Travel by Train, London to Benidorm
Put your feet up & relax, watch the pretty French villages of the Rhone Valley and the stunning Spanish countryside pass by as you travel by Train from London to Benidorm.
Sometimes it's not about how fast you get somewhere, but the adventure of the journey itself.
Step 1 London St Pancras to Paris on the Eurostar
The average train time from London to Paris is 2h 20m, although it takes just 2h 16m on the fastest high-speed Eurostar services. There are around 15 trains per day running from London in the UK to Paris in France, passing 246 feet under the Channel Tunnel (also known as the Chunnel) on its way between capital cities.
All trains depart from London St Pancras International station.
All trains arrive at Paris Gare du Nord station
213 miles (342 km)
Tickets
Tickets go on sale between 138 and 190 days before departure. ticket prices are based on demand and availability, tickets for this journey start from around €50.50 when booked in advance.
Children under 4 travel free
Discounted prices for under 12s and groups
Travel by Train, London to Benidorm - Step 2 Paris Nord to Paris Gare De Lyon
Trains every 15 minutes, journey time 7 minutes or grab a taxi.
The Paris Nord Train Station (Gare du Nord) was originally built in 1846. Shortly after, it was rebuilt three times to increase the size of the station due to increasing traffic. The new and improved station was fully functional by 1864. The name was decided with the notion that travellers would be able to travel to Belgium, the Netherlands, Northern Germany and the Scandinavian countries.
Paris Nord
Travel by Train, London to Benidorm
Step 3 - Paris Gare de Lyon to Barcelona-Sants
Two trains a day Journey time 6h 38m, 1,079.5 km
Barcelona Sants station, also known Sants Estación is Barcelona's largest train station and provides rail services both in and around Barcelona and for the whole of Spain and beyond. The station itself can prove quite a confusing place to be as it is so large and there are often large numbers of passengers there
TGV Train
Step 4 - Barcelona-Sants to Alicante Termino
Direct train departing from Barcelona-Sants and arriving at Alicante-Termino. The fastest journey time by train from Barcelona to Alicante Terminal is 4 hours and 25 minutes. There are 4 direct trains from Barcelona to Alicante Terminal each day.
Non direct trains the average journey time is about 7 hours and 43 minutes, with around 6 trains per day.
Trains going from Barcelona to Alicante travel at an average speed of 86.4 km/h, although at times they can reach much higher maximum speeds. Distance is 54 miles (408 km)
Train operator Renfe. Prices can start from as little as 15€ up to 76€ so shop around for the best deals.
Step 5 Alicante to Benidorm (Alicante Metro Tram)
Catch Line 1, journey time aprox 1h 8m, every 30 minutes.
TOTAL JOURNEY TIME AROUND 14 HOURS
Tips
Fares vary like air fares, so book as far ahead as you can: Fares for Eurostar, TGV & Spanish long-distance trains are yield-managed like air fares, cheaper in advance and on less busy days & dates, more expensive closer to departure and on busier dates & days, so book as early as you can and search for the cheapest departures, for example mid-week. Remember that the cheapest tickets are for a specific train only, limited or no refunds or changes to travel plans.
Booking usually opens 120 days ahead. Eurostar opens up to 180 days ahead, Paris-Barcelona TGVs up to 120 days ahead. Prices can vary so shop around for the best value.
The website Trainline quite often have tickets earlier and at good discount prices so is well worth checking out.
Upgrade to 1st class on the TGV, often for little extra cost. 1st class on a TGV can cost little more than 2nd class and can sometimes even be cheaper because of the way the price quotas work. With Raileurope.co.uk you can easily see if there's a cheap 1st class fare for the Paris-Barcelona sector, without necessarily also upgrading to first class on the Eurostar, which can be expensive.
First class on board a TGV Duplex Train
Classes - Turista, Turista Plus, Preferente... Renfe offers two classes, Turista (2nd class) and Preferente (1st class), but on the best high-speed AVE trains it also offers Turista Plus (premium 2nd class), which means Preferente-type 1st class seats but without the Preferente weekday at-seat meal service or access to the Sala Club lounges
Food & drink - On most long-distance trains there's a cafe-bar serving tea, coffee, drinks and snacks. Of course, you're also free to take your own food and even wine or beer onto the train.
Children & infants - Children under 14 pay the child fare. Infants under 4 travel free as long as they don't occupy a seat, but since 2014 it's been mandatory to get a free infant ticket before you travel. You will get the necessary free infant ticket If you book all your tickets at Raileurope.co.uk or renfe.com as you can simply add your child to your booking entering their age. You cannot book an infant ticket alone without any adults, so if you forget to add them to your original booking, you need to get a free infant ticket at the station ticket office before you board.
