🚄 New high speed train Madrid Oviedo

[ivar]

Under 3 hours from Madrid to Oviedo. New high speed train starts this service tomorrow. Good option for those wanting to walk the Camino Primitivo.

More here:

Así es el AVE que une Madrid y Asturias: esta semana empieza su aventura

El AVE a Asturias ya está aquí. A partir del jueves 30 de noviembre, el trayecto entre Madrid y Oviedo se reduce a poco más de tres horas ¡y bajará del umbral de las tres horas en 2024!

viajar.elperiodico.com

 

[dbier]

Wow - and I was in hog heaven with the 4 hour train this last September... ;-)

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Wow - and I was in hog heaven with the 4 hour train this last September... ;-)

Me too, last April; it was quite nice.

 

[dbier]

I don't remember Segovia on the Alvia train I took (not this new extra rapid schedule), but I remember Leon (sorry, don't have an accent mark on this ancient keyboard), and the train's destination was Gihon.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

There is already a high speed train from Madrid to Segovia. It takes about a half hour, and a quick look at the schedule showed me 30 departures tomorrow!

I took this easy peasy train from Madrid to Segovia this past October.

 

[Montegras]

Under 3 hours from Madrid to Oviedo. New high speed train starts this service tomorrow. Good option for those wanting to walk the Camino Primitivo.

More here:

Así es el AVE que une Madrid y Asturias: esta semana empieza su aventura

El AVE a Asturias ya está aquí. A partir del jueves 30 de noviembre, el trayecto entre Madrid y Oviedo se reduce a poco más de tres horas ¡y bajará del umbral de las tres horas en 2024!

viajar.elperiodico.com

is there a high speed train from Madrid to Sarria ?

 

[peregrina2000]

Those who have walked the Salvador have probably seen or heard about the tremendous delays and complications that were involved with getting this train line completed.

A few tidbits — 20 years and 4 billion euros. 14 viaducts and 11 tunnels. One of the tunnels is almost 25 km long and is the 7th longest tunnel in Europe.

Projected increase in train travel from Madrid to Oviedo/Gijón — from 200,000 travelers a year to 600,000.

I understand that time is money, but that’s a lot of euros to save people one hour on the train!

 

[NicP]

Those who have walked the Salvador have probably seen or heard about the tremendous delays and complications that were involved with getting this train line completed.

A few tidbits — 20 years and 4 billion euros. 14 viaducts and 11 tunnels. One of the tunnels is almost 25 km long and is the 7th longest tunnel in Europe.

Projected increase in train travel from Madrid to Oviedo/Gijón — from 200,000 travelers a year to 600,000.

I understand that time is money, but that’s a lot of euros to save people one hour on the train!

Fascinating!

 

[ivar]

It is a big investment, but it will be there "forever". The good thing is that is will cut down on shorter flights internally in Spain. Less pollution...

And then we have this...

Spain says adios to short-haul flights

A similar idea in France has had little impact and campaigners worry the outcome in Spain will be the same.

www.politico.eu

It is all part of a plan I think.

 

[peregrina2000]

Many of you know that Ender lives in a small town on the León side of the Puerto de Pajares. He has been watching this new “variante de Pajares,” which is what they built to finally make the connection so that the AVE could reach Pola de Lena.

Apparently, it has been known for years that this tunnel under Pajares was going to take water from the towns on the León side and dump it into the Asturias side. I am not an engineer, I don’t understand anything about the environmental impact of this train, but he tells me that there are towns in León that now have no water. And no politician seems to be concerned. This video and article show some of what has happened.

El vídeo viral de Paulino, un vecino de Arbas que muestra el desastre de la Variante de Pajares

Verdades como puños. Así se expresa Paulino Fernández, un vecino de Viadangos de Arbas que ha convertido en viral una transmisión en directo

www.diariodeleon.es

The issue seems to be that the tunnel has ruptured the “depósitos freáticos de la alta montaña.” 300 liters a minute pours out of the tunnel in Campomanes, on the Asturian side.

