Getting in and visas for Spain

There are a number of ways to get into Spain. From neighboring European countries, a drive with the car or a train ride are feasible; visitors from further away will probably be using air travel.

By plane

Spanish national carrier is Iberia. The busiest airports are Madrid, A Coruña, Palma de Mallorca, Malaga, Murcia, Barcelona, Jerez de la Frontera, Seville, Valencia, Bilbao, Alicante, Santiago de Compostella,Vigo. All are listed on the official site of the airports governing body: [2] Madrid and Bilbao have the most beautiful airports, designed by famous architects. Low cost carriers operating to Spain are: ClickAir [3] (a discount subsidiary of Iberia; operates from Barcelona, Sevilla and Valencia), Vueling [4], easyJet [5], RyanAir [6], Blue Air [7], Sterling Airlines [8]. For e-tickets bought from Iberia/ClickAir over Internet with a credit card, it is required to show original credit card upon check-in. Failing to do so, you will have to purchase another ticket with the same fare, and the original ticket will be refunded many weeks or even months later.

By train

• RENFE - Timetables and Prices
• FEVE - FEVE's web page

Train system in Spain is modern and reliable, most of the trains are brand new and the punctuality rate is one of the highest in Europe, the only problem is that not all the populated areas have a train station, sometimes small towns don't have one, in those cases you need to take a bus. Another issue with the Spanish Rail network is that the lines are disposed in a radial way so almost all the lines head to Madrid. That's why sometimes traveling from one city to another geographically close to it might take longer by train than by bus if they are not in the same line. Always check whether the bus or the train is more convenient.

By bus

Bus travel in Spain is increasingly an attractive option for people traveling on a tight budget. Thanks largely to European Union funding, Spain's road network has vastly improved over the past twenty years, so bus journeys don't take nearly as long as they used to. There are lots of private bus companies offering routes to all major Spanish cities. If you want to travel around Spain by bus, the best idea is to go to your local bus station (Apart from Madrid and Barcelona, most towns and cities have just one) and see what is available. Traveling by bus in Spain is usually reliable (except on peak holiday days when roads can be very crowded and you should expect long delays on popular routes),coaches are modern and comfortable. You can expect to pay about 8 Euros per 100km.

By boat

Visas

Spain is a member of the European Union and the Schengen Agreement, which governs its visa policies. No visa is required for citizens of other EU member states, and those of nations with whom the European Union has special treaties. There are no border controls between Spain and other Schengen Agreement nations, making travel less complicated. As of May 2004 citizens of the following countries do not need a visa for entry into Spain. Note that citizens of these countries (except EU nationals) must not stay longer than three months in any 180 day period in any country covered by the Schengen Agreement and they and must not work in Spain: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, Bolivia, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Netherlands, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, South Korea, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City and Venezuela. For Latin American people, specially from: Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay and in some cases Venezuela, Chile and Argentina you need to have a Hotel reservation confirmed, an international insurance for at lest 30.000 Eur, if your trip is from 1-9 day you need 514 Eur, for each additonal day 57 Eur and a return air ticket. The Venezuelan credit cards are not accepted like funds for immigration due to the currency exchange control in this country.