Hello everybody, I am trying to book some train travel in Spain this spring. More specifically, one way Madrid/Seville, o/w Valencia/Barcelona and o/w Barcelona/Zaragossa. The Renfe site allows you to purchase either 1st or 2nd class tickets but wont let you to reserve a seat until after the purchase. The question is: do they charge extra to reserve a seat? I have traveled with a Eurail pass before and the Rail Europe or Eurail sites do charge you extra to reserve a seat with them (up to $33 per person in 1sr class). I wanted to take that extra charge into consideration when deciding whether to buy 1st or 2nd class.
Thanks

This is a good question. As I recall - from my own experience, I've had both experiences in that I was given the option to choose my seat - and also, was not. Now I don't recall why. I've got to say that there's so much legroom for 2nd (or 1st) class seats that it's easy to get past your seat-mate - unless they have their tray-table down, of course. Or maybe you want a forward-facing seat only or a seat which does NOT have a table in the middle (2-forward facing seats, a table in the middle, and 2 back-facing seats). I'm not a fan of the seats with the table in the middle, myself, unless I was traveling with 3 other friends and we occupied all 4 seats. Otherwise, you'd have to play "footsy-tag" withe the person across from you.

But in short - or in long, as the case seems to be, I don't believe RENFE charges extra to reserve your seat, no.

Let us know what you find out, please!

Saludos, MadridMan

Two questions about RENFE (also planning some train rides in May):

(1) Has anyone had trouble with a normal US credit card on their site? (Thalys and Trenitalia occasionally have given me difficulties requiring starting the ticketing process over from scratch, even though I alerted my credit card company about the purchases)?

(2) How do you tell the difference between seats facing the front and seats facing the back. On the diagrams in the "Nuestros Trenes/Dónde está mi asiento?" section of the website, there are two deisgnations:

-- Sentido de la marcha
-- Espaldo a la marcha

Which is which?

Thanks.

SS

patient with Renfe its a bad site, improve but still bad, just keep trying.
sentido de la marcha is as the train goes you see the front, espaldo a la marcha is when the train goes you have your back to it.
cheers

The Renfe site is nothing but advertisement for Xanax, it will give you a nervous breakdown trying to figure things out, and I don't even have the language barrier. Their credit card processing is slow at best, and if you are trying to use AMEX it works only 20% of the time. VISA, M/C are a little better.
As for the direction of the seats I suggest you completly disregard the way they tell you they are facing since the trains pull into most stations one way and then pull out in reverse, so its almost impossible to say which way you will be facing in the end.
What I do is I book whatever seats seem to have empty spaces around them and then change to whatever seat is empty once the train starts moving.
Did I make any sense? Its friday happy hour here in Miami and I'm on my second Macallans so sorry if I ranted.

Are any of the tickets refundable or exchangeable on AVE, Altaria or Alvia?

[Miamiajp...thanks for the warning, and sorry to hijack your original post.]

I had problems with my credit card (GM Mastercard) and my travel companion had to put our tickets on hers. I will be purchasing tickets for a one way trip this summer and hoping that I can do it successfully this time. Please keep us posted on your progress.

Madrid in May: Don't quote me, but I think you can exchange your tickets. Hopefully someone with first hand knowledge will post.

miamiajp...re: seat direction.

I am aware that the trains reverse direction in many of the stations.

However, the Madrid-Sevilla AVE seems to only stop in Córdoba (after the first 2/3 of the trip), and the Córdoba-Madrid run appears to be non-stop -- so it's probably worth the trouble to start out facing the right way on some of our trips. [Our four trips are: Madrid-Sevilla, Sevilla-Granada, Granada-Córdoba, Córdoba-Madrid]

So...that leads me to my question: Can you select seats on the AVE trains on the RENFE website? (The RailEurope site, while easier to use, does not allow it.)

Thanks for your patience.
SS

Another question:

The RENFE site seems to have special fares. There are three icons with the following explanation...that really doesn't explain what each means.

Le recordamos que estas tarifas son limitadas y varios clientes pueden estar solicitándolas simultáneamente. Su disponibilidad queda sujeta a la formalización de la compra.

My bad Spanish: "Remember that these prices are limited and some customers can be buying [trying to buy] them simultaneously. Availability is subject to your actual purchase."

[I think that last sentence means that they might disappear while you are working on the purchase and might not be there when you actually click to complete the purchase because someone else beat you to it and they're all gone now.]

The three icons are:

-- A purple/white W
-- A tan star
-- A purple/white icon I can't decipher.

Can someone tell me what they are? Any special limitations? I assume these are early-purchase prices of some sort that sell out quickly.

I can't find a key on the page.

