Spain/Portugal/Gibraltar - Madrid Barajas 10:30am USA departure; Metro ride from Sol risky time-wise?

Hi all,

I am considering a trip to Madrid over Easter weekend and the return would be the AA flight departing to JFK at 10:30am. AA recommends arriving 3 hours before departure, and I want to as well in order to maximize my enjoyment of the amazing Velásquez lounge in T4S! :)

Anyway, I will be staying in the heart of town, at Sol, and I was wondering how much time I should allow for the early-morning Metro ride out to the airport on that Sunday morning to catch my flight. 3 hours before departure would mean arriving at Barajas at 7:30am. Assuming I should allow an hour for the Metro ride with all of the transfers, would 6:30am be a reasonable time to be standing on the Metro platform at Sol? Or am I cutting it too close?

(do the trains come less frequently that early on a Sunday morning?)

I remember doing this trip back in 2008 with an 11am departure and it felt very rushed, with not much time to enjoy the lounge. I don't recall exactly what time I left Sol, though.

They recommend three hours - but what time does check-in actually close?

In other words - if you aim to be there three hours before departure, and you get there ten minutes after your target time, is anything bad going to happen?

According to the Metro web site journey time is 46 minutes.... so 6.30 gives you plenty of time. Even with a slight delay the worst that can happen is that you get a bit less time in the lounge!

(Personally I'd rather have an extra half-hour in bed than an extra half-hour in the lounge... but we're all different!)

Assuming I should allow an hour for the Metro ride with all of the transfers, would 6:30am be a reasonable time to be standing on the Metro platform at Sol? Or am I cutting it too close?

(do the trains come less frequently that early on a Sunday morning?

Trains come less frequently on Sundays but it still shouldn't take more than an hour.
I would consider maybe going to the airport with the bus from Cibeles if it's not too far for you or taking the train from Sol (Cercanías (http://www.renfe.com/viajeros/cercanias/madrid/index.html)) and just making one transfer instead of two.

Awesome, thanks so much! I like your suggestion of taking the Renfe.

Again, I appreciate it!

Awesome, thanks so much! I like your suggestion of taking the Renfe

You're welcome. Do plan in advance with the timetable as the train to the airport isn't as frequent as the metro.

I would consider maybe going to the airport with the bus from Cibeles if it's not too far for you...

The bus from Cibeles (an easy walk from Sol) is remarkably easy, costs only 2 euro and runs every 15-20 minutes. ^

If you're going from Sol to T4, I would also consider taking the Cercanias train to the airport. It's one transfer at Chamartin. Since you're EXP, plan on being at the airport 90 minutes prior to departure.

... and I want to as well in order to maximize my enjoyment of the amazing Velásquez lounge in T4S! :)

Who cares, in the end it's just another lounge... ;) Wouldn't you rather enjoy Madrid for a few hours more the previous evening? :p

If you have lounge access I presume you have access to business class checkin. That alone can take 45min less than the regular Y line. The three hour recommendation is for a worst case scenario with a bit of buffer included. So Y pax, no status, bags to check in. You'll be fine.

Hi! To get to the airport from Sol is quite painful. Especially because you will have to take Line 1 up until Tribunal. Then, you will have to transfer and to take Line 10 all the way to Nuevos Ministerios to then change to Line 8 until you finally get to Terminal 4. The problem is that during Sundays, trains are less frequent although it should not take you more than 50 minutes to get there really. I know there is a special bus that goes directly to the airport, but I have never used it so there is not much I can tell you about it.

Being an experienced traveller like yourself, I think getting to the airport three hours prior take off is more than excessive. Especially, since it seems like you can check in on a Business Class counter as per your comment about visiting the Velázquez lounger. One more thing - there is fast track that I know it is available for Platinum and Gold Iberia Plus, I suppose it can be accessed by more people although I do not know what the requirements are, so I am afraid if you will have to find that out.

Enjoy your stay in Madrid! If you need any advice on restaurants, let me know and I will be glad to give you a hand.

Cheers!

Thanks so much for the help! I am going to give it a shot and see how long it takes on an early Sunday morning.

I would also highly recommend the bus from Cibeles...cheap and easy.

Any suggestions to get to the airport from Westin? Flying out on UA.

Any suggestions to get to the airport from Westin? Flying out on UA.

Airport bus from nearby Plaza Cibeles would probably be the best option.

Any suggestions to get to the airport from Westin? Flying out on UA.

Enjoy your stay at the Westin. Great location, great breakfast. VIPs down has a lot to offer. Plaza Cibeles bus is a good choice for returning to airport.

If you are staying in Sol I would take the C4 to Chamartin and then the C1 which is direct to T4.

Not sure about the subway time but the C1 from Chamartin to the airport is something like 11 minutes but they only go every 30 minutes!

Enjoy your stay at the Westin. Great location, great breakfast. VIPs down has a lot to offer. Plaza Cibeles bus is a good choice for returning to airport.

Thanks.

Breakfast was indeed very good.