Biarritz to Bilbao

[davef9]

I'm in Biarritz and want to travel on to Bilbao.

Is it possible by rail, due to gauge changes.

Thanks in advance.

 

[stuu]

Yes, you change at Hendaye to Euskotren and again to a different service on the same platform in Donostia. It takes ages though as the train stops everywhere

 

[davef9]

Thanks. Might stay in France and go to Bilbao another time.

 

[Watershed]

Yes. You can either take a TGV (high speed train, reservations compulsory - but not any quicker for this journey) or TER (local stopper, no reservations needed) train to Hendaye. Then Euskotren (local stopper, no reservations required) across the border into Spain. You can either change at Irun for an Alvia train (high speed, reservations compulsory) to Mirando de Ebro and another Alvia to Bilbao. Or you can continue on the Euskotren to Amara Donastia and change onto another Euskotren to Bilbao.

The Alvia option is probably more comfortable but there are only 3 connections a day via Mirando de Ebro, and it's quite a circuitous route and takes longer than taking the Euskotren. It also requires reservations, whereas Euskotren does not.

 

[jopsuk]

Donostia is well worth visiting itself though,

 

[dutchflyer]

A change of gauge simply means one has to change on that point-if at all-but no more gauge changers on this line anymore
You also have to pay separately 3 tickets-even E-tr does not offer through bookings via Donostia-locals have special chipcards
Oh-and of course there is also the bus-even much faster and more frequent for Donostia-Bilbao

 

[Dan_Lockton]

I have just (a couple of weeks ago) taken the Euskotren from Hendaye to Bilbao, changing at Amara Donostia-San Sebastian (as part of a larger journey from Amsterdam to Bilbao). There are some wonderful views, glimpses of the sea and coastal valleys, but it took a very long time and the Euskotren seats are not the most comfortable for a long journey. I probably should have taken the bus as many people advised me, but I liked the idea of trains for the entire journey.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

Is the FEVE any good for this enquiry?

 

[stuu]

Is the FEVE any good for this enquiry?

FEVE (which is no longer a separate entity but is now part of Renfe), runs the longer distance services west from Bilbao. East of Bilbao is all Euskotren

 

[Austriantrain]

I have just (a couple of weeks ago) taken the Euskotren from Hendaye to Bilbao, changing at Amara Donostia-San Sebastian (as part of a larger journey from Amsterdam to Bilbao). There are some wonderful views, glimpses of the sea and coastal valleys, but it took a very long time and the Euskotren seats are not the most comfortable for a long journey. I probably should have taken the bus as many people advised me, but I liked the idea of trains for the entire journey.

The train journey is wonderful in many ways, but as you say, you spend hours in what comfort-wise is basically a metro vehicle (with toilets though). I would do it again everytime, but it might not be for everyone.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

FEVE (which is no longer a separate entity but is now part of Renfe), runs the longer distance services west from Bilbao. East of Bilbao is all Euskotren

Oh Ok, thanks for this. That is a very scenic part of the Country. Certainly worth doing.

 

[stuu]

Oh Ok, thanks for this. That is a very scenic part of the Country. Certainly worth doing.

Yes it is. I have only done Santander-Bilbao, I would like to do the rest all the way to Ferrol one day, before they close it down

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

Yes it is. I have only done Santander-Bilbao, I would like to do the rest all the way to Ferrol one day, before they close it down

Is that likely to happen.? Shame if it is. I have done bits of it from Santander westwards, about 19 years ago.

 

[stuu]

Is that likely to happen.? Shame if it is. I have done bits of it from Santander westwards, about 19 years ago.

It has been threatened. I think the line to Leon is in serious danger

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

It has been threatened. I think the line to Leon is in serious danger

Pity.

 

[riceuten]

I did the whole FEVE route - Bilbao to Oviedo and Oviedo to Ferrol a few years back on 3 x tiny 2 carriage narrow gauge trains, back when it was a separate company. We were supposed to change trains in Santander, but we were 15 minutes late, and FEVE stopped the Oviedo train (and ours) on the outskirts of Santander - just for us - to allow us to change trains. The landscapes were incredible, not what you expect of Spain at all.

Apropos of getting there from France.

