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General Information
Buying Tickets Buying train tickets ( billetes) can be confusing, as there’s a baffling range of fares ( precios/importes) and trains to choose from. Confusion is widespread and ticket office clerks aren’t always familiar with the variety of special tickets and reductions available. You should double check to ensure that you pay the lowest possible fare for a journey . Fares for long-distance and high-speed trains, such as AVE, are published in leaflets available from stations and RENFE offices, and all fare information is available on the RENFE website (http://www.renfe.es ). Children under four years of age travel free (including sleeping accommodation) and those aged between 4 and 11 (inclusive) travel for half fare on local trains and for a 40 per cent discount on regional ( regionales) trains. Tickets can be purchased at station ticket windows ( taquillas de billetes), from ticket machines ( máquinas de billetes) accepting cash and credit cards, at RENFE offices, and from RENFE appointed travel agents. Tickets can also be bought online or by telephone through RENFE’s secure booking service, TIKNET, requiring online or telephone registration, a code name and password, both of which must be used in order to buy tickets. TIKNET ( 902-157 507) is open from 7am to 11pm. The first time you buy tickets you must collect them in person from any RENFE station where you must show some identification (passport or residence permit) and give the booking reference number. Tickets bought in subsequent purchases can be printed or collected from your departure station (up to one hour before the train leaves), on the train, if it’s a long-distance journey, on regional or Grandes Líneas trains or at access point to AVE, Talgo and Lanzadera trains. A single ticket is un billete de ida and a return (round trip) is ida y vuelta. There may be an information ( información) or international information window at major stations, where staff may speak English and other foreign languages. A ticket must be purchased and validated before boarding a train, unless there’s no ticket office (or it’s closed) at the station where you’re boarding. It’s possible to buy a ticket on a train from the ticket collector/conductor ( revisor), although you may need to pay a surcharge, depending on the type of train and the length of your journey. It usually pays to avoid station ticket windows, where there are usually long queues, and buy your ticket at a RENFE office, from a travel agent, by phone or online. Ticket windows at stations usually open around an hour before train departures (but in some cases, open just a few minutes before a train is due to arrive). To purchase a ticket at some stations you must take a number from a machine and wait for it to be called (so you must understand Spanish numbers). At main stations, there are a number of ticket windows, which may include local trains ( cercanías) and long-distance ( largos recorridos), advance tickets ( venta anticipada) and imminent departure ( venta inmediata) i.e. up to two hours before departure. There’s also usually a window for international tickets ( billetes internacionales) at some stations in Madrid and Barcelona. A computerised RENFE ticket shows the train number ( No Tren), carriage ( coche) and seat number ( No Plaza). There are two classes on most long-distance trains: first class ( preferente) and second/tourist class ( turista). On some services, such as fast AVE trains, there are three fare classes: turista, preferente and club. Some trains such as Intercity and TEE international trains are first class only. There are different fares depending on the type of train ( tipo de tren) and how long the journey takes. The difference between the cheapest and most expensive fare can be as much as 150 per cent. Apart from the extra cost, it’s best to avoid travelling on public holidays or over long weekends ( puentes), when the whole nation takes to the rails (those that aren’t on the roads). Date: 2016-01-14; view: 896
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