Lo-cost, one class, no catering, baggage fees
Renfe (Spanish Railways) created Avlo as a subsidiary company, running one or two lo-cost trains per day on a number of major Spanish routes with fares from only €7. There's no cafe-bar, only vending machines, and no first class. Some seats may offer a restricted view. It's a budget airline on rails, with strict baggage limits, you need to pay an extra €10 for a suitcase or backpack.
Avlo routes
Madrid to/from: Valencia, Alicante, Malaga, Cordoba, Seville, Murcia, Valladolid.
Trains usually run once or twice a day, not frequently like Renfe's normal full-service AVE or Alvia trains.
Avlo no longer operates on the Barcelona-Zaragoza-Madrid route, since 2025.
What are Avlo trains like?
Avlo uses two types of train
Avlo trains are air-conditioned with power sockets at all seats & free WiFi. But no first class, no cafe-bar, just card-operated vending machines selling snacks & drinks.
Most Avlo services use a version of Renfe's S112 AVE train, repainted in Avlo colours and refitted with a one-class interior with high-quality leather seats and plenty of legroom. The S112 is nicknamed Pato (duck) by Renfe staff, no prizes for guessing why - see the photo below! Avoid seats in car 6 on these S112 trains, this was the former cafe-bar and it retains the small high-level windows so you can only see out if you stand up!
Some Avlo services now use the latest S106 Avril trains, also one class with no catering, these have extra-wide articulated cars fitted with 2+3 seating, meaning you may end up in the dreaded middle seat.
Luggage limits, be careful
As a lo-cost train, Avlo has strict budget-airline-style baggage limits, you need to pay an extra €10 for a suitcase or backpack. You take your bags onto the train and put them on the luggage racks in each car. Only folding bikes are carried. No pets allowed.
If your bags are found to exceed the set dimensions when you arrive at the station, even if they simply bulge a bit, even by a few millimetres, you'll have to pay a €30 fee, which would make your trip more expensive than using a full-service AVE - if in any doubt about luggage, stick with the normal full-service Renfe AVE service.
An Avlo S112 train at Barcelona Sants, originally a Renfe S112 AVE converted to one-class for Avlo services. Courtesy of www.youtube.com/c/nonstopeurotrip.
2+3 seats on an Avlo S106 Avril which now operates some services, note the dreaded middle seat! The seats are the same size as on the S112, but these Talgo cars have a wide body made possible by their short length, allowing 2+3 seating. Photo courtesy of Marcos Castro.
Travel tips
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Seat reservation
Seat reservation is compulsory on Avlo, all tickets come with a specified reserved seat automatically included.
You can choose your seat from a seat map for a small fee on Avlo trains if you book using www.thetrainline.com or Renfe's own site.
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Seat choice
You can choose your seat from a seat map for an extra €8 fee if you book using www.thetrainline.com or www.renfe.com, use this to avoid car 6 on an Avlo S112 or the dreaded middle seat on an Avlo S106.
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Luggage limits
You take your luggage with you onto the train and put it on any suitable rack near your seat.
On Avlo you need to pay a luggage fee for suitcases or backpacks, added when you buy a ticket. Check permitted dimensions carefully when you book. If you need to add an oversize or additional bag on the day of travel it will cost significantly more. If your bags are found to exceed the strict size limits on these lo-cost operators you'll be charged a hefty fee - one traveller on Avlo was charged €30 for a bag which was a few millimetres over the permitted size and his lo-cost journey became more expensive than the normal full-service AVE! Train travel really shouldn't be like that.
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Real time information
You can see whether a train is on time and which platform it will leave from, if you download thetrainline.com's app and run an enquiry for today.
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Security checks at stations
At Spanish stations there is a quick baggage X-ray control before entering the departures area and your ticket may be checked. It only takes minutes, much easier than any airport, but don't turn up with seconds to spare. How to board a high-speed train at Madrid Atocha. How to board a high-speed train at Barcelona Sants.
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Boarding
Boarding closes 5 minutes before departure, for all operators there's an X-ray luggage control before accessing the platforms, see the travel tips below.
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Babies & infants need a ticket!
Babies and infants under 4 years old travel for free if you're happy to have them on your lap, but unlike other European countries where you can just bring them along without a ticket, on Spanish high-speed trains including Avlo they need a zero-cost ticket booked in their name. You'll get this if you enter them as a passenger with their actual age, when you buy tickets. If you want to them to have their own seat, enter their age as 5+ so the system gives you a child ticket.
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Food & drink
Avlo has no catering other than credit-card-operated vending machines. You are free to bring your own food and drink, even a beer or bottle of wine if you like.
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WiFi & power outlets
There are power outlets at all seats, of the usual European 2-pin type. Avlo trains have free WiFi, the network name is PlayRenfe, with some free content to stream too.
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Station guides
To get familiar with the stations, see the station guides for Barcelona Sants, Madrid Atocha, Madrid Chamartin, Seville Santa Justa, Malaga Maria Zambrano, Alicante, Valencia, Vigo.
Interrail & Eurail
Interrail & Eurail passes are not valid on Avlo.
How to buy tickets
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Thetrainline.com sells tickets for Avlo. Easy to use, overseas credit cards no problem, in €, £ or $. Small booking fee. It allows seat choice from a seat map.
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Omio.com also Avlo, also easy to use, in €, £ or $. Small booking fee.
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Raileurope.com doesn't currently sell tickets for Avlo.
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You can of course book at Renfe's own website www.renfe.com (or avlorenfe.com), in €, not the easiest site to use as it tends to slip back into Spanish even if you select Ingles, it's often poorly worded and it has a reputation for rejecting some overseas credit cards. It allows seat choice from a seating plan for an €8 fee, with direction of travel shown.