Adif, agua y túneles del ave

La perforación de los túneles del AVE entre León y Asturias pinchó los depósitos freáticos de un amplio espacio de la alta montaña leonesa del Bernesga. El resultado de ese error de la ingeniería, provocado por la precipitación de algunos

www.lanuevacronica.com

I don’t know enough to have an educated opinion about whether this is an overall good or bad development, and of course my opinion doesn’t really matter. But I think it’s another cautionary tale to remind us that messing with Mother Nature has its consequences.

If anyone is interested, I can post more links to articles (Ender has sent along many), but these two are representative.

 

[Paul McAmino]

It is a big investment, but it will be there "forever". The good thing is that is will cut down on shorter flights internally in Spain. Less pollution...

And then we have this...

Spain says adios to short-haul flights

A similar idea in France has had little impact and campaigners worry the outcome in Spain will be the same.

www.politico.eu

It is all part of a plan I think.

This is good news. The fast trains I have taken in Spain are fantastic. When my flight from SdC was abruptly canceled there were no others leaving early enough to salvage my flight plan. I bought a ticket for the high speed train leaving Santiago at 5:00am for Madrid airport, and arrived (just) in time to connect to my long flight home. It was a revelation, and I am now able to plan travel in Spain with several more convenient and comfortable options.
The fast train has become a viable choice for longer-distance reliable travel in Spain.
All the best,
Paul

 

[Jacki]

is there a high speed train from Madrid to Sarria ?

I’d like to know the same info. I don’t see one listed on R2R.

 

[dbier]

I've never heard of one single train from Madrid to Sarria. I think that's because one may have to change trains, whereas Madrid to Oviedo runs in a relatively direct line past several reasonably large towns on the way to Gihon.

 

[MelHerm]

Under 3 hours from Madrid to Oviedo. New high speed train starts this service tomorrow. Good option for those wanting to walk the Camino Primitivo.

More here:

Así es el AVE que une Madrid y Asturias: esta semana empieza su aventura

El AVE a Asturias ya está aquí. A partir del jueves 30 de noviembre, el trayecto entre Madrid y Oviedo se reduce a poco más de tres horas ¡y bajará del umbral de las tres horas en 2024!

viajar.elperiodico.com

I see frequent connections for upcoming dates but when I try to look for trains next June when we will be there, there are no connections b/w Madrid and Santiago. I could book other connections though like Madrid-Barca or Madrid-Sevilla.
Any idea why this is?
Thank you kindly.
Melanie

 

[dbier]

Like Madrid to Sarria , Madrid to Santiago doesn't tend to be a direct line. There's usually a connection. (Bear in mind that this thread was originally about a fast train from Madrid to Oviedo).

Also, Renfe doesn't tend to publish all their schedules more than two months in advance. Try RailEurope or RometoRio.

 

[Tincatinker]

I see frequent connections for upcoming dates but when I try to look for trains next June when we will be there, there are no connections b/w Madrid and Santiago. I could book other connections though like Madrid-Barca or Madrid-Sevilla.
Any idea why this is?
Thank you kindly.
Melanie

If you are interested in trains for July 2024 take a look during late May / June 2024. There is usually at least one train a day direct from Madrid Chamartin to Sarria. Renfe's website is showing 4 for tomorrow 13 December. https://venta.renfe.com/vol/search.do?c=_LFI8

 

[MelHerm]

Like Madrid to Sarria , Madrid to Santiago doesn't tend to be a direct line. There's usually a connection. (Bear in mind that this thread was originally about a fast train from Madrid to Oviedo).

Also, Renfe doesn't tend to publish all their schedules more than two months in advance. Try RailEurope or RometoRio.

I checked other websites and they all show the same. 13+ trains tomorrow with about 3-4 h travel time, 3-4 trains when I check in February with travel times of up to 12 hours and No trains when I look after March/April. Do not understand the comment about direct line versus connection. Even if one would have to switch trains, it would still show up as a possibility.

