• Get your Camino Frances Guidebook here.
  • For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here.
    (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation)
  • ⚠️ Emergency contact in Spain - Dial 112 and AlertCops app. More on this here.

Search 69,459 Camino Questions

Santiago transportation to Madrid

JudyP

New Member
Time of past OR future Camino
September 2019
I am arriving Santiago on September 15 and my flight home is from Madrid on September 17 at 19: 30. There does not seem to be any good options. Does anyone have a suggestion.

Also wondering where would be a great place to stay.

Thank you for your help.
 
Join our full-service guided tour and let us convert you into a Pampered Pilgrim!
I am arriving Santiago on September 15 and my flight home is from Madrid on September 17 at 19: 30. There does not seem to be any good options. Does anyone have a suggestion.

Also wondering where would be a great place to stay.

Thank you for your help.

Which ‘no good’ options have you considered and discounted?



Perhaps have a day in Santiago on the 16th.

17 September 0738 train from Santiago arrives Madrid Chamartin 1312. Direct train from there to the airport .

Otherwise do the same thing a day earlier and have a day in Madrid.

Book the train soon. Go to loco2.com
 
Transport luggage-passengers.
From airports to SJPP
Luggage from SJPP to Roncevalles
I can recommend that train. I used it in 2015 & 2017. Its better if you book early, cheaper. But you will not have that option. Have a look on the renfe,site for prices and etc.
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
We hiked the Camino Frances in 2015 and 2017. I researched options on travelling back to Madrid from Santiago. The cheapest and fastest was by plane. We flew Ryan Air in 2015 and Air Iberia in 2017. Both were morning flights and it allowed us to relax most of the day in Madrid.

With regards to a good place to stay in Santiago, both times we stayed in San Martin Pinario which is adjacent to the Cathedral. Historic old building, we stayed in a former monk's room, with full bath, and reasonable prices.

Bob
 
Are you saying you leave 5 days from now?
The train is the way to go, but I would be booking it TODAY.
If you can't get a train on the 17th and need to go early,
I also would be booking a hotel in Madrid TODAY.

The closer you get to your travel day, the fewer spots and more expensive rooms in Madrid get.
There are many hostels in Madrid. As long as you are near a "tube" station, you should be able to get ot the airport ok.

You can do that hotel booking on www.booking.com

Good luck!
 
Ideal pocket guides for during & after your Camino. Each weighs only 1.4 oz (40g)!
Judy, there is a very nice website called "Omio" that you can plug in your origin, destination, and date, then it will check all travel options via air, bus and train with the times and costs. Then you can select the one you prefer and purchase tickets. Bob
 
Thanks for all the wonderful responses. I did check air with Ryan and Iberia. Unfortunately the flights are super early and get in early too. The options that arrive closer to my flight home on the 17th fly through Barcelona and are closer to $150-$200 and take 6.5 hours. The train option arrives at the airport 6.5 hours before my flight. The buses are 8 hours or more. I was just hoping for something unusual that I may not have been aware of.

Thank for the recommendations for lodging and timing of purchases for trains.
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
I did find a 5.5 hour train that gets me to Madrid airport at 18:00. My flight back to Boston leaves at 19:30. Does anyone know if the trains run on time? Is 1.5 hours enough time? I am TSA pre.
 
Thanks for all the wonderful responses. I did check air with Ryan and Iberia. Unfortunately the flights are super early and get in early too. The options that arrive closer to my flight home on the 17th fly through Barcelona and are closer to $150-$200 and take 6.5 hours. The train option arrives at the airport 6.5 hours before my flight. The buses are 8 hours or more. I was just hoping for something unusual that I may not have been aware of.

Thank for the recommendations for lodging and timing of purchases for trains.


The train option gets you to Madrid Chamartin first of all. From there 30 minutes on the metro and you’re in downtown Madrid. You could be in the Prado by 1430 for a couple of hours.

There’s an excellent bus from Atocha station (15 mins walk from the Prado) to the airport every 15-20 minutes.

Pardon me for saying - but if you’ve ruled out walking, planes, trains and automobiles - perhaps your expectations are a little ahead of what’s available.

