Day trips by train to Toledo, Segovia, El Escorial and Ávila

Toledo, Segovia, El Escorial and Ávila are all reachable by train from Madrid in a day. Journey times below are the approximate figures published by esMADRID, the city's official tourism site. Station details come from Renfe, the Madrid Regional Transport Consortium (CRTM), and the local and national tourism boards. Checked on 8 October 2026.

At a glance

Destination	Madrid station	Train	About
Toledo	Madrid Puerta de Atocha – Almudena Grandes	High-speed (Renfe Avant)	25 min
Segovia	Madrid Chamartín – Clara Campoamor	AVE high-speed to Segovia-Guiomar	25 min
El Escorial	Atocha or Chamartín	Cercanías commuter train	60 min from Atocha, 45 min from Chamartín
Ávila	Madrid Chamartín – Clara Campoamor	Renfe train	85 min

Toledo

• Train: high-speed trains leave from Madrid Puerta de Atocha – Almudena Grandes. Renfe sells this route as Avant (mid-distance high speed). esMADRID gives the journey as about 25 minutes.
• First train: Renfe says the first train from Atocha to Toledo leaves at 6:45.
• At the other end: Renfe says Toledo station is open 6:00–22:30 and is about 15 minutes' walk from the centre.

Segovia

• Train: AVE high-speed trains run from Madrid Chamartín – Clara Campoamor to Segovia-Guiomar. esMADRID gives the journey as about 25 minutes. Renfe also lists Media Distancia (mid-distance) services on the route.
• First train: Renfe says the first train from Chamartín to Segovia-Guiomar leaves at 6:20.
• At the other end: Renfe says Segovia-Guiomar station is open 6:00–22:30.
• Free connecting trip: Renfe says AVE and Larga Distancia (long-distance) tickets include a free Cercanías trip, the "Cercanías Combined ticket". You can use it to get to Chamartín, for example.

El Escorial (San Lorenzo de El Escorial)

• Train: this is a Cercanías commuter train. esMADRID gives the journey as about 60 minutes from Atocha, or about 45 minutes from Chamartín.
• Which line: trains run on Cercanías line C-8a (Atocha – Chamartín – Villalba – El Escorial – Santa María de la Alameda). The former C-3a was renamed C-8a in January 2024, so you may still see the old name on some pages, including San Lorenzo's tourism site. C-8 trains end at Villalba and do not reach El Escorial. Check the line and timetable on Renfe's or CRTM's website on the day.
• At the other end: the station is in the neighbouring town of El Escorial, not in San Lorenzo, where the monastery is. San Lorenzo's tourist office says you can get there on the urban bus line L1.
• Tickets: this is a Cercanías route, so it is covered by the Zone T Tourist Travel Pass, which includes the whole Cercanías network.

Ávila

• Train: trains run from Madrid Chamartín – Clara Campoamor. esMADRID gives the journey as about 85 minutes. spain.info also lists a connection from Madrid Príncipe Pío, from 1 hour 30 minutes.
• At the other end: spain.info says Ávila station is about 1.5 km from the city walls, and bus routes 1 and 4 serve it.

Booking notes

• Buy Toledo, Segovia and Ávila tickets from Renfe. These are Renfe high-speed or regional services. CRTM says the Tourist Travel Pass is not valid on Renfe regional services.
• Check the fare when you book. We found no fixed published fare for these routes that we could cite.
• Times are approximate. Check Renfe's timetable for your date, especially at weekends and on public holidays.