We'd booked a flat in San Sebastian and flew into Biarritz and my intention was to take the train from Biarritz to Irun, and change there for a Cercanias train to San Sebastian Renfe Station, a 2 minute walk to the flat. After we landed, we asked about getting to the train station from the airport, and the women staffing the information desk told us to walk, as the taxi would cost €10, and it was about 1km journey. We went to the ticket office to buy a ticket to Irun, and were told "there are no trains to Irun from this station". I pointed to the departure board, clearly showing a departure 30 minutes hence to, er, Irun. "OK", she said, "there ARE trains to Irun, but I can't sell you a ticket for one, just to Hendaye". So we caught the Irun train to Hendaye, disembarked (I noted with interest that I COULD have bought a ticket to Irun from Hendaye, but would not have had enough time to do this before the Irun bound TGV departed, and the next was hours away)

So I then proceeded to try and find the Euskotren train to San Sebastian - I went out into the car park and couldn't locate it. Eventually, with the assistance of a helpful SNCF comrade, I found out that the blue shack in the corner of said car park was indeed "Hendaia - Euskotren" station from which we are able to purchase a train ticket to San Sebastian - albeit Aymara station, some 20 minutes walk from the flat we'd booked. A few days later we took a "fast" Euskoten to Bilbao (a mere 2 hours) and had a pleasant day in Bilbao before catching the Bilbao to Oviedo train outlined above.

This whole Hendaye to Irun SNCF (and Irun to Hendaye with Renfe) malarkey was a real PITA, and indeed, much worse at Cerbere to Portbou (and vv where there was no parallel bus or train), but that's for another thread.

 

[Flying Snail]

I don't know what you are complaining about riceuten, many tourists go to Paris and have to pay good money to experience this authentic French customer service experience, you got treated to a masterclass from SNCF.

Happily it appears the blue shack in the Hendaye carpark has been upgraded

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[riceuten]

I don't know what you are complaining about riceuten, many tourists go to Paris and have to pay good money to experience this authentic French customer service experience, you got treated to a masterclass from SNCF.

Happily it appears the blue shack in the Hendaye carpark has been upgraded

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

www.google.com

I've never in all my adult years had any issues with French people, Paris or elsewhere, and have found them friendly and approachable - even SNCF staff. The difference is that I speak passable French, and never, ever assume French people speak English, and would certainly never start a conversation with them in English. And I never assume people "speak English but don't want to", which seems to be a particular invention of the British. Actually, the woman at Biarritz Gare SNCF was quite sheepish when I pointed out the train and apologetic. I visited Bayonne Station a couple of years later in the middle of a strike, and the stationmaster was very friendly and told me to take the city bus, "as it's cheaper than the train replacement bus, and will probably get you there quicker," then giving me a timetable for said bus!

Yes, I noticed when I was looking for a picture of said shack that it had been upgraded somewhat ! I do remember an intense debate there when I was visiting about whether or not the train line (and shack) were French or Spanish territory - there was a school of thought that thought the latter and I do remember someone being stopped by the border guards stepping off the train, before he left the station.

 

[Austriantrain]

I've never in all my adult years had any issues with French people, Paris or elsewhere, and have found them friendly and approachable - even SNCF staff. The difference is that I speak passable French, and never, ever assume French people speak English, and would certainly never start a conversation with them in English. And I never assume people "speak English but don't want to", which seems to be a particular invention of the British. Actually, the woman at Biarritz Gare SNCF was quite sheepish when I pointed out the train and apologetic. I visited Bayonne Station a couple of years later in the middle of a strike, and the stationmaster was very friendly and told me to take the city bus, "as it's cheaper than the train replacement bus, and will probably get you there quicker," then giving me a timetable for said bus!

Yes, I noticed when I was looking for a picture of said shack that it had been upgraded somewhat ! I do remember an intense debate there when I was visiting about whether or not the train line (and shack) were French or Spanish territory - there was a school of thought that thought the latter and I do remember someone being stopped by the border guards stepping off the train, before he left the station.

Having just spent two weeks in France, I agree. I do speak French though, but have always had the best experiences. I do have an issue with SNCF and cannot understand how the French put up with it, but I really very much like the country and its people.

 

[riceuten]

Having just spent two weeks in France, I agree. I do speak French though, but have always had the best experiences. I do have an issue with SNCF and cannot understand how the French put up with it, but I really very much like the country and its people.

I have found SNCF staff no worse than UK and certainly not DB staff, the latter who seem to go out of their way to be obtuse and difficult. I say this as the partner of a German and being half-German myself. SNCF staff seem to depend on how they are approached (notwithstanding our previous dialogue about being approached in English...).

This has happened more than once, but I have travelled on a ticket receipt when I lost my ticket (the conductor somehow managed to find it in his system). When I have composted the wrong bit of the ticket. And memorably, when I bought a ticket that I was supposed to print out, but couldn't. The SNCF staff at Nantes Station printed out the bits of it they had access to, and called ahead to the terminal station (Angers - it was a return ticket) who informed the conductor of the train that we had purchased (but not printed) the correct ticket. She said "I can see you bought the right ticket, so there's no worries".

If that had been a DB train, I would have had to purchase a brand new ticket and probably a supplement on top of it for doing so on the train.