Anyway - it’s late summer and you're on the Camino and close to Santiago. That’s better than most of us right now.

Via con Dios.
 
The train option gets you to Madrid Chamartin first of all. From there 30 minutes on the metro and you’re in downtown Madrid. You could be in the Prado by 1430 for a couple of hours.

There’s an excellent bus from Atocha station (15 mins walk from the Prado) to the airport every 15-20 minutes.

Pardon me for saying - but if you’ve ruled out walking, planes, trains and automobiles - perhaps your expectations are a little ahead of what’s available.

Anyway - it’s late summer and you're on the Camino and close to Santiago. That’s better than most of us right now.

Via con Dios.
 
Very light, comfortable and compressible poncho. Specially designed for protection against water for any activity.

Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

€60,-
I did find a 5.5 hour train that gets me to Madrid airport at 18:00. My flight back to Boston leaves at 19:30. Does anyone know if the trains run on time? Is 1.5 hours enough time? I am TSA pre.
Don’t even think about it! If Apple would let me I’d have typed that as all one word.
 
So when I see on the website from Santiago to madrid airport, it really means Madrid city center?? That changes my opinion.

I love to walk and the Camino has been fantastic.
 
Unfortunately San Martin Pinario is not available for the 15 and 16th. Any other suggestions?
 
A guide to speaking Spanish on the Camino - enrich your pilgrim experience.
So when I see on the website from Santiago to madrid airport, it really means Madrid city center?? That changes my opinion.

I love to walk and the Camino has been fantastic.


No.

The trains from Santiago go to Madrid Chamartin which is the north-of-downtown station.

From there you have many options.

Metro direct to airport.
Metro to Sol or others (downtown)
Metro to Atocha or others (the Prado)
Etc

But!

Don’t leave yourself short of time. The Santiago to Madrid train can easily be 30 mins late. The bus from Atocha can take 45 or 75 minutes. The security lines at the airport can look deserted or like the crowd-scene from Ghandi.
 
Hmm. There are remarkably few cities with airports in their centres and even fewer where the major railway hubs are adjacent to their airports. RENFE's website https://venta.renfe.com/vol/search.do?c=_CL5t shows plenty of travel options to Madrid on the 16th, mirrored on the 17th. Mainline trains from Santiago to Madrid do not stop at Barajas. Taxi, Metro, or more practically the Cercanias from Atocha / Chamartin will get you to the airport without confusion, distress or strain.
 
Everyone has been so helpful. Got a train with plenty of time to spare. Thanks again.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
I suggest the train... the train station is walking distance from old town in Santiago and leaves about 1500 in the afternoon, gets in by 2030. As far as places to stay... depends on your budget. Old town Santiago was best for me because of convenience.. Hotel Praza Quintana!! 👍🏻
 

Most read last week in this forum

...I am on day eight of walking the Francés at the moment. It is quite busy. A lot of talk about beds (and the need to book ahead). I don't book. Today I tried really hard not to get a bed. I...
Just reading this thread https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/news-from-the-camino.86228/ and the OP mentions people being fined €12000. I knew that you cannot do the Napoleon in...
I’m heading to the Frances shortly and was going to be a bit spontaneous with rooms. I booked the first week just to make sure and was surprised at how tight reservations were. As I started making...
Hello, I would be grateful for some advice from the ones of you who are walking/have recently walked from SJPdP :) 1 - How busy is the first part of the camino right now? I read some reports of a...
My first SPRINGTIME days on the Camino Francés 🎉 A couple of interesting tidbits. I just left Foncebadón yesterday. See photo. By the way, it's really not busy at all on my "wave". Plenty of...
I was reading somewhere that some of us are doing night walks. As a natural born night owl I would love to do such walk too. Of course I can choose stage by myself (CF). But was wondering if any...

❓How to ask a question

How to post a new question on the Camino Forum.

Forum Rules

Forum Rules

Camino Updates on YouTube

Camino Conversations

Most downloaded Resources

This site is run by Ivar at

in Santiago de Compostela.
This site participates in the Amazon Affiliate program, designed to provide a means for Ivar to earn fees by linking to Amazon
Official Camino Passport (Credential) | 2024 Camino Guides
Back
Top