Free Renfe train tickets expire this Sunday, new ones already available

If you've been using a free Renfe train pass to get around these months you should be aware that it is about to expire soon, this Sunday to be exact.

Fully subsidized short- and medium-distance commuter train tickets will be free for frequent travelers all throughout 2023 as part of the Spanish government's anti-inflation package announced last year, but they must be procured every four months.

This means that the first set of passes will only be able to be used until April 30, with new ones valid from May 1 to August 31 already available. According to Renfe, 143,000 people in Catalonia have already obtained theirs. 

Regional high-speed Avant services are also 50% cheaper over the same period. In Catalonia, they cover the Barcelona - Tarragona - Lleida, Barcelona - Girona, and Barcelona - Figueres Vilafant routes. 

How to get a ticket

Medium-distance train passes can be obtained online or at ticket desks and machines in stations.

Those for short-distance trips be reserved via the Cercanías App or at ticket desks and machines. 

Anyone over the age of 14 will need a valid DNI or NIE number, but tickets for children under that age who do not have either of those IDs can be acquired online. 

Passengers must pay a €10 or a €20 deposit for the tickets depending on whether they obtain short- or medium-distance ones, a fee that will be returned if used at least 16 times over the 4-month period they are valid for.