Thanks.
SS

I just bought AVE tickets through the RENFE site so hopefully I can offer some help or at least commiserate in your pain. I am not sure if this applies to Cercanias or AVANT trains since I only purchased AVE tickets.

First off, there is no charge for seat selection through the RENFE site. There is a box you have to check in the purchase process to be able to select your seat, but then you select it a little bit later in the process. I'm sorry I don't remember exactly where it is, only that it is real easy to miss.

As far as the other sites to book tickets through, I am not sure about Eurail. I only poked around there a little bit but it seemed more hassle than the RENFE site. Raileurope was real easy to use but I think they wanted a $18 surcharge per ticket to go through them. At that price, I went the headache route through RENFE's site.

As far as cancellations, I think I read on RENFE's site that internet purchased tickets cannot be refunded but I went back and tried to find it again and couldn't. I may have read it on a different site and it may be old info. In the "mis viajes" page on RENFE after I purchased my tickets, there is a link to cancel or change tickets.It only said tickets paid for with cash are non-refundable. Fees Apply. So I am not sure on this one.

Sorry for the novel but hopefully I am answering all of the above posted questions. The symbols described refer to different discounts. The purple w/ white w is I believe a web only deal but they were gone for when I purchased tickets. The gold stars are a web discout as well. The purple unidentifiable symbol is for a discout based on purchasing the table seats. There is only a discount for 2, 3, or 4 tickets and the discount is greater for 3 and 4 people. The web discounts are only for a certain percentage of seats in each class and when they are gone they are gone so you can probably save some money purchasing in advance. I think it said tickets are available 62 days prior.

US Credit Card (own header due to lengthy post Sorry!)

About credit cards, this is the biggest hassle. There are several factors that could make it not work.

First off, I read on a different site that you cannot make a purchase through RENFE's site between 2300 and 700 hours Madrid time. I found that to be true.

My understanding is that you must use the spanish site and not the translated version in order for it to go through. Not difficult if you know spanish. If you don't know spanish, I suggest opening two internet windows at the same time, one in spanish, the other english so you can follow along in with the english terms but input into the spanish one as the format is exactly the same.

As far as getting a US credit card to work, I'll tell you everything I did so it hopefully saves you some trouble. First off, I tried to make the purchase prior to notifying my card company of my intent to travel. The transaction didn't go through and resulted in my card being suspended altogether for "fraudulent use" until I called them and confirmed it was me trying to make the purchase. This was a VISA card hosted by Chase Bank.

So, I called my credit card company, removed suspension, and notified of intent to travel. (At this point is was after 2300 hrs Madrid time and transaction didn't go through giving me a different error message. Note the site with still let you take the time to input everything before telling you it doesn't work.)

Next day, I tried with a different card that I had already notified my intent to travel with. I used this card because they only charge 1% surcharge for foreign transactions. This was a VISA through a US only bank. I did not ever get this card to work.

Back to using the Chase VISA. I input everything and attempted to make the purchase but was denied again. At this point, the RENFE site says that it is out of their control and up to your bank for approval. After the denial, I didn't have to re-enter everything, only my card information. What I ended up doing was having everything entered, called the number on the back of my card and hit submit while I was on the phone with the bank. They could see the transaction in real time and were able to authorize it.

Long story short, you may have to use different cards and plan on phoning your bank during the transaction process.

I can't say it is going to be this way for every card, but that was my experience I just went through over the past three days to finally get my tickets purchased.

Hopefully this novel helps.

Thanks to Sancho for doing all the research, though just reading it gave me cramps. The Renfe site is the stuff of nightmares, thankfully the trains are a sweet dream.
This is what I did, I have used RailEurope before many times, so I booked a rail pass through their website and then called their customer service and told them the exact same trips I am taking were about $300 cheaper when booked on Renfe. After some haggling, mostly about how the Remfe site doesn't accept American Credit Cards, the RailEurope supervisor offered to match the Renfe price for my trips. Now about the seating positions, they don't tell you which way you are facing, but again, I have never traveled on a train so full that you can't change seats when it starts to move.

Sancho...

Thank you so, so much!

I cannot predict success at this time -- because it's not quite within 62 days yet -- but your very detailed and informative post is a great help. I will do my best to follow your advice, hope for the best, and let everyone know how it goes.

Thanks, again.
SS

Hi, all...

I did a practice run on RENFE (in Spanish) just now to check the seat selection issue...stopping where I had to enter name, etc.

The check box to enable seat selection later in the process is on the page just after picking your fare, about 2/3 of the way down the page.

NOTE: If you don't check that box at that time, it appears you cannot go back and do it from the next page where you eneter your name, etc.

I'm going to do another test run on the English site to see how that looks.

SS

Hi, again...