Seniors over 60 - If you are over 60 you can buy a Tarjeta Dorada card which gives a 25%-40% discount on Renfe's Flexible full-price fare - You can only buy a Tarjeta Dorada card at Renfe stations or agencies when you get to Spain, and you can only buy reduced-fare tickets at stations or online at Renfe.com when you have the card number. You'll find full details if you go to www.renfe.com and look for the Tarjeta Dorada page.
Information by - M 2021-04-25 20:17 "As regards the tarjeta dorado. It can only be used against the regular, full priced scheduled fare. I travel regularly by train from Barcelona to Malaga and often there are offers that work out cheaper than using the discount card. Sometimes the regular fare can be as much as 250 euros. Using the card, the fare would be around 150 euros, but I've availed myself of special offers and only paid 68euros on occasions. A very obliging girl in the ticket office at Sants put me on to this so always enquire."
Disabled facilities
Eurostar
People traveling in their own wheelchair and taking up an H-type seat (only for disabled individuals).
People traveling in a folding wheelchair and taking up a regular seat.
People with visually or hearing-impaired persons with or without a guide dog.
People with reduced mobility
RENFE
The Renfe Atendo service and SNCF Acces Plus work together to offer free care for people with limited mobility (both permanent and temporary) from the start of their journey to the end. The cooperation between these two services ensures that Renfe-SNCF in Cooperation customers will be cared for in both Spain and France.
This is a specialized service that provides guidance and information and helps passengers with limited mobility access move through the stations, as well as providing assistance when boarding and disembarking from the trains. The Atendo and Acces Plus personnel are all properly trained and are sensitive to the care requirements of people with disabilities.
ADDITIONAL SERVICES FOR PEOPLE WITH LIMITED MOBILITY
Adapted services during the journey: Adapted WC with a bell to alert on-board staff in the event of any problem.
Accompanying personnel available during the journey: on-board staff will attend to any specific needs that may arise during the journey.
Places specifically for passengers travelling in wheelchairs: In the TGV Dúplex/Eurodúplex trains, there are 2 specific places on the lower deck of the first Preferential/1st Class car (car 1 or 11). The journey can be made in the wheelchair, or the passenger can ask to be transferred to a seat.
In the AVE S-100 trains, there are 2 seats located in Tourist/2nd Class car 8. The journey can be made in a wheelchair. Customers who use a folding wheelchair and who want to be transferred to a seat can travel in any regular seat by asking for assistance at the Renfe Atendo Central Office (ACO).
When a specific place is requested for a passenger in a wheelchair, the request for care is automatically sent to the Atendo/Acces Plus service.
Guide dogs can travel with their owner without any fee or ticket on board all trains.
Travel by Train, London to Benidorm
TAKING DOGS ON THE TRAINS
British Trains - You can take dogs, cats and other small animals with you free of charge on all British trains, up to a maximum of two per passenger, as long as they do not endanger or inconvenience passengers or staff.
Unfortunately, only Guide and assistance dogs are allowed on Eurostar, they are almost the only train service in Europe that doesn’t allow any size pet dogs.
Dogs may be brought on the day trains from Paris to Barcelona.
They must be on a leash and muzzled. On these trains, you can take your dog as long as it's kept in an enclosed carrier. You would have to purchase a special ticket for your dog, which can only be done locally at the station.
Renfe - You must meet certain requirements to avoid disturbing the other passengers. Remember that if a nuisance is caused to other passengers, they can demand their on-board personnel to not admit the animal during the journey.
For entry requirements back to the UK please check government websites for updates.
Facebook members experiences
Jean Doherty - We have done this several times stopping overnight in London & Barcelona.. its really enjoyable!!
Sandra McMullan - I’ve done this a couple times it was brilliant
Ian Wilkinson - I have done this trip over 20 times to various places along the Costas. If you have time to take stop overs like Paris, Barcelona etc it is a great trip. To get it as cheap as possible you need to book well in advance. Due to my mistakes I would advise not to book return journey to get discounts in case of any changes to your plans. Lincoln to London (senior rail card) £10 to £15, Paris to London Feb 2023 cheapest £52, Paris to Barca 09.38 or 14.25hr both £36 and take approx 6 1/2hr, Barca to Valencia £30 and then a choice of buses all day from Valencia to Benidorm for £17.
Cara Simpson - We did London to Barcelona on the train. Such a lovely relaxing journey.
OTHER OPTIONS
DRIVING FROM THE NORTH OF SPAIN TO BENIDORM
