Travel

The national airline in Spain is Iberia(IB) (www.iberia ). Other airlines with flights to Spain include Spanair and British Airways. Flights to Spain are the most expensive in summer, from June to September. The cheapest time to travel is from November to December (outside of the Christmas season).

Since the opening of the new Terminal 4 in Madrid Barajas Airport (in 2006), Iberia and other oneworld alliance airlines such as American Airlines and British Airways have moved their offices there. The metro line has also extended to serve this new terminal.

From London to Madrid is around 2 hours 15 minutes; New York is 7 hours.

The main rail route from the UK is through the Channel Tunnel with connections from Paris to Spain. Eurostar operates direct high-speed trains from London to Paris (Gare du Nord). For further information and reservations, contact Eurostar (tel: 0870 160 6600 in the UK; www.eurostar ); or Rail Europe (tel: 0844 848 4064 in the UK; www.raileurope ).

There are direct train services from France and Portugal to Madrid and Barcelona. As of 2015 services from Zurich and Milan to Barcelona no longer operate. Border connections link with the French TGV (high-velocity route) and the rest of the high-velocity routes in Europe. Motorail services run between Paris and Madrid. Find out more information from the Spanish Rail service (tel: (020) 7725 7063; www.spanish-rail ).

InterRail offers unlimited first or second-class travel in up to 30 European countries for European residents of over six months with two pass options. The Global Pass allows travel for 22 days or one month across all countries. The One-Country Pass offers travel for three, four, six or eight days in one month in any of the countries except Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. Discounts are offered on Eurostar and some ferry routes. Available from Rail Europe (tel: 0844 848 4064, in the UK; www.raileurope/inter-rail ).

For non-European residents, the Eurailpass offers various options: the comprehensive Global Pass with practically unlimited travel in 18 European countries, the more limited Select Pass and Regional pass, or the single-country National Pass. Find out more from The Eurail Group (www.eurail ).

International train travel to Spain is easy and comfortable, although not as affordable as air travel. Most international routes to Spain are long distance journeys and overnight trains are usually equipped with sleeper cabins.