George & Rosalia

When researching economic ways of regularly getting over and back to Spain from Dublin, I note that Sociobus run daily services from Madrid, including Madrid airport, to Seville, Isla Cristina and Ayamonte. I know it is a very long journey, over 7 hours, but has anyone from the Ayamonte area used the service/company? If so any feedback/tips? I have also researched using the AVE from Madrid to Seville and, while much faster, more regular and more comfortable, the cost is higher and there is still a potential bus trip for the last leg of the journey. George

Shibeen

Hi. George , having been on esuri now for
10 years , I have tried all the bus services
Available from Faro and Seville both take
Long time, if flying to faro why not try
Train from faro to VRSA and boat over to
Ayamonte ? Efficient if you arrive day time
I also travel from Dublin

George & Rosalia

Hi Shibeen,

I picked up a friend in VRSA who had used that method and often thought of using it. He was pretty happy with it too. The reason I was looking at Madrid is that there seems to be a lot of flights and the cost is fairly consistently low. The flights to Faro can be expensive particularly at short notice. George

Carol&John

Good Morning, George & Rosalia,

Your post made me smile as I remember the Love Bus from way back in the '70s. Anyone else remember this?

Back to topic: Have you looked at flights to Santander/Bilbao/Oviedo/Porto...and their flight connections with Sevilla, or perhaps a train journey south through Portugal all the way to VRSA as mentioned previously?

Someone, perhaps a golden oldie, may confirm that same such can claim a discount on rail travel? (Not sure if you are in the same club.)

Jon-Bxl

We took a cheap Ryanair flight to from Porto - Faro, so that may be good as an option. We also took the train Porto - Faro. About 5 hours if I remember correctly

Putting time aside, I didnt realise that it was really that much cheaper to pay to go to Madrid, + pay for a bus (train) vs a direct low-cost to Faro. But I guess if you are traveling at short notice - it costs. I would have thought there were cheap train tickets when bought in advance as well - but dont know for sure.

Here is something re over 60's View topic - Over 60s discount on RENFE (Spanish Rail) - Travel, Tourism & Destinations | Andalucia.com Forum - Andalucia users information about tourism, holiday destinations, accommodation, travel and culture in Andalucia, Spain.

Travel by Train in Spain | Money Saver Spain

Good luck

Jon

More here https://www.google.co.uk/#q=train+travel+spain+over+60
https://www.google.co.uk/#q=Bus+travel+spain+over+60

George & Rosalia

Hi Guys,

thanks for the replies and the links, I was surprised by the refund for late departures on the trains - 100% on the Madrid/Seville for delays over 5 minutes! We have not joined the Tarjeta Dorada club (60+) as yet but it certainly will be on the list!

The other options from Oporto/Lisbon sound great but more of a pleasure/leisure trip. I took the train from Lisbon to Faro in the past and it was very comfortable but took a few hours.

I need to see if I can get a reliable cheaper option at short notice, otherwise the part time job may not be worthwhile. I might give it a go on Sociobus at some point!

George