On Friday, the Spanish railway company Renfe reached on a new passenger record in one day since the beginning of the pandemic. That day, Renfe sold a total of 169,136 seats for the long and medium distance lines of the high speed rail line AVE.
The most popular routes are those between Madrid and Andalucia, Valencia, Galicia and Catalonia. Catalonia is one of the most popular destinations. Therefore, Renfe is introducing a new AVE timetable on Saturdays from 4 June. This will be on the Madrid-Barcelona line and vice versa, with a stop in Zaragoza.
Special promotion in July and August
Renfe has launched a promotion for travel on Saturdays in July and August. This is between Madrid, Zaragoza and Barcelona for €22.75 with the AVE. The promotion is valid for purchases made until 1 June. Currently there are 50 high speed trains (AVE or Avlo) on the Madrid-Barcelona route. And, furthermore, trains are running approximately every half hour for much of the day, especially during peak periods. Therefore, in total, the railway company is offering around 20,000 seats per day on this connection.
Also read: The most beautiful train stations in Spain
Extra seats
Renfe also announced that it is providing more than 50,000 additional seats. Mainly for journeys on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, this represents an increase of 7.8% compared to the usual supply. The increase is particularly significant on the routes between Madrid and Catalonia and Andalucia. In these areas, there will be a total of 48,000 additional seats. The lines with the highest demand for commercial services (AVE-Larga Distancia), between Madrid and Cataluña and Aragon, will have 21,318 additional seats.
Renfe will also increase its offer in the southern part of Spain. Here there will be a total of 18,387 additional seats (between Madrid and Seville, Malaga and Cadiz). And, furthermore, in the Levante region, 5,950 seats will be added. In terms of medium-distance trains, Renfe will increase the supply by 2,500 seats, strengthening the links between Madrid and Toledo, and Madrid and Valladolid, along with Seville-Cádiz and the A Coruña-Santiago-Vigo line. With the total number of additional seats on offer, Renfe says it is reducing the polluting emissions of 33,000 private vehicles.
Also read: RENFE plans to compete with Eurostar