 

[Beebman]

The only time I ever had a bad experience with SNCF was in 2002 and is actually on-topic for this thread as I was attempting to buy a return ticket from Bayonne to San Sebastian using RENFE from Irun rather than FEVE from Hendaye (I can speak resonably good French). The ticket agent said I had to use 'le petit train' but when I insisted on buying a ticket using RENFE services she simply started to ignore me and to deal instead with the man behind me in the queue without saying anything else to me. Anyhow I went for a little walk and returned to the station where there was a different person on duty who then sold me a ticket to San Sebastian using RENFE with absolutely zero fuss or bother.

 

[Austriantrain]

I have found SNCF staff no worse than UK and certainly not DB staff, the latter who seem to go out of their way to be obtuse and difficult. I say this as the partner of a German and being half-German myself. SNCF staff seem to depend on how they are approached (notwithstanding our previous dialogue about being approached in English...).

This has happened more than once, but I have travelled on a ticket receipt when I lost my ticket (the conductor somehow managed to find it in his system). When I have composted the wrong bit of the ticket. And memorably, when I bought a ticket that I was supposed to print out, but couldn't. The SNCF staff at Nantes Station printed out the bits of it they had access to, and called ahead to the terminal station (Angers - it was a return ticket) who informed the conductor of the train that we had purchased (but not printed) the correct ticket. She said "I can see you bought the right ticket, so there's no worries".

If that had been a DB train, I would have had to purchase a brand new ticket and probably a supplement on top of it for doing so on the train.

My criticism doesn’t go against SNCF employees. It aims at the company itself, which is basically unable to run a decent timetable. What they offer would be laughed away in the UK, Germany or most of the rest of Europe.

 

[riceuten]

My criticism doesn’t go against SNCF employees. It aims at the company itself, which is basically unable to run a decent timetable. What they offer would be laughed away in the UK, Germany or most of the rest of Europe.

I do question the wisdom of SNCF transport planners and the huge gaps in the timetable for non-existent maintenance work (often meaning there will be 2 trains within 30 minutes and then nothing for 3 hours). Some TER subsidiaries (like Alsace and Lorraine before they were hoovered up into Grand Est) did make an effort to have clock face timetables and offered some attractive ticket deals, but these seemed like local initiatives rather than anything planned.

 

[MarcVD]

I do question the wisdom of SNCF transport planners and the huge gaps in the timetable for non-existent maintenance work (often meaning there will be 2 trains within 30 minutes and then nothing for 3 hours). Some TER subsidiaries (like Alsace and Lorraine before they were hoovered up into Grand Est) did make an effort to have clock face timetables and offered some attractive ticket deals, but these seemed like local initiatives rather than anything planned.

Just one example : SNCF is about to re-open the south part of the line on the right bank of river Rhone, between Nimes and Pont St Esprit. The schedule offered will be a meager 5 trains per day per direction. It is sure going to attract a lot of new customers...

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

Some TER subsidiaries (like Alsace and Lorraine before they were hoovered up into Grand Est) did make an effort to have clock face timetables and offered some attractive ticket deals, but these seemed like local initiatives rather than anything planned.

TER services are commissioned by regional councils, so you get what the region wants and is willing or able to pay for.

 

[Austriantrain]

TER services are commissioned by regional councils, so you get what the region wants and is willing or able to pay for.

Able to pay at SNCF prices, which are notoriously inflated. There is a reason why many regions are desperate for competition.

In any case, the timetable is no better on long-distance traffic. The issue is really SNCF, not the regions. They just really don’t want to run trains and only do because they have too - at least it seems so.

 

[riceuten]

TER services are commissioned by regional councils, so you get what the region wants and is willing or able to pay for.

They are indeed, and the regions made a commitment (or not) to provide better transport and initiatives like TER200, "Metrolor" and the various tickets you can get in different regions.

 

[riceuten]

Able to pay at SNCF prices, which are notoriously inflated. There is a reason why many regions are desperate for competition.

In any case, the timetable is no better on long-distance traffic. The issue is really SNCF, not the regions. They just really don’t want to run trains and only do because they have too - at least it seems so.

And UK prices are cheap? France is no worse or no better than most of the neighbouring countries.

Another cheap anti-French shot that really doesn't contribute to the debate.

 

[Austriantrain]

And UK prices are cheap? France is no worse or no better than most of the neighbouring countries.

Another cheap anti-French shot that really doesn't contribute to the debate.

It wasn’t a cheap shot and I am certainly not anti-French. It is a fact that what the French offer timetable-wise is very bad - as can be seen from the timetables- compared to everything that is further east or north in Europe. Considering they have one of the best networks in Europe, it is a shame.

But it’s OT anyway.

 

[riceuten]

But it’s OT anyway.

Which is presumably why you brought it up...