transportation- Madrid to St. Jean Pied de Port. Train??? bus???

[coachal1956]

I and mature daughter arrive on United 4963 at 7:35 am on June 1. We need transportation to St. Jean Pied de Port. Help please. We plan on staying there the night of June 1 and starting the walk on June 2.
Thank you for advise Al and Amanda

[HuskyNerd]

Hi Al and Amanda ~
Your best bet is to take a subway to the Atocha train station, take the train to Pamplona, then take a van to St. Jean. Here are the websites to help you out:

• Subway to Atocha station -- here's a map. Madrid Metro Map It's pretty straightforward -- you start at the NE of Madrid (Barajas Aeropuerto) and make your way to the city center (Atocha)
• Train -- use the Renfe train site here Renfe to find your departure time (there are 4 departures on June 1) and buy your tickets to Pamplona
• Express Bourricot van -- Contact them via email from their website here: Express Bouricot . They'll meet you at the Pamplona train station and transport you over the hill to St Jean.

Buen camino!

[BHinSanDiego]

There is now a bus that runs from the airport to the Atocha station. It costs 2 euros, it runs 24 hours and takes about 40 minutes from the airport to the train station. I put a link here but it's only in Spanish but I'm sure you can get directions on where to get it at the tourist desk at the airport. Last year I took the train and shuttle service listed above and they worked great.
Línea Exprés Aeropuerto. Inicio

[geraldkelly]

You should definitely buy your train ticket in advance, intercity trains are often full and if you haven't got a seat reservation you can't travel.

Ger