How To Railway Travel for Free in Spain

Abonos with Renfe

I’m currently on a quest from Spain to the North of Sweden to promote the therapeutic effects of slow travel and to find out if I truly belong to “no land.” My articles help you travel sustainably, stay fit, and understand culture-bound mental illnesses and therapy. My stories, like all art and relationships, are a mirror to—

—Dude, I just clicked to save money.

Alright, here we go.

Renfe, Spain’s national state-owned railway company, doesn’t make travelling free evident for tourists. In 2024, I paid €10 for what would have cost me around €200 in train tickets. And if I remembered to go to the sales desk at the end of the year, I would have paid €0.

How?

With an Abono. The information on Renfe is a bit confusing when you don’t know the differences between Los viajeros recurrentes de Cercanías, Rodalies y and Media Distancia, but I’ve laid it out for you in a straightforward manner.

This link provides most of the information but only translates to Spain’s languages (Castellano, Catalán, Valenciano, Euskera, and Gallego). You can also find half of the information in English and French with this link, but it’s unclear what you’re purchasing.

You need to buy an Abono, and in this article, I’ve laid out exactly what that means, how to purchase it (with the correct links), and what trains you can actually take without getting fined or kicked off.