I go to Madrid a lot, and lived there ,but public transport is not my forte. I rather take my car and then walk, last resort take the bus. Metro/subway is last before trains of course unless business trips required it. Nevertheless, the Atocha station is done almost like a museum or park , and I have enjoy it getting there and using the cercanias trains. Over the years, I have tried my share of train rides in Spain and Europe (once in USA). However, Atocha in Madrid the idea behind this post ,visited even eaten inside by the garden , and use the Cercanias C trains. I like to tell you a bit more about the Atocha train station of Madrid.
The Atocha train station is one of the two terminus stations of the RENFE network in Madrid and the largest railway station in Spain. It is situated in the Atocha-Mediodía district, in the district of Arganzuela. It is at the same time a railway station of main lines ensuring the service of the south and west (Andalucia and Extremadura), East (Levant) and northeast (Aragon and Catalonia), especially the cities of Algeciras, Sevilla, Cordoba, Malaga, Zaragoza, Lleida, Barcelona and Valencia, etc. It also serves as an international station (towards France), and as a suburban railway station (Cercanías trains), making the service of the metropolitan area of Madrid.
The building of the Atocha train station, was inaugurated in 1851 under the name of Estacion del Mediodia (afternoon station). It was the first station in Madrid. A fire destroyed in large part of the structure, which was rebuilt in iron from 1888 to 1892. It is considered a masterpiece of 19C railway architecture. In 1992, it was added with a garden of 4 000 m² with 7 000 trees and plants, including large palm trees, in the old train hall. The station’s metal and glass structure covering the platforms made its easy to use it as a greenhouse with ponds. And the trees are about 260 different species from America, Asia, and Australia.
It is connected to the station of Chamartin by the tunnel of the Risa (laugh) which was recently doubled by a new tunnel of the Risa II to ungorge the first which arrived at saturation. It crosses the center of Madrid and it is gap for the circulation of the Cercanias or commuter train . At Atocha is the arrival point of the high-speed trains (AVE) coming from Sevilla-Santa Justa, Malaga, Lleida, Barcelona ,Valencia and Alicante as well as from Toledo. The railway services in Spain is operated by RENFE but the management of the station as the ticket sales etc is ensured by ADIF.
There are at the Puerta de Atocha platforms 1 to 15, numbered from left to right as you look towards the trains.Immediately on the east side of the 15 high-speed terminus platforms which constitute Puerta de Atocha, there are 10 through platforms one level below ground referred to as Atocha-Cercanías. Atocha-Cercanías platforms are numbered 1 to 10 from left to right as you look south. If you arrive in the Puerta de Atocha terminus platforms as all AVE trains ( high speed trains) and most other mainline trains do, you need to go up the escalators onto the arrivals footbridge then through the long arrivals passageway to the arrivals exit. There are luggage lockers (Consigna) in the corner of the old trains , past the Burger king restaurant. The bags are X-rayed just inside the entrance before being deposited. The main Sala Club at Madrid Atocha is open 05h15-21h30; Mondays-Saturdays, 06h-21h30 Saturdays & Sundays, with complimentary tea, coffee, snacks & beer as well as free WiFi. It is located inside the main high-speed train departures area on the first floor. The trains to and from Lisbon and northern Spain usually use Madrid Chamartin station in the north of the city. The trains south to Sevilla, Granada, Malaga leave from Madrid Atocha station. Metro line 1 links Atocha to Chamartin stations, but it’s easier and faster to transfer between stations by frequent suburban C8a (Cercanias) train as this is just a handful of stops, just look for the orange and white ‘C’ logo. The station is serve by metro line 1 as well as bus 27 ,best from Nuevos Ministerios coming from the airport, taxis available in bunches outside the station . The airport EMT local bus 200 stops in Atocha as well as the Express airport bus 203 stops Atocha and Cibeles. Great ride to Cibeles taken.
Facing the main entrance of the station, a memorial commemorates the terrorist attacks of 11 March 2004. In a cylindrical and translucent form, it includes the names of the victims and the reproductions of texts deposited on the spot by passersby. This is Spain’s version of 9-11.
The Madrid tourist office on Atocha: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/tourist-information/estacion-de-atocha
The ADIF train network on the Puerta de Atocha trains station of Madrid : https://www.adif.es/en/w/60000-madrid-puerta-atocha?pageFromPlid=335
The ADIF train network on the Atocha Cercanias station of Madrid : https://www.adif.es/en/w/18000-atocha-cercan%C3%ADas?pageFromPlid=335
There you go folks, a wonderful train station as told by me, Hope you visit the Atocha train station of Madrid ,worth the detour even for when not taken trains. And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 