Getting Around
How to get around Spain
Spain is bigger than it looks, and the right transport depends on the shape of your trip. High-speed rail stitches the big cities together; a car unlocks the villages in between. Buses fill the gaps the trains leave. Here's how to choose.
By mode
By train
Spain's best way to cover ground fast.
- —AVE and the newer low-cost Avlo/Ouigo/Iryo connect Madrid to Seville, Málaga, Valencia, Barcelona, and Galicia at up to 300 km/h — a Madrid–Seville AVE is under 2h40.
- —Book ahead on renfe.com or the competitors (Ouigo, Iryo) — fares climb sharply in the last few days and are cheapest 6–8 weeks out.
- —Regional and Media Distancia trains are slower but cheap and reach mid-size towns the AVE skips (e.g. Granada–Algeciras, the FEVE narrow-gauge along the Cantabrian coast).
- —A rail pass rarely beats individual advance tickets unless you're moving daily; price the legs first.
By car
Essential for rural Spain, often a liability in cities.
- —Pick one up when you're leaving a city for a region — not for the city itself. You do not want a car in Madrid, Barcelona, or Seville.
- —Manuals are standard and cheapest; automatics cost more and book out first. Reserve automatics well ahead.
- —Highways are excellent and mostly toll-free now. Parking in old-town centers is the real headache — look for hotel parking or an underground 'aparcamiento' on arrival.
- —Watch the speed cameras and the 30 km/h urban default — fines are mailed to the rental company, who adds a handling fee.
By bus
Goes where the trains don't, sometimes faster.
- —ALSA is the dominant long-haul operator; regional lines (Avanza, Daibus, Socibus) fill the gaps.
- —Buses beat trains for the north (Bilbao–San Sebastián, the Pyrenees valleys) and for many small towns in Extremadura and interior Andalusia.
- —Seats are comfortable and assigned; long routes are non-stop. Book online for popular Friday/Sunday departures.
By air
Worth it only for the islands and the diagonal corners.
- —Vueling, Iberia, Air Europa, and Binter cover the map. Madrid–Barcelona is a 1h15 shuttle and still beats the train if you're city-center to city-center with luggage.
- —Internal flights to the Canaries and Balearics are essential — the ferry to Tenerife or Palma is a voyage, not a commute.
- —North-to-south (e.g. Bilbao–Seville) can be cheaper and far faster than the train, but check total airport-to-airport time.
On foot & the Camino
Spain is a walking country.
- —The Camino de Santiago has waymarked routes from across the peninsula; the Camino Francés is the social classic, smaller routes (Primitivo, Norte, Portugués) are quieter.
- —GR trails and the Picos de Europa, Sierra Nevada, and Ordesa offer day and multi-day hikes — carry water in summer.
- —Walkable old towns (Toledo, Cuenca, Ronda) reward arriving without a car.
Ferries
For the islands, and to Morocco.
How to decide
The short version
City-to-city, big cities only: take the train. Book the AVE ahead.
Big city + a region around it: train in, pick up the car when you leave the city.
Small towns the train skips: bus, or rent a car for a few days.
Islands or diagonal corners: fly.