Renfe accessibility guide

Adif Acerca is the consistent label for platform assistance across the Spanish rail network. The service has three jobs: meet you at the agreed point at the origin station, escort you across the station and onto the train (with a portable boarding ramp at the carriage door where the platform is not level with the floor), and meet you at the destination to escort you off and to your onward connection or the station exit. Luggage help is included.

If your journey changes trains at a hub such as Madrid Atocha, Barcelona Sants or Seville Santa Justa, the Adif Acerca team at the connecting station is briefed in advance and waits for you. The service is free regardless of operator, train type, or fare class. You do not pay extra for the assistance itself; you pay only for the seat or the wheelchair space.

Older signage and some third-party guides still refer to the service as Atendo. That was the previous brand name. The current operational name on Renfe and Adif materials is Adif Acerca. Both names point to the same service; if a station office sign reads Atendo, walk in anyway.

There are three primary Adif Acerca booking channels. You can walk into an Adif Acerca head office at a station and book in person, send an email to oca.asistenciapmr@adif.es, or call the help-desk telephone number 91 774 40 40. In practice most non-residents book through Renfe at the counter or on the Renfe freephone, because Renfe pairs the ticket and the assistance in one transaction and emails or texts the confirmation reference.

Two lead times apply, depending on the station class. Permanent-service stations (the major hubs, 70 in total) accept reservations up to 30 minutes before train departure. Ad-hoc stations (the wider set of 76) need at least 12 hours of notice because the platform staff travel to the station for confirmed bookings. If your origin is ad-hoc and your trip is closer than 12 hours away, you will need to start the rail leg from the nearest permanent-service station and bridge the first stretch by accessible taxi or accessible road service.

Once booked, you will receive a message 48 hours before the trip reminding you of the assistance requested. Keep the confirmation reference on you. If the message has not arrived 24 hours before you travel, call the Adif Acerca head office on 917 744 040 (daily 06:00 to 00:00) or the Renfe freephone on 91 320 320 to re-confirm.

Renfe trains have three on-board options for a traveller with reduced mobility. The first is the wheelchair space: a flat area with tie-down attachment points for the chair, an adjacent companion seat, and an accessible toilet in the same carriage. Wheelchairs and electric scooters using this space must fit within 700 mm wide, 1,300 mm deep, and 1,400 mm high, the limits set by Royal Decree 1544/2007 and Royal Decree 537/2019. Check the manufacturer specification of your chair or scooter against those numbers before you book.

The second option is Plaza H, Renfe's reduced-mobility reserved seat. Plaza H is intended for travellers who do not use a wheelchair on board but still need an accessible seating area near the carriage door and accessible toilet. Plaza H is not bookable through the standard Renfe.com flow; request it by calling 912 320 320 when you book the ticket. Plaza H availability varies by train number and class, so confirm at the time of booking.

The third option is a regular seat, on the condition that your wheelchair or electric scooter is foldable for easy transport. Rigid-frame manual chairs and non-folding power chairs need either the wheelchair space or Plaza H, not a regular seat. If you are unsure which category your equipment falls into, ask the Renfe agent at the counter to flag the booking with the chair type so the platform team can prepare the right space.

AVE is Renfe's high-speed network. It connects Madrid with Barcelona, Seville, Valencia, Málaga and most major capitals, and is the most modern and accessible part of the fleet. Wheelchair spaces, accessible toilets, and on-board ramps for level boarding are standard. Book the Adif Acerca assistance and the wheelchair-space ticket together so the platform team and the carriage layout are aligned.

Alvia and Avant services cover medium-distance and intercity routes; the rolling stock is more varied and the on-board accessibility is generally good but not uniform. When you book, ask the Renfe agent to confirm that the specific train number has a wheelchair space and an accessible toilet. Older Alvia rolling stock on some lesser-used branches may not.

Cercanías (in most of Spain) and Rodalies (the equivalent Catalan-language brand in Barcelona) handle commuter networks around the largest cities. Accessibility varies considerably by line and station. Adif Acerca coverage on these networks is more selective than on long-distance services; if your route uses a Cercanías or Rodalies leg confirm with Renfe or Adif whether the specific stations on your itinerary have assistance staffed at the time you travel.

Adif Acerca assistance is free for everyone, foreign visitors included. There is no Spanish residency requirement to use the service. Bring your home-country disability ID; if the ID does not state your equivalent grado clearly, bring a recent doctor's letter on hospital letterhead as well. Spanish staff are most comfortable when both documents are presented together.

Spanish-resident discount cards (the Tarjeta Acreditativa de la Discapacidad and the Carnet Joven scheme) are tied to domestic residency and certified grado under the LGDPD. Visitors are not eligible. The European Disability Card is similarly out of reach because Spain is not currently in the EDC pilot; an EDC from another EU member state is not the document Renfe staff are trained to read.

The practical fare advice for non-residents is to book at the station counter rather than online. The agent can record your home-country disability ID against the booking and apply any disabled-passenger fare reduction the company offers on the route in question. Online channels do not reliably handle non-resident documentation; the counter does.

Hand luggage on Renfe domestic services is capped at 3 pieces per passenger, with a combined weight of no more than 25 kg and combined linear dimensions of no more than 290 cm. Mobility equipment and assistive devices do not count against the limit. If you are travelling with everyday luggage and spare equipment (a folding chair, a scooter charger, a prescription medical kit), flag both at the counter so they are recorded against the booking and the platform team plans the right amount of stowage.

Service dogs travel free with their handler under Spanish accessibility law. Bring the dog's vaccination record and any home-country service-dog certification; staff at major stations are familiar with foreign service-dog setups and will not raise objections if the paperwork is in order.

Spare batteries for electric chairs and scooters are accepted on board within the standard airline-style lithium battery rules; declare any spare battery at the counter at the time of booking so it can be confirmed against the rolling stock for your specific train.

If your Adif Acerca booking is in place but the staff are not at the agreed meeting point at the agreed time, ask the station staff at the ticket office to record the assistance failure on the day and note the time. Take a photo of the platform clock if it is safe to do so. Keep your confirmation reference, your ticket and any timed evidence; these are the documents Renfe customer service will ask for if you submit a complaint afterwards.

Rail travel within and from Spain is covered by EU rail passenger rights, which oblige rail operators and infrastructure managers to provide free assistance to persons with disabilities and reduced mobility and to compensate travellers when booked assistance fails to materialise. If Renfe's response is unsatisfactory, the Spanish transport ministry handles enforcement complaints. The country hub on this site links the relevant regulatory framework.