 

[Jacki]

If you are interested in trains for July 2024 take a look during late May / June 2024. There is usually at least one train a day direct from Madrid Chamartin to Sarria. Renfe's website is showing 4 for tomorrow 13 December. https://venta.renfe.com/vol/search.do?c=_LFI8

Great to know, thx for the info!

 

[Tincatinker]

I checked other websites and they all show the same. 13+ trains tomorrow with about 3-4 h travel time, 3-4 trains when I check in February with travel times of up to 12 hours and No trains when I look after March/April. Do not understand the comment about direct line versus connection. Even if one would have to switch trains, it would still show up as a possibility.

RENFE’s website is about as useful as a fart in a hot-air balloon unless you know which lines you are traveling on and where the interconnections are. It will frequently fail to find perfectly sensible routes involving one or more changes. Most of the other available websites rely on bots trawling RENFE’s website. Good luck to them. For instance, if you know that the 09:52 from Chamartin direct to Sarria departs from Alicante and terminates in Lugo it is really easy to find the timetable. If you don’t know that you may struggle

 

[GettingThere]

I checked other websites and they all show the same. 13+ trains tomorrow with about 3-4 h travel time, 3-4 trains when I check in February with travel times of up to 12 hours and No trains when I look after March/April. Do not understand the comment about direct line versus connection. Even if one would have to switch trains, it would still show up as a possibility.

Generally trains are only listed 1-2 months ahead. You may see the odd one longer ahead than that, but mostly the bookings (and therefore trains listed) are not released until a month or two before travel dates. Timetables don't change a lot though, so you can get an idea of the times for your dates by looking at what is available for the near future, if that makes sense.

 

[Michael Joseph Smith]

We intend to take the train from Oviedo to Leon in June, to start a leg of the Camino there. Has anyone taken the new fast train from Oviedo to Leon yet? Thanks

 

[neverlost4good]

I see frequent connections for upcoming dates but when I try to look for trains next June when we will be there, there are no connections b/w Madrid and Santiago. I could book other connections though like Madrid-Barca or Madrid-Sevilla.
Any idea why this is?
Thank you kindly.
Melanie

I am trying to book 4 trips using the train, I have 2 booked, but the 2 shorter slower trains are not showing up yet. I have a link to a video explaining this:

The trains will not show up until they are put on the schedule (52 days out?). It's all random, so I check every other day to book. Booking out as far as you can gives you cheaper tickets! Rather frustrating, but it is what it is. The best app/website is: Trainline.com, but know that if you purchase a ticket on your phone, it won't show up on your computer. I've purchased one on each and they don't show both. Print off your ticket. They do send an email confirmation, and this has the QR code on it. Hope that helps!

 

[Jacki]

I am trying to book 4 trips using the train, I have 2 booked, but the 2 shorter slower trains are not showing up yet. I have a link to a video explaining this:

The trains will not show up until they are put on the schedule (52 days out?). It's all random, so I check every other day to book. Booking out as far as you can gives you cheaper tickets! Rather frustrating, but it is what it is. The best app/website is: Trainline.com, but know that if you purchase a ticket on your phone, it won't show up on your computer. I've purchased one on each and they don't show both. Print off your ticket. They do send an email confirmation, and this has the QR code on it. Hope that helps!

Great video and so informative! Never realized that catching a fast train in Spain was like catching a flight though…what a process lol.

 

[neverlost4good]

I had two shorter rail trips to book: Sahagun to Leon, and Leon to Astorga. My high speed trains have been booked, but the shorter ones didn't show up: until today. Bam! There they were. I booked my train from Sahagun and a bus to Astorga. I understand that they can't book out their trains too far, HOWEVER...wouldn't it be nice if the app (like Trainline) had an alert they could send you when the trains did go on line. Just a thought. It feels great to have these little details taken care of. Now, just 37 days until that flight to Madrid! Wahoo, I'm coming home.

Update: all rail and bus tickets are purchased! I continued to check every day and it finally "popped up" on the TrainLine app. Buen Camino everyone!