Is there a train strike in Spain on Nov. 2? Yes, and if you booked with Ouigo, your train isn't running. The budget high-speed rail company has canceled every one of its trains on Monday because of a strike by its drivers, the same move it made on Friday, Oct. 30. Together, the two days affect close to 20,000 passengers, and the dispute isn't over. More partial strikes are planned through early December. It's also landing at a rough moment for travel in Spain, where last week's deadly train crash has already knocked out service between Madrid and Andalusia.
What's Canceled and When
Ouigo's drivers, represented by the union SEMAF, are striking over what they describe as excessive working hours, punishing shift patterns and too little rest. Ouigo, which is owned by France's national railway SNCF and sells some of the cheapest high-speed tickets in Spain, decided to cancel its full schedule rather than run a partial one.
On Monday, Nov. 2, that means no Ouigo trains at all. The company normally connects 15 Spanish provinces, including Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante, Zaragoza and Murcia. Trains on Saturday and Sunday are running normally.
The strike calendar keeps going after that. Drivers plan partial walkouts from 6 a.m. to noon and from 6 p.m. to midnight on Friday, Nov. 6, and Monday, Nov. 9, and again on Dec. 4 and 8. Ouigo hasn't said yet whether it'll cancel everything on those days too. Making things murkier, a Spanish court has temporarily suspended the minimum service rules that normally guarantee some trains run during a strike, so check your booking a day or two before every one of those dates. All of this is separate from Spain's nationwide general strike on Nov. 11, which is expected to hit trains and flights across the country.
Spain isn't alone, either. Italy has been hit by its own wave of transport strikes this fall, and here's how they've affected flights there.
Your Refund Options
If your Monday train was canceled, Ouigo says it's emailing affected passengers with two choices. You can move to another date for free or ask for a full refund. Ouigo is also reportedly offering compensation on top of that, worth up to double the ticket price. If you haven't heard from Ouigo, check the email linked to your booking, including spam, before heading to the station.
Other high-speed operators, Renfe and Iryo, aren't part of this strike. They're still the obvious backup on routes like Madrid to Barcelona, though seats on Monday may be harder to find as Ouigo passengers look for a way out.
Flying Instead
For the longest Ouigo routes, flying can make sense, especially Madrid to Barcelona. It's one of the busiest air routes in Europe, with Iberia's shuttle and Vueling running flights through the day. Just remember that by the time you get to the airport, go through security and get back into the city, the train usually wins on total time.
Flights south are already busy. Since the crash near Urda shut the Madrid–Andalusia line, Iberia has capped some fares between Madrid and Andalusia at €99, and that cap runs through Nov. 8. If you were planning on Ouigo to the south anyway, that route was already suspended, so a flight is likely your best bet. For Valencia and Alicante, a rental car or one of the long-distance buses can be cheaper than a last-minute flight, and in a country this good at road trips, it may even be the nicer way to go.
