# train or car in Spain?



## ValHam (Aug 9, 2009)

I am going to Malaga for 2 weeks.  Would it be easy to visit surrounding areas by train or would I need a car?


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## ecwinch (Aug 9, 2009)

ValHam said:


> I am going to Malaga for 2 weeks.  Would it be easy to visit surrounding areas by train or would I need a car?



My vote would be for a car if you have not visited that area before. I do not find the train to be very cost effective for point to point travel, and there are so many great places to visit in that region.


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## AwayWeGo (Aug 9, 2009)

*Railroad.*

The Trains In Spain Roll Straight Across The Plains. 

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​


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## ecwinch (Aug 9, 2009)

Here is some objective information to base your decision on. There are a number variables that make this very subjective. For instance, I personally do not like a lot of schedules when I am on vacation, and train travel requires that you adhere to a schedule.

The site has other travel destinations, but this specific link is about Ronda:

http://spain-travel.suite101.com/article.cfm/malaga_to_ronda_by_bus_or_train


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## PeelBoy (Aug 9, 2009)

Going to Malaga for 2 weeks?  Are you talking about Costa Del Sol?  While Malaga is the gateway for air, land and train travel, most of the resorts, activities or sight seeing are way out of town.  There is no or very limited local train service, and a car is a must, unless you want the snail speed of the local bus.

Train travel is fine with most parts of Europe, but in this area, you need a car.


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## stmartinfan (Aug 9, 2009)

We often do public transportation when traveling in Europe, but found a car much better for traveling around the Costa del Sol area.  Getting from the airport to the timeshare, visiting sites around the area, getting into town for meals, etc., were much more convenient with a car.  I don't think we'd have been able to see much if we'd been dependent on trains or buses.


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## Ireland'sCall (Aug 10, 2009)

Agree with other Posters . A car is  very much recommended. From Malaga there a lot of places to visit and a car will give you a lot of flexibility
G


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## Carolinian (Aug 10, 2009)

From Malaga there is no rail line along the coast.  There is a regular coastal bus that goes to Gibraltar (La Linea) and Algeciras, the ferry point to Morroco.

The rail line from Malaga goes inland, and is a straight shot to Cordoba, which has some interesting sites.  The travel time is a bit over two hours.  From Cordoba, one can take the AVE high speed line to Seville, another place of interest.  There is also a direct train to Seville, up a more direct branch line that takes about two and a half hours.  You can make a connection to Granada, a must see, up a branch line, but the connections are not very good.

If I were there two weeks, I would probably get a car at least one of them, and maybe use the train to see more distant locations such as Cordoba and Seville, and also to avoid driving and parking in a larger city.


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## pwrshift (Aug 17, 2009)

My daughter was on a Rick Steves tour to Barcelona and Madrid a few months back ... they took a high speed train from Barcelona to Madrid that speeded along at 299 km per hour and they made the trip in 3 hours.  Was quite impressed with it.

Brian


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## Jimster (Aug 17, 2009)

*Another vote*

This is one of the rare times I will say this, but I vote for a car as well.  There are many interesting sites nearby but for convenience I think a car would be the way to go.  Check out Carjet.com


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