aerokitty

Going from Seville to Lucerne. Looking at the AVE from Seville to Madrid, another AVE from Madrid to Barcelona and the Elipsos night train from Barcelona into Lucerne.

Thinking about Eurail pass since we will be continuing our journey eventually into Belgium.

The AVE seem to have a fairly expensive supplement for passholders (EUR 24? in 1st class).

Also, it looks like there are some real specials for the Trenhotel, basically making the fare for passholders (overnight surcharge) pretty close to the promotional fare. Could this be the case?

Should this be booked before we leave the states? Don't want to be sold out on the overnight leg.

Thanks.

railways

It doesn't surprise me about the Trenhotel specials. And yes, the AVE supplements are expensive (although it includes an airline-style small meal in 1st class). You should definitely book the night trains early - they tend to sell out fairly quickly except in very off-peak periods.

Unfortunately, Spain is pretty bad for passholders (Eurail, Inter-Rail). Many trains require reservations/supplements: these are especially hefty in first class. The most outrageous is the €38 supplement to use the ancient daytime Talgo service between Barcelona and France.

You may well find that point-to-point advance-purchase tickets are better value than a pass for your journey.

aerokitty

OK, pretty much as I figured. I think we will go ahead and do the pass -- I added up the fares for point-point for the legs that I think we will travel, and it comes up to be about a wash. So, I'll take the slight pass premium as a luxury to do things "spur of the moment."

Will book the Elipsos now -- I assume raileurope.com is the best way to get them here (don't have a Spanish address, etc.).

Guy Betsy

Has anyone been on this route lately?

Between MAD and BCN..

Has the cost for the supplement gone up?

How far in advance should one book the seat? Can it be done the day before travel?

WomBatt

'Has the cost for the supplement gone up?' - Does this mean you already have a rail pass? Look to the terms and conditions of whatever pass, if so.

If not.
'How far in advance should one book the seat?' - If you have a fixed date you may be able to purchase a point to point ticket as much as 90 days in advance with the national carrier RENFE with discounting which could be 60%. Even short weeks or days before there could be savings.
'Can it be done the day before travel?' - Yes, if happy with full fare.

Guy Betsy

I already have a 1st class Eurail Pass. The terms and conditions does not specify supplement costs. i want to know what the supplements are.

I am enquiring about the reservation only without the ticket as I already have the ticket eg Pass.

Reindeerflame

Spanish high-speed trains are very popular and may sell out. For example, last October, I took the direct AVE between Seville and Barcelona (bypassing Madrid) and it looked like every seat was occupied.

Now, between Madrid and Barcelona there are frequent AVE trains, so you may be able to find a space at the last minute, but perhaps it won't be on the most convenient train. Unlike in northern Europe, most Spanish trains are all-reserved, so you typically cannot just board without a seat reservation.

RENFE, unlike some European railroads (Italy, Germany, Sweden), does not make simple seat reservations on line, but only sells the complete ticket (transportation plus seat reservation). Typically, you should go to the entity that sold you your rail pass and get them to make the reservations you need. They may impose a charge that is higher than what the railroad charges, in order to cover the travel agency overhead.

In first class, some trains include a "mandatory" meal, which comes with a charge that is included within the seat reservation charge, which currently appears to be 23,50 Euros. On some trains, like the one I rode, there was no meal, and the seat reservation charge was more modest, like 10 Euros. [Update: the site mentioned below explains that AVE trains have no meals on Saturdays, which was the day I travelled, so that explains the situation I encountered.]

This site has reasonably good information on seat reservation charges:

http://www.eurail.com/plan-your-trip...servation-fees

Finally, to avoid confusing future readers who see the reference to "Elipsos" overnight hotel trains on the original heading of this old thread, Elipsos overnight trains stopped running completely in December 2013 when the final 2 services, Paris to Barcelona, and Paris to Madrid, ended. Elipsos is now defunct, although some overnight trains run by others, like Lisbon-Madrid and some internal Spanish trains, continue to operate.

Guy Betsy

Thanks for the detailed info !

I will arrive in MAD 2 days earlier than my travel to BCN so I guess I can try to book then or the day before.

Hey, 23 euros is a lot cheaper than what Thalys charges between AMS and BRU !

ToGo

Please note for many Hightspeed Trains (in France and Spain) there are ~10 Seats per Train for Railpass Available!

JuanSaco

If 23€ is less than what Thalys charges, I wonder what the supplement is for AMS BRU. If you book well in dvance, Thalys tickets without any pass between both cities can cost as little as 19€ in second class.