The English site looks the same with the check-box to pick seats later on the same page.

SS

Nice work JP. Sounds like you got the best of both worlds through just a phone call. Any idea if being a repeat customer with RailEurope had any bearing on them adjusting the price for you? Or do you think a first time user could negotiate a similar deal?

Good luck Madrid in May. Be sure to purchase your tickets as soon as you can as you'll be there when more tourists will be. I waited three days while I was trying to decide between train or renting a car and missed out of the best discount to the tune of ~ 26 euros per ticket. Buena suerte!

Ha ha...I just realized what the strange purple symbol is for the "mesa" trains.

Looking really closely at it, it's two people sitting, facing each other, at a table.

Pretty obvious now.

SS

Hi Sancho, I don't know if been a previous customer influenced their decision, it could be so. I am more inclined to think it was the fact that I had already purchased the passes and had a right to cancel the order and get a full refund. But I was also assured by RailEurope that their site is directly connected to Renfe and they book the same trips at the same price. The difference in price was between booking a pass and booking individual trips. Sometimes one is better than the other, depending on Renfe's specials for that specific trip.

Hi, all...my saga...

At 1 am Eastern Time this morning (7 am Madrid time), I attempted to buy tickets on RENFE's site while on the phone to my credit card company. Multiple attempts failed to get the transaction to reach the card company. (Sigh!)

I finally gave up and bought the tix on RailEurope. The price was a little more, but by purchasing as early as was possible, I got a very good fare. [Not the 25 € fare that was available on the 8 a.m AVE, which was not feasible for me...but $49 (36 €) on the 10 am AVE, which is only 3 € more than on RENFE's site...these figure include the handling fees.]

The only real downside was the inability to pick my seats. I was hoping to face forward on the longer leg of the Madrid-Sevilla trip, but it was not to be.

I will probably try RENFE again later this week with my other tickets. [I must have a masochistic streak in me.]

Thanks for all who gave advice.

SS

yes Renfe still has not learn, hear a lot from visitors ,need some work to do, patient is the norm, try again. The other ticket is more expensive because raileurope is an agency and charges commissions. mostly own by SNCF of France.
Cheers

I have a very strong feeling this is a sweet under the table deal between Renfe and RailEurope that benefits both at the expense of American tourists. As proven, only US issued credit cards dont work on the Renfe site. When I talked to RailEurope they sounded pretty confident that even if they gave me a refund for the passes I bought, I would be back to buy them again because Renfe would reject my card. In reality, as bad as it may sound, like MiM said, its only a few dollars more for the convenience of not dealing with another pain in the a**.

Last year when I attempted to buy a ticket on Renfe, as expected my American credit card didn't work. However, my travel companion who also has a US credit card was able to buy our tickets for us. I will have to see which card she used.

teachertraveler8...

You've got me thinking...the card I unsuccessfully tried to use was a card with no overseas surcharge. Maybe they charge the merchants a higher percenaget and RENFE won't accept certain cards for that reason.

Maybe using a card with a surcharge is the way to go. It might be worth an extra 3 percent (which is less than RailEurope adds on) to get the seats I want.

SS

My friend used "Visa". I would be curious what credit cards work. I am actually thinking about getting another one, just to be able to use Renfe. (and because it might be prudent to have two).

Do the cards not work because you have not yet notified the credit card company of a charge coming through from Spain?
Last year, when I made hostel reservations it did not go through at first, but once I called the credit card company and told them that 2 charges would be coming through from Spain for reservations it was OK.

I then told them the week before we left, the dates that we would be there and there were no problems.

Do the cards not work because you have not yet notified the credit card company of a charge coming through from Spain?
Last year, when I made hostel reservations it did not go through at first, but once I called the credit card company and told them that 2 charges would be coming through from Spain for reservations it was OK.

I then told them the week before we left, the dates that we would be there and there were no problems.

jacmom...

I was on the phone with my card company the entire time...they were ready to approve the charges...but the transactions never reached their system.

NOTE - They were very patient and stayed on the line for about 20 minutes while I made multiple attempts.

In fact they stay on the line when I switched to RailEurope -- that transaction went through without any problem.

The snag was definitely on RENFE's end.

SS

Jacmom: I had trouble with my credit card (Mastercard) even after I informed them of my travel plans, but like you said, it was able to be cleared up.

Renfe is a different animal. Like Madrid in May, I also had the charges approved, but it just wouldn't go through. My friend with "Visa" was able to do it, thankfully.

Well...

My theory that RENFE wouldn't accept my no-surcharge card (because of higher costs to them) was wrong. I tried it with a different card (with a 3% surcharge) and the card-people on the phone with me - - still no luck.

I have given up and have been buying the tickets on RailEurope. I paid about 10% more, and I have the tickets all printed and saved as PDFs.

Three rides down (Madrid-Sevilla, Sevilla-Granada, Granada-Cordoba)-- and I'm buying the last leg (Cordoba-Madrid) tomorrow at 6 pm (midnight Thursday in Spain).

Then I can relax and forget about RENFE and think only about my great upcoming trip.

SS

like I said ,RENFE is a different animal, still behind the times. EVen if many said it has improved. Luckily for me dont use them.
Yes RailEurope you paid more for what I said its an agency,they earned commissions.
The bus is better but slower, and the car is the best,but more expensive unless you have a large family,then its cheaper.
Best of luck in your stay in Spain

We have divided our trip into a combination of train and driving. This was decided not only on cost, but also on what is more effective and allows us to see more. At the end we ended up with: Train from Madrid to Seville, car from Seville to Valencia (going through Pueblos Blancos, Marbella, Malaga, Granada, Valencia), then the train again from Valencia to Barcelona and from Barcelona to Zaragoza. In Zaragoza we are renting another car and driving to Hondarribia and from there all through the north coast to Santiago de Compostela. From there to Salamanca where we return the car and take the train back to Barajas the day before returning to the States. We have just short of four weeks to do this. If we don't drive off a cliff I'll let you all know how it went when we get back.:)

remember that if you want to see the full tour of La Alhambra in Granada you must book your ticket in advance .

Thanks Steve, I was stalking the Alhambra website for when they made available the tickets for the days we are gonna be there and the morning they did, by the time I got to the computer all reservations for the morning were sold out and I had to book the afternoon, which is fine. We booked a segway tour of the albaycin in the morning, that should be a blast.

yes do tell us on your experience, now I see its better with the car/train combi. Enjoy Spain

Has anyone every tried to purchase Renfe tickets using a pre-paid Visa card? Does it work?

A good news update to the posting. As they had previously promised, a representative for Rail Europe called me yesterday on the day when the reservations for the last of my train segments in Spain became available for purchase on the Renfe site. With her on the phone I looked at the trips I wanted to take on the Renfe site and decided it was cheaper (by about $200) to purchase them individually rather than on a Rail Europe pass. She booked the trips for me, charged my credit card and emailed me the tickets for me to print. Factoring in the exchange rate, I paid almost exactly what Renfe charges in euros. I don’t think R.E. would have any problems doing the same for everybody, so if you guys have problems with Renfe and US credit cards, just call R.E. directly and ask them to book the tickets for you.

that is a good deal, as RE has a commission on the renfe and other train sites in Europe. Maybe the times is catching up with them,need to get their act together.
good for you and yes indeed others should try it too.
thanks for the feedback.

unless of course is April's fools day ::)

I am re-opening this thread because I am attempting to purchase Renfe tickets for this summer. When I looked at Renfe's site, the tickets at regular price are available. (My travel date is July 1) But when I tried to look at the special web pricing, it says, "Train blocked". I looked at EuroRail and it appears that I can't purchase tickets from A Coruna to Segovia. What can I do! I'm not even to the part where my credit card won't work.

always patient with RENFE, do not know the particular problem but you are well advise to try again late evening if possible.
cheers

Always patience, but I am still wondering if anyone has experience with the "Train blocked" message. It isn't a problem of the timing because I am within the 60 days in advance. Some dates appear to be blocked while others that are closer are not. I have read about changing over schedules and possible strikes.

The problem may be with that segment you want to travel from La Coruña to Segovia. Trains in the northern region of Spain are not as prompt and advanced as in some southern segments. We tried booking from Santiago de Compostela to Salamanca and it was not as easy as the other train segments we booked. For instance it takes 6 hrs to travel from Sto. de Compostela to Salamanca (198 miles) when the fast train from Madrid to Sevilla (250 miles) takes only 2.5 hrs. We ended up deciding to rent a car and drive most of the north coast because we had the time to do it. If you don't, I've heard there are good bus services also. Another thing you may want to try is calling one of the train re-selers (Rail Europe,Eurail) and asking questions about that segment, you don't have to buy anything from them, but at least you'll have another opinion on what's going on with RENFE.

changes schedules usually its the summer july, then strikes are always a concern, but from many forums the RENFE site is special, time and try again.

In my perusal of Renfe, I have noticed that Sundays do not seem to offer any special fares. Is this the norm? As I'm looking, I can find special fares during the week, but Sunday is full price. It is a big enough difference to make me change my travel plans. Can anyone confirm that Sunday travel on Renfe does not typically offer a web discount? (When I traveled last year on Easter Sunday, there were no specials, but I figured that was because it was a holiday)