Always memorable unforgetable Cuenca, in the Autonomous community of Castilla La Mancha, and Kingdom of Spain ! We have many many memorable moments of our trips to Cuenca, we intend to continue the tradition of going by there in the future. I have written many posts on Cuenca , and decided to update this older post for the memories of always and fresh links and text. We came there by car but move about in public transports and would like to tell you a bit about them. Therefore, here is my take on getting around in Cuenca !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I
Indeed ,the fastest way to get to Cuenca is by train, especially since the inauguration of the Madrid-Levante AVE line in 2010. Originating in Madrid, the AVE departs from Atocha station and takes just under an hour to reach Cuenca. Those trains also pass through Albacete, before reaching Valencia or Alicante. From Valencia the trip to Cuenca takes just under an hour. For its part, from Alicante it takes about an hour and a half. The Cuenca AVE Train Station is located on the outskirts; by Avenida Cerro de Estrellas s/n going out towards the N420 direction Mota del Cuervo at about 5 kms or 3 miles; to get to the city center you can use line 1 of the urban buses.
The main bus terminal at calle Fermin Caballero is in city center near the train station adif (normal trains not AVE) with buses to many cities including Toledo and Madrid! This city train station is at Calle Mariano Catalina 10 . Other bus companies that have lines from Madrid bus station call Madrid Sur, also knonw as Méndez Álvaro station to Cuenca are Avanzabus and Aisa.
The Cuenca-Fernando Zóbel AVE station is a high-speed train station on the outskirts of the city of Cuenca, administered by Adif, and inaugurated with the inaugural trip of the Madrid-Cuenca-Albacete high-speed line that entered service with the inauguration of the Madrid-Cuenca-Albacete / Valencia section of the Madrid / Castilla-La Mancha / Valencian Community / Region of Murcia high-speed line on December 18 from 2010. ADIF provides rail service to the city along with the Cuenca train station, located in the center of the city, and in which the Iberian gauge trains serve, connecting Cuenca with the towns of the province, towns of the East of Toledo, towns in the province of Valencia and the city of Valencia itself to the North Station. On the southeast façade of the station, with an area of 5,400 m², is the area made up of a public space plaza, the waiting stand for taxis and the docks for buses and for buses. Line 1 of the Cuenca urban bus connects the station with the city center.
The Cuenca train station is located in the heart of the city. It exclusively offers medium-distance services, both stations AVE and City, are connected by line 12 of the urban bus, so if you want to travel from one to the other you should have no problem. Thus, it is possible to reach it from Madrid in 3 hours thanks to the regional train, with a daily frequency of 5 trains in both directions. To get to the historic center of the city, the main urban bus lines are 1 and 2. From the central station you can easily walk to Cuenca’s old town, bus line 1, with a stop in front of the station, which will take you will take the Plaza Mayor in half an hour.
Now our experience has been with Line 1 as this one takes you from the old town Plaza Mayor on a nice circular ride thru the city and into the two train stations and the bus terminal. The ride is very nice clean buses , friendly service and very cheap 1.20€ for single ride! The Calle Alfonso VIII is very nice with an underground tunnel ,Puente de la Trinidad bridge, the Plaza de la Constitucion, to reach the bus station Calle Fermin Caballero! from here you go thru some residential area towards the AVE train station outside city limits, and you come back into the city passing by the train/bus station again ; the Calle Colon has nice buildings to marvel at the architecture of yesteryear, the picturesque Plaza de la Trinidad , and the Calle San Juan takes you nearby the park Huécar back into Calle Alfonso VIII which is hilly taking you back to Plaza Mayor. A very nice ride who needs the tourist bus lol !
We ,also took Line 2 for shopping on city outskirts at Centro Comercial El Mirador. This is a circular line too, and takes you from the parking of the old castle , passing under the Arco de Bezudo (an arch ,marking limits of city) the old ruin castle passing by Plaza Mayor, and you get to see the main artery Avenida Castilla La Mancha, and the Plaza de Toros (bullfight arena) another big artery with govt building is the Avenida Reyes Catolicos and later the centro comercial El Mirador shopping center , and you can continue the ride passing pretty much the same streets as above and on Line 1 back to the parking for the old castle.
The Centro Comercial El Mirador we went to check out Carrefour for groceries for our rental house and had a beer at Cerveceria 100 Montaditos . For reference mall webpage : https://elmiradordecuenca.com/encuentra-tu-tienda/
The city of Cuenca on the bus terminal (see line 1 and 2 as they pass by trains stations) : https://www.cuenca.es/portal/lang__es/tabid__26275/default.aspx
The ADIF AVE Fernando Zobel train station : https://www.adif.es/w/03208-cuenca-fdo.-z%C3%B3bel
The ADIF Cuenca train station : https://www.adif.es/w/66100-cuenca
The Transviago Cuenca urban bus lines : https://transviago.com/lineas-urbanas-cuenca/
There you go folks, a lovely town Unesco World Heritage Site and recommended for a visit. Of course, for its size the public transports are tops, for a escapade from Madrid not even need a car and that is major from me. Again, hope you enjoy the post on getting around Cuenca as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 
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