How To Use An Interrail Pass In Spain
Last Updated on: 21st February 2026, 11:02 am
Firstly, I loved the trains in Spain, but it wasn’t so easy to navigate with an Interrail pass! There are different train companies in Spain, but you can only use your Interrail pass with Renfe trains. Now I do love these trains, they are comfortable (we travelled in first class) and they are fast. They get you where you want to be, and I would say they are comparable to Eurostar speed. But Renfe only release a few seats to Interrail (Eurail) passholders. Read on to see our advice on the Interrail pass in Spain
Booking Reservations With An Interrail Pass In Spain
We went in October, so it was out of season, and we were able to go to the station and get some reservations at the same time we wanted to travel. I loved this because you are not restricted to being somewhere at a certain time of the day. But you can get stuck at busy times of the day and in busy holiday periods. We wanted to get a train from Cordoba to Zaragoza on a Sunday morning, after a local holiday. But we couldn’t as all the Interrail reservations were booked out. We ended up going to Madrid, then from Madrid to Barcelona and finally the last train from Barcelona to Zaragoza. It was a rush, but we made it.
You cannot book reservations unless you are in Spain, but we got around this by using a VPN to set up a phone in Spain and book some important journeys whilst we were still in the UK. This worked for us, so I imagine it will also work for you. Most trains on the Renfe network require reservations, which cost £6 each.
The Train Network
So the train network isn’t as good as in other countries in Europe. To get to some of the smaller places in Spain, you need to go out of your way to a large station, and then go back on yourself a little to get to places. But the train network is easy enough to navigate. You do need to know your stations, because some trains will come into one station in cities like Barcelona Sants, and then you will need to cross the city to get to another train station where your train will leave for another city. But if you do your homework in advance, you will be fine.
Getting On Your Train And Using Your Interrail Pass In Spain
Before you can even think about sitting down and chilling on your train, you need to go through security. This is very much like an airport. Your luggage is scanned, and so are you. But this makes you feel super safe whilst you are travelling. And as you have to show your ticket before you go through security, it makes you feel so safe. We didn’t need to worry about undesirable people once we had gone through security. Even when you arrive at a station, like Madrid, you get off the train and have to go through security again, believe me, it is a bit of a trek! But again, you feel so safe.
Some trains also have a luggage limit, so if you are travelling with a lot of luggage, you can be charged for extra bags. IRYO has a very strict 1 hand luggage and 1 cabin size bag policy. And they will check your bags in an airport luggage checker. The fees for extra luggage can catch you out, so be careful. But this is great because it means there is room for passengers, rather than luggage, everywhere. I would approve of this policy all over Europe.
Make Sure Your Interrail Pass Is Activated Before You Board
So many people have been caught out by not activating their journey on the app before boarding a train. The best way to be prepared is to add your main journeys to the app before your Interrail trip starts. Then they are ready to toggle over and start your journey. If you do not activate your journey, you can be fined by the rail company. Also, if you leave the activation until you are on a train, you’re likely not to have a signal either, and you won’t be able to activate your journey. If you have a pass with a certain number of days in a month, you need to know not to start a new day until you are sure you have a reservation or train trip you can take. Otherwise its a wasted day. You will not get that day back from Interrail.
