Lisbon-Madrid Night Train
Lusitánia Comboio Trenhotel
ABOVE: Sleeping cars in Lisbon's Santa
Apolónia Station. INSET: An illuminated sign on Coche 13, and a
map with Lisbon and Madrid highlighted in red.
by Durant Imboden
 Lisbon
and Madrid are the two major capitals of the Iberian Peninsula, and no trip to
Portugal and Spain is complete without a visit to both. By air, the two cities
are only about an hour apart, but ground transportation, check-in time, and
security checks will add several hours to the trip (especially if you need to
wait for a checked suitcase).
 A pleasant alternative worth considering is the
Lisbon-Madrid or Madrid-Lisbon Night Train--especially if you're traveling
with a Eurail or
InterRail pass, which provide
substantial discounts for passholders. By sleeping on the train, you'll save the
cost of a hotel for one night, and you won't waste your daylight vacation hours
at an airport.
The night train between the Lisbon and Madrid--also known as the
Lusitánia Comboio Trenhotel--is operated
by Renfe, the Spanish national railways, on Portuguese and Spanish railroad
tracks. Departure and arrival times are:
Lisbon - Madrid
Depart Lisbon Santa Apolónia Station 10:30 p.m.
Arrive Madrid Chamartin Station 9:03 a.m.
Madrid - Lisbon
Depart Madrid Chamartin Station 10:25 p.m.
Arrive Lisbon Santa Apolónia Station 7:41 a.m.
Times are subject to change, so check the
train's
current timetable at the CP Portuguese Railways Web site before going to the
station. (The timetable also shows intermediate stops.)
Please note:
-
Madrid's time zone is one hour ahead of
Lisbon's, so remember to reset your watch before going to bed.
-
If you're connecting between
Madrid and other major Spanish cities (such as Seville) by high-speed AVE
train, you'll need to transfer between Chamartin Station and Atocha Station
across town. This is easy, since local and regional trains run frequently
between the two stations.
-
The Lusitánia Comboio Trenhotel isn't a luxury train like
the Venice-Simplon Orient Express or the Royal Scotsman. It's clean and
comfortable, but its purpose is to transport you between Lisbon and Madrid,
not to pamper you with the railway equivalent of a five-star cruise.
Next page:
Accommodations
Map scan copyright © Nicholas Belton. | |
|
"Best of the Web"
- Forbes and The Washington Post
Our most popular topics:
Need a car in Europe?
Auto Europe
guarantees the lowest rental
rates for standard cars, sports cars, SUVs, luxury cars,
chauffered sedans, and RVs. Its Web site also has driving information
for 38 countries.
If
you live outside the EU, a
tax-free
Renault or
Peugeot tourist lease can be cheaper than renting.
Minimum driver age is 18, there' s no upper age limit, and rates include
insurance. See:
Short-term car leasing.
Traveling by train?
Rail Europe
has schedules, maps, and guides for 50+ European railroads. (Residents
of North and Central America can buy tickets and rail passes
online.)
From Europe for Cruisers:
Travel and cruise news:
Europe for Visitors Blog
|
|
