditions including the 4.20€ supplement from the airport to Atocha. Hope this helps.

Metro costs 1.15 € or .53€ if you buy the 10 ticket pass.

I don't know what Aerocity now costs, but it is probably about the same as the cab, but it will have a fixed price.

Hope this helps.

tcl wrote:

There is a, what, 4 Euro supplement going to or coming from Madrid's Barajas Airport.

There are no Aerocity shuttles waiting at the train stations, only at the airport. I'm not even sure they'll pick you up at the train stations as parking and finding their clients would be difficult. Plus, few of their transport vans are marked so you wouldn't be able to find them either.

Aerocity has a booth right outside of the baggage claim section and next to the exit. You can check in there and make arranges for a pick-up.

Good luck! Saludos, MadridMan

Thank you sel, eduardo & MM ! Hmm...I'll weigh our options here and see what we'll do. I guess if we're running low on time, we'll just go with the taxi option since they'll be readily available outside Atocha.

I collected a friend from the airport last Friday and had to drop her off there again on Sunday. I live in palos de le Frontera which is fiveminutes walk from Atocha. So here is my opinion.
if you have a bit of spare time and your luggage is not too bulky then go by Metro. You will have to change twice, first at Tribunal and then at Nuevos Ministerios, but this is easy and the metro from Nuevos Minesterios will take you straight into the airport. The whole journey takes about 40 minutes. Cost 1.15€ per person.
Taxis take about 20 minutes if you avoid rush hours. The total cost including airport supplement is roughly 19.50 - 20.00€.

Hope this helps,

Marko.