How to take a rail journey from Barcelona to Valencia

Final Destination: Alicant or Valencia

These trains also call at: Castello de la Plana

Departing from Barcelona Sants:

Aim to be at Barcelona Sants a minimum of 20 mins before departure, in order to allow time to pass through the security checks.
At Barcelona Sants station these trains depart from the AVE area of the station vias (platforms/tracks) 1 - 6.

These trains no longer also depart from Barcelona Franca station.

Arriving in Valencia:

These Euromed trains arrive at Valencia-Joaquin Sorolla station, but the alternative trains arrive at Valencia-Nord station - which is more conveniently situated for the city centre.

It can take 10-15 mins to make the transfer between stepping off these Euromed trains at Joaquin Sorolla station and being on the main concourse at Valencia Nord.

The concourse at Valencia Nord station also has access to the Valencia Metro, while Joaquin Sorolla has no metro station (it's nearest station at Jesus is a 5 - 8 min walk away).
So if you're final destination is on a Valencia Metro line, those other express trains can also be the better option.

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: around 30 - 40 days ahead

If you look up this journey on Trainline select 'Valencia (Spain)' as the destination and on Renfe select 'Valencias (Todas)
Do so and the search results will feature both these journeys by these Euromed trains and the slightly slower alternative express trains.
Though the search results on Trainline won't distinguish between these types of train service, while Renfe will do so.

It can pay off to be as flexible as possible regarding departure and arrival times, because for these trains on this route it’s not unusual for a few departures to be available at much cheaper price, regardless of how far ahead you will be booking.
The limited numbers of tickets released for sale at very cheapest prices also inevitably sell out, so if possible book more than a couple of months ahead and you’ll be more likely to find them available.
Though from the moment the tickets are placed on sale, some departures will be cheaper than others.

Prémium tickets are only available for journeys by the Euromed trains.

These Euromed trains can be cheaper than the IC trains, it's the popularity of the specific departure and not how fast it is, which determines the ticket prices.
However, there are typically no Euromed trains from Barcelona-Sants between 10:00 and 14:30, but two IC trains depart during this time period.

Rail Pass Users:

You'll save €4 if you have a 2nd class pass and more than €12 if you have a 1st class pass, if you avoid these Euromed trains and take those alternative express trains instead.

Spanish national rail operator RENFE does not sell rail pass reservations online, but reservations for journeys on the AVE, Alvia and Euromed trains are now available by using the Eurail reservation service or the InterRail reservation service.

The only option, other than booking them at a station in Spain, is to pre-reserve seats by calling Renfe phone sales: +34 91 232 03 20.

Pre-reserving a seat is possible up to 24 hours before a train's departure. You will receive a PNR code which you must use to pick up and pay for your reservation at a local station ticket office, making sure to show your Interrail Pass. You must collect your reservation within 72 hours. After this time the pre-reservation will expire.
Please note that a pre-reservation is not the same as a reservation. It only holds a seat for you for 72 hours.

The express train service between Barcelona and Valencia is divided between these trains and alternative Euromed services.

These trains are typically* around 45 mins slower than the Euromed trains, but those Euromed trains can be cheaper.
Though it's worth comparing prices for the two services and the 'Ticketing information' below has more info about how to do that.

*= The daily Torre Oro train, which typically departs from Barcelona Sants at 09:13, has a journey time of 3hr 7, while the IC trains have journeys times of a little over 3hr 35min.

Final Destination:
IC trains = Alacant or Cartagena or Muricia or Valencia
Torre Oro train = Cadiz

These trains also call at: Castello de la Plana

Departing from Barcelona:

Aim to be at Barcelona Sants a minimum of 20 mins before departure, in order to allow time to pass through the security checks.

The IC trains will depart from vias (platforms/tracks) 11 - 12, while the Torre Oro train will depart from vias 1-6.

Arriving in Valencia:

An advantage of taking these trains is that they arrive at Valencia-Nord station
It is more conveniently situated for the city centre than Valencia-Joaquin Sorolla station, which is the station that those Euromed trains arrrive at.

It can take 10-15 mins to make the transfer between stepping off an alternative Euromed train at Joaquin Sorolla station and being on the main concourse at Valencia Nord.

The concourse at Valencia Nord station also has access to the Valencia Metro, while Joaquin Sorolla has no metro station.
So if you're final destination is on a Valencia Metro line, these trains can be the better option

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: around 30 - 40 days ahead

If you look up this journey on Trainline select 'Valencia (Spain)' as the destination and on Renfe select 'Valencia (Todas)'.
Do so and the search results will feature both these journeys and the alternative Euromed services

Though the search results on Trainline won't distinguish between the types of train service, while Renfe will do so.

This is also a journey on which you can save by booking at least a couple of weeks ahead, though the cheapest tickets inevitably sell out fastest on the most popular departures. head, and can be flexible with your timings, it can pay off search through the day's departures to find the cheaper prices.

Those Euromed trains can be cheaper than these trains. it's the popularity of the specific departure and not how fast it is, which determines the ticket prices.
However, there are no Euromed trains from Barcelona-Sants between 10:00 and 14:30, but two IC trains depart during this time period.

Rail Pass Users:

You'll save €4 if you have a 2nd class pass and more than €12 if you have a 1st class pass, if you avoid the Euromed trains and take these Talgo trains instead.

Or you can avoid paying any rail pass reservation fees at all, if you take the daily Regional-Express train from Barcelona to Valencia.

This train is usually scheduled to depart from Barcelona Sants daily at 10:00.

It also commences its journey at Barcelona Franca at 09:43 and also departs from Passeig De Gracia station in central Barcelona at 09:54.

As reservations aren't available on what is usually a busy train, you can increase your chances of finding a seat if you board at Passeig De Gracia or Franca stations.

Book early and save: No

If you can book around even a week ahead, then it's likely that the express trains will be cheaper (and faster) - tickets aren't discounted for this Regional Express service.

If you'll be heading to Valencia from Barcelona in the morning and booking tickets last minute at the station, you won't make big savings compared to taking the Torre Orro train, which is faster by more than two hours.

Rail Pass Users:

Reservations aren't available on this Regional Express train, so if you're travelling on a budget and won't mind spending longer to reach Valencia than on the express trains, you can avoid reservation fees  if you'll be travelling with a valid Eurail or InterRail pass.

If you have a 2nd class pass you'll save €6 compared to taking the IC and Torre Oro trains and if you'll be travelling with a 1st class pass you'll save €10.
Though as this train is 2nd class only, there's quite a contrast between travelling on this train and in Comfort/1st class, on the